The two stages
| Plaque | Tartar (calculus) | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Soft biofilm | Mineralised, hardened deposit |
| How fast it forms | Hours | Days, from undisturbed plaque |
| Can you remove it? | Yes, mechanically | No — professional removal only |
| How it looks in a photo | Soft, pale film | Harder-edged, often near the gum line and behind lower front teeth |
| What it does next | Mineralises if undisturbed | Provides a surface for more plaque |
The practical consequence: plaque is a habit problem, tartar is a scheduling problem. No product removes tartar, whatever the label implies.
What ToothPal's Cleanliness dimension reads
Oral Cleanliness reads surface buildup or staining patterns from your photos. It doesn't distinguish plaque from tartar and doesn't claim to — both present as buildup, and telling them apart reliably needs an instrument and a professional.
What it can do is show you the rate. A cleanliness reading that recovers after each brushing cycle and then declines through the week is a normal, healthy pattern. One that trends downward and never recovers is the pattern worth taking to an appointment.
The prevention is boring and it works
- Disturb plaque daily, everywhere, before it has days to mineralise.
- Between teeth counts — it's where undisturbed plaque most reliably sits.
- Behind the lower front teeth is the classic site, because a salivary duct opens nearby. Give it its own moment.
- Keep the professional cleaning schedule you were given. That's the only tartar removal that exists.
Questions
No. It's mineralised onto the tooth and requires professional instruments. Products that claim otherwise are generally acting on plaque or on surface stain.
It means buildup or staining patterns appear in your photo. It doesn't identify what they are. Appearance readings describe; they don't diagnose.
Whatever interval your dentist set for you — it varies a lot between people and is a clinical judgement, not an app's call.