Good grooming can get expensive. With all the costly crap that goes into keeping your body looking its best—designer moisturizers, expert-tested shampoos, etc.—we don’t blame you for being wary of parting ways with even a single tube, jar or bottle in your medicine cabinet. Yet there will come a time when your only option is to do just that, because just like the things you put into your body, everything you put onto it has the same capacity to go bad.

Now, we’ve already spoken about expiration dates. But without the proper care, the products you use can lose their edge long before they’ve been slated to expire. The keys to figuring out if that's happened lie in color, smell, consistency and efficacy. A change in any of these four factors can mean that a cream or pomade, body wash or acne solution is prematurely ready to meet its maker.

Which, of course, begs the question: Is there anything one can do to ensure that their favorite grooming product doesn't need to be scrapped a minute before it's supposed to be? As it turns out, the answer's a resounding yes, and it all comes down to how your treat your stuff. And so, here are a few tips to protect each of your grooming investments, so that they don’t need to be scrapped all too soon.

Moisturizers & Creams: In general, the stuff you slather on your skin to keep it looking younger for longer can last up to a year since you’ve opened it. That all depends, though, on which exactly you’re using. For example, brands that tout themselves as natural will often forsake adding any form of preservatives to their formulation, drastically decreasing shelf life. Either way, to make sure your creams don't lose their vigor any earlier than they should, keep your in a cool, dark place and, if possible, use pumps—these decrease products’ contact with air, keeping them fresher for longer.

Acne & Anti-Aging Products: Whether it’s benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid, retinoids or otherwise, a pimple or wrinkle-fighter won’t work without a potent active ingredient at its core. The trouble is that these chemicals are highly volatile; even in the best scenarios they only last about 3-6 months once they’ve been opened. Any longer than that, and they’re essentially kaput. So, to ensure you get at least that long, what you need to do is make sure to keep them out of direct sunlight, which can break down the effective chemicals, and in a cool place like the refrigerator, as this can slow down active ingredient decay.

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Sunscreen: Speaking of active ingredients, in order to protect you skin from harmful UV rays, sunscreen uses a specific formula of effective components that aren’t particularly fond of extreme swings in temperature. That’s why it’s important you keep yours at least room temperature at all times, getting rid of any that may have seen degree spikes—like those left in the car while you’ve been at the beach. These compromised bottles are more likely to become unstable, decreasing their ability to protect you. Stored properly, though, and sunscreen can survive a whole year since opened.

Soap and Shampoos: When it comes to the stuff you wash your body and hair with, what you’re less worried about is them losing their usefulness as you are about potential irritants growing on or in them. Yeah, we’re talking bacteria. So, when it comes to bar soap, make sure to put it in a dish that keeps it dry, instead of sitting in a puddle of filth. And with shampoo and body wash bottles, simply close the cap between uses; this will keep excess moisture from entering the bottle and giving germs a place to thrive. All goes correctly, and both can last about a year and a half since their first use. As for unopened bars and bottles, well they can last up to 3 years on their own, with the worst happening being that they dry up a bit.

Styling Products: So, you’ve been using the same jar of pomade for a while now, trying to make every drop count. While we applaud your frugality, there is one issue here, though, and that’s bacteria. Because each time you dip your fingers in, your introducing a whole host of new strains to the mix. To keep the petri dish as germ-free as possible, always use clean hand to style your hair. Other than that, there’s once again the issue of breakdown; both time and exposure to things like heat and moisture can alter a product’s functional ingredients, making them less effective. So stow them somewhere the shower’s steam can get them, and throw them out at the two year mark, if they last that long.

Antiperspirant: Lucky thing about antiperspirant: it’s naturally disinfectant. In fact, that’s part of the nature of how it works, by killing the bacteria in your underarm that cause body odor. So you can consider germs off the list of things that could make your deodorant go bad before its advertised expiration date (usually ~3 years). Another fortunate factor: Antiperspirant’s active ingredients tend to be pretty stable, regardless of temperature, sun or whatever other elements usually affect expiration. So go ahead, treat your stick of Old Spice like shit; the worst that’s going to happen is it’ll dry out, and even then, it’ll still probably work.

Cologne: No matter how pretty the bottles look, you’re better off keep your cologne somewhere dark instead of on display somewhere the sun can get to them. That’s because your favorite scent is made up of a delicate mixture of reactive chemicals. And while too much sun probably won’t make it smell bad before two year best-by date, it can throw off the balance, leaving you smelling a bit more bergamot (or whatever) than you might have hoped.

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