# How does one use a condom incorrectly?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [August 29, 2009, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196 "2009-08-29T20:39:06Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 3
### Author:  [@wisernow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wisernow)
#### Post date: [September 1, 2009, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/41 "2009-09-01T21:57:45Z")
> [@EvilTOJ](#):
>
> OH sure, it’s easy to reuse a condom. Just turn it inside out and shake the fuck out of it.
>
> **Alex\_Dubinsky** I have personally ruptured a condom from it being too tightly rolled on at the top. It wasn’t the pressure upon release that did it, it was more about the \*\*friction not giving the latex room \*\*to give.
That must have been one dry vagina.
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### Author:  [@The\_Weird\_One](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Weird_One)
#### Post date: [September 1, 2009, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/42 "2009-09-01T23:00:04Z")
> [@Enright3](#):
>
> That’s the biggest load of bull I’ve ever heard. Over sized condoms are nothing but a marketing ploy. Certainly in terms of breakage. I suppose I could see where ones girth might make it feel snug, but… :rolleyes:
>
> I’ve seen a friend, as a party trick, inflate a condom and pull it over his head past his chin, and that was a long time ago. I’m sure condom technology has been increased even since then.
> [@Shot From Guns](#):
>
> There’s a difference between “it will go on” and “it will be comfortable.” I have, uh, shall we say “direct second-hand knowledge” of this.
I’m with **SFG** on this one. I think it’s the “neck” of the condom specifically, where it remains rolled up, that can squeeze too tightly and ruin an erection.
> [@wisernow](#):
>
> That must have been one dry vagina.
I’m guessing it was the friction between the penis and condom that caused the tear. Failure to add a bit of lube to the _inside_ of a condom is another way to use it incorrectly.
I’ve also heard that wearing multiple condoms at once increases the risk of failure, but I don’t remember why.
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### Author:  [@Hirundo82](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hirundo82)
#### Post date: [September 1, 2009, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/43 "2009-09-01T23:06:31Z")
> [@Serenata67](#):
>
> Like having [Ear Sex](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prick_Up_Your_Ears_(Family_Guy))?
Once you go black, you go deaf.
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### Author:  [@Telperien](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telperien)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2009, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/44 "2009-09-02T00:44:46Z")
> [@The\_Weird\_One](#):
>
> I’ve also heard that wearing multiple condoms at once increases the risk of failure, but I don’t remember why.
If I remember rightly, it’s because they tend to stick together and are thus more likely to slip off.
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### Author:  [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2009, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/45 "2009-09-02T01:15:53Z")
My observation from teaching HIV classes that require students to demonstrate correct condom technique: People do not pinch the tip. Air in the tip makes it more likely that the condom will tear from abrasion during sex.
You might also be amazed how many adult men have never used a condom and have no idea what to do with them. Most in this demographic tell me that only sex with another man (variant: with an American woman) can transmit HIV.
ETA:
> [@](#):
>
> multiple condoms at once
Again, abrasion.
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### Author:  [@Serenata67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Serenata67)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2009, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/46 "2009-09-02T01:54:04Z")
> [@Hirundo82](#):
>
> Once you go black, you go deaf.
But if you just need your ear canals cleaned, perhaps an Asian? Or if you’re a Roman Catholic priest, a boy would work. (BTW, I’m Catholic… and dislike clergy molestation jokes… but this was way to obvious.)
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### Author:  [@MeDrewNotYou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeDrewNotYou)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2009, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/47 "2009-09-02T03:04:49Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#):
>
> There’s a difference between “it will go on” and “it will be comfortable.” I have, uh, shall we say “direct second-hand knowledge” of this.
That. 🙂
> [@Enright3](#):
>
> That’s the biggest load of bull I’ve ever heard. Over sized condoms are nothing but a marketing ploy. Certainly in terms of breakage. I suppose I could see where ones girth might make it feel snug, but… :rolleyes:
>
> I’ve seen a friend, as a party trick, inflate a condom and pull it over his head past his chin, and that was a long time ago. I’m sure condom technology has been increased even since then.
What **TWO** said is also a factor
> [@The\_Weird\_One](#):
>
> snip
> I’m guessing it was the friction between the penis and condom that caused the tear. Failure to add a bit of lube to the _inside_ of a condom is another way to use it incorrectly.
> snip
If the condom is already on the tighter side, a little bit of extra friction in the right (wrong?) place can tear it. When blowing one up, though, you’re putting stress pretty equally across the whole thing, letting it all stretch.
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### Author:  [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2009, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/48 "2009-09-02T04:11:27Z")
I’m pretty sure that [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4FzLRjv7v-E) falls into the ‘not used correctly’ column.
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### Author:  [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2009, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/49 "2009-09-02T04:17:50Z")
> [@Projammer](#):
>
> I’m pretty sure that [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4FzLRjv7v-E) falls into the ‘not used correctly’ column.
No, because it would keep me from having sex with him.
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### Author:  [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2009, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/50 "2009-09-02T16:11:16Z")
> [@The\_Weird\_One](#):
>
> I’m with **SFG** on this one. I think it’s the “neck” of the condom specifically, where it remains rolled up, that can squeeze too tightly and ruin an erection.
Yup, that’s where the biggest (pardon the pun) problem was.
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### Author:  [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2009, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/51 "2009-09-02T21:00:49Z")
Okay, okay. A few more facts, if you don’t mind. Two more parts of “proper use” of a condom:
If you keep pumping after ejaculation, the action might “milk” the semen from the tip to the open end, especially if the woman is having an orgasm, too. Masters and Johnson found that the vagina goes through a series of pulsating muscular “grabs” during orgasm.
For best effectiveness, use your fingers to grasp the open end around the penis immediately after ejaculation and before withdrawl, to keep semen from escaping. This makes fatherhood and transfer of STDs much less likely.
Enright3 wrote:
> [@](#):
>
> That’s the biggest load of bull I’ve ever heard. Over sized condoms are nothing but a marketing ploy. Certainly in terms of breakage. I suppose I could see where ones girth might make it feel snug, but…
>
> I’ve seen a friend, as a party trick, inflate a condom and pull it over his head past his chin, and that was a long time ago. I’m sure condom technology has been increased even since then.
Nope. That’s mistaken. Just as women’s girly parts differ greatly, and are all beautiful, there are many different sizes and shapes of penises. When I was a teenager, condoms were all one size. That size was so tight on me that it was a struggle to not come from just the compression. Imagine wearing a pair of boys’ socks. You could get them on, but they’d feel strange all day.
Yes, condoms can be inflated to great size, but pre-inflating one has two problems. The girl is going to be skeeved out by watching you do that, and the stretching could compromise the safety of it.
There some quote from _Third Rock From The Sun_ about using a ribbed condom inside out “for my pleasure.”
The Fugs had a song about using Saran Wrap as a condom. “Tear it off, wrap it up, stick it in, Saran Wrap!” I can’t recommend that method. :rolleyes:
In the US, most of us say that if the vagina is not wet enough to be ready, it’s because the man doesn’t know what he’s doing. In some African cultures, though, men prefer a dry screw. Whether that makes for more broken condoms, I don’t know.
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### Author:  [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2009, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/52 "2009-09-02T21:49:35Z")
> [@AskNott](#):
>
> Masters and Johnson found that the vagina goes through a series of pulsating muscular “grabs” during orgasm.
They “found,” huh? I thought it was patently obvious to any woman who’d ever had an orgasm.
> [@](#):
>
> There some quote from _Third Rock From The Sun_ about using a ribbed condom inside out “for my pleasure.”
I was always a fan of, “Ribbed for her pleasure, but turned inside-out for mine.” Not sure where it was originally from, though.
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### Author:  [@Find\_Friends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Find_Friends)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2009, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/53 "2009-09-02T21:56:56Z")
> [@Harriet\_the\_Spry](#):
>
> … I think use of male and female condom at the same time would also be incorrect.
Right you are! Some AIDS-Rochester folks explained this in a seminar at a social program a few years ago. Each apparently can be compromised by friction with the other.
Which is a shame, IMHO, because otherwise they would seem to provide double protection.
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### Author:  [@The\_Weird\_One](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Weird_One)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2009, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/54 "2009-09-02T22:43:12Z")
> [@AskNott](#):
>
> In the US, most of us say that if the vagina is not wet enough to be ready, it’s because the man doesn’t know what he’s doing. In some African cultures, though, men prefer a dry screw. Whether that makes for more broken condoms, I don’t know.
I _think_ it does, but that’s based on an article I read somewhere several years ago. I remember it mentioned that bit about some men in Africa preferring a dry vagina and said that dry sex increases the risk of HIV transmission. I think it was a combination of:
1. lack of vaginal fluid, which is anti-microbial
2. increased probability of vaginal tears due to greater friction
3. increased probability of the condom breaking due to greater friction
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### Author:  [@Hadrian\_s\_Wall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hadrian_s_Wall)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2009, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/55 "2009-09-03T00:42:24Z")
> [@wisernow](#):
>
> That must have been one dry vagina.
Hehe, I have a huge smile on my face, but only because of [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hm7pp_JFOs)
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### Author:  [@MeDrewNotYou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeDrewNotYou)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2009, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/56 "2009-09-03T00:59:34Z")
> [@Hadrian\_s\_Wall](#):
>
> Hehe, I have a huge smile on my face, but only because of [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hm7pp_JFOs)
/shudder
I’m less about the smiling and more about the running away with my hands over my crotch. 😃
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### Author:  [@chaoticbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chaoticbear)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2009, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/57 "2009-09-03T02:42:29Z")
I’m not a straight porn connoisseur, but in gay porn, when they show someone putting on a condom, they will often keep it rolled up, stretch it larger than seems necessary, then unroll it in one fluid motion down to the base. No tip pinching, and it seems like it probably jams the head in the tip more forcefully.
I think my description probably sounds confusing, but I feel like an example would be very NSFW.
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### Author:  [@Klytus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Klytus)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2009, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/58 "2009-09-03T12:27:32Z")
> [@Enright3](#):
>
> That’s the biggest load of bull I’ve ever heard. Over sized condoms are nothing but a marketing ploy.
I’m no porn-star, but I am a bit thicker than normal - so much so I always hated using condoms because they were uncomfortably tight and really lowered my phallic tactile sensitivity. Then one night, a girlfriend of mine pulled out one of the larger-sized condoms. I said, “No way I’m that big!” She said, “Yeah. Right.” Sure enough, it fit, it stayed on, and was not uncomfortable. Now I don’t mind using them quite so much anymore 🙂
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### Author:  [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2009, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/59 "2009-09-03T18:12:21Z")
> [@Kobal2](#):
>
> …
> Pretty sure that’s biologically impossible, but hey, never let facts get in the way of a good story ;). …
Actually, it’s quite possible, there are numerous instances of twins with different fathers. Just takes a mom with 2 ripe-n-ready eggs at the same time, and opportunity with 2 different fellows in a short period of time.
The odds, in this situation, may not be that high (how long does sperm remain potent inside the condom?) but it’s not impossible.
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### Author:  [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2009, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-one-use-a-condom-incorrectly/508196/60 "2009-09-03T19:09:02Z")
> [@Mama\_Zappa](#):
>
> Actually, it’s quite possible, there are numerous instances of twins with different fathers.
Was \*\*Kobal2 \*\*questioning fraternal twins from different fathers, or being able to get pregnant by two different men by reusing the same condom inside-out? The former is clearly possible, but the latter does seem unlikely (though not completely impossible, as the first use of the condom could have weakened it enough to fail on second use).
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