Don't put your phone in the TSA bin — do this instead

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After years of traveling with a small arsenal of tech — usually a phone, iPad, laptop and a portable gaming console — I like to think I'm pretty efficient when it comes to taking them out of my bag at TSA checkpoints. But it's still a pain to hastily repack them while also putting on my shoes, grabbing my belt and just trying not to hold up the line of people behind me in the process.

Going through airport security can be a little stressful, and the last thing you're probably thinking about is how to properly stow away your loose items in the plastic bins. But we should all be a little more mindful of that, especially when it comes to our phones. For one thing, chucking your phone with all your other stuff is an easy way to lose track of it as you try to rush to your next flight.

But there's also another important factor to consider about why we shouldn't leave our phones, the one device we constantly touch and put up to our face, unprotected. And it has to do with basic hygiene.

I've never worked as a TSA officer, nor do I know anyone who has, but I'm fairly confident that the bins are rarely cleaned. I can understand why: When you think about the hundreds of thousands of people who go through US airports on a daily basis, and how understaffed the TSA can be, it'd take a lot of time and manpower to disinfect the bins and feed them back to the security lines.

But you don't have to be a germaphobe to realize how grimy those things can get. Tons of people touch them, they often have dirty shoes inside and you never know if someone is sick and placing their infected gear in there, too. Some studies even show that they can be a haven for viruses and bacteria. So if you want to avoid having any last-minute travel companions, you need to make sure your phone isn't in direct contact with the bins.  

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Before you get to the X-ray machine, you can tuck your phone away in your carry-on or in the pocket of a jacket that you place inside a bin. Same advice goes for any other small items you have to pull out for TSA, like wallets and keys. And of course, make sure to wash your hands or have some hand sanitizer ready to use when you're through with security. 

Contamination is harder to avoid with larger electronics, as most TSA checkpoints still require you to take laptops, tablets and handheld game consoles out of your bags and into a separate bin (unless the line you're in has a CT scanner that lets you leave everything inside). There isn't much you can do there, but at the very least, they should all have their own cases that protect them from the elements.