Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
cciaffone

Cleaning a Toilet Bowl

cciaffone
13 years ago

I need some better ideas. For years I have used

Muriatic acid to clean the mineral deposits

down in the toilet bowl. But would like something

a bit less primitive. What do y'all use??

Surely science and technology have given us

something better (and safer as well).

Comments (21)

  • graywings123
    13 years ago

    You might try cleaning the toilet bowl every day or every other day. Not a major clean, just go over the bowl area and the rim. It takes maybe 10 seconds, but it will help keep the minerals from attaching.

    I use the Scotch Brite toilet scrubber. It seems to have more abrasive action against the porcelain bowl than a standard toilet brush does. It is sold as a one-time-throw-away product, but I use it for a couple months before replacing the head.

    A whole house water filter might be the way to go.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Scotch Brite toilet scrubber

  • albert_135   39.17°N 119.76°W 4695ft.
    13 years ago

    I don't think there is anything better than HCl, an impure concentrated form is sold as muriatic acid. I buy it diluted and sold as a toiled bowl cleaner at the dollar store as this is a little bit easier to handle and does not smell so strong.

  • cciaffone
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    OK, so it's back to the Muriatic acid. Works
    great, but the smell is a bit much.

    Thanks and all.

  • arizonny
    13 years ago

    I've posted this before but I'll post it again. A small piece of drywall sandpaper is the BEST thing to get a hard water ring/deposit out of your toilet. Will not scratch and works in a flash.

  • caavonldy
    13 years ago

    All you need is a quick daily swish with the toilet brush. If you do it every day, the mineral deposits don't build up. Take a minute to wipe down the toilet and toilet seat with a cloth to keep it all clean. Once a week I give the whole bathroom a wipe down with a 10% bleach and water mix. I use a microfiber cloth to wipe off all surfaces except the floor. I clean the floor with a steam mop.

  • emma
    11 years ago

    I clean my TB every 2 or 3 days with the cheapest dish washing liquid I can buy or any shampoo I don't like. My friend said that won't sanitize it. I told her I wasn't going to drink out of it. I do use something stronger every 2 or 3 months, can't tell if it's any cleaner. Looks the same.

  • jannie
    11 years ago

    One thing I buy at 99 cent and dollar stores is cheap shampoo. It makes a great kitchen and bathroom cleaner when mixed with water -gentle on my hands, cleans okay and leaves a nice smell. I keep a bowl brush next to my toilet and clean it at least 3 times a week, if not daily.

  • mustang49
    11 years ago

    Vinegar and lemon juice, natural and it works good.

  • Rudebekia
    11 years ago

    I've had excellent success with Barkeeper's Friend.

  • oasisowner
    11 years ago

    Barkeeper's Friend

  • jannie
    11 years ago

    I pour in about a cup of bleach, let it sit, scrub with a brush, and flush.

  • blairgirl
    11 years ago

    I use bleach, but if the stains and build up are bad, I shut off the water and get the water level as low as possible. I wet half sheets of paper towels with bleach and slap them on all the areas with problems, and put some bleach in the water left in the bowl.

    Close the lid and come back in an hour or so. The stains will be gone (and the paper towels will be dissolved by the bleach.) Turn the water back on, flush, then scrub and flush again.

    Result: sparkling clean toilet with a minimum of work. (My favorite cleaning ritual!)

  • emma
    11 years ago

    The stains in the stool are like the stains on your teeth, it is the tartar or calcification that is stained. If you flush it often it should not calcify. My bathroom down stairs has only been used 2 or 3 times but I flush it every time I go down there.

    Why would any one need muratic acid to clean a stool, don't understand that or sandpaper. I have never had anything in the stool that was hard to clean, even when renting.

  • Spicebush
    11 years ago

    I had a brown stain in the toilet where the water was. I tried vinegar, baking soda, Barkeepers Friend, The Works, and something else like CLR or some combination of letters! Nothing worked. I put two Efferdent denture cleaning tablets in and left if several hours while gone to town and the stain was gone. I didn't have to scrub it at all.

  • ermachef
    11 years ago

    We go to Arizona in the winter and can only have our toilets flushed once a week by a neighbor so I always have a build up when we get back. I have used CTL and it seems to work pretty well.

  • emma
    11 years ago

    That brown stain where the water was is the calcification or build up of something. That is what's stained. Use a toilet bowl cleaner and let is set a few minutes and scrub it with a brush.

    I am hesitant on using bleach. Someone recommended Clorox Clean up with bleach to remove stains in the sink. I used it on my kitchen sink which was new and it ruined the finish on the chrome drain ring and little crossbar that stops things from going down. Now it is rusted. Evidently it took off the protective finish. No telling what pure bleach will do the pipes.

  • PRO
    modern life interiors
    11 years ago

    bump

  • blairgirl
    11 years ago

    "I am hesitant on using bleach. Someone recommended Clorox Clean up with bleach to remove stains in the sink. I used it on my kitchen sink which was new and it ruined the finish on the chrome drain ring and little crossbar that stops things from going down. Now it is rusted. Evidently it took off the protective finish. No telling what pure bleach will do the pipes. "

    Well, most people's toilets aren't made of a metal - unless they're in prison or something. I also rather doubt that bleach is going to hurt the pipes, since people use bleach every day in their washing machines, and that water doesn't evaporate when it leaves the washer.

    Bleach is fine to use in a toilet. Just don't mix it with ammonia.

  • emma
    11 years ago

    I don't know if bleach will hurt the lines so I don't use it. Besides I don't find it necessary to use.

    Bleach in your laundry is diluted a lot and there is enough water running through the lines to reach the bigger sewer pipes. Unless you ruin a lot of water down the sink line it just sits in the trap or house lines.

    This post was edited by EmmaR on Mon, Feb 11, 13 at 9:25

  • jerry_nj
    11 years ago

    Reviewing looking for ideas.

    I have Muriatic acid left over from some outside project,maybe I can put some to good use in my toilet cleaning efforts... sounds like I should wait for a warm day when I can afford to have the windows open wide... and I suppose dilute it too. What is done, just add some to a cleanly flushed bowl and use a brush to get it on the sides (just like when using bleach)? Seems that would also address the need to dilute. Is it septic tank safe?

    Then the the Scotch Brite toilet scrubber may be worth a try given they can be stretched out to multiple uses.. say when cleaning three toilets, just carry the scrubber to the next, and toss when done with the third. I had passed over these at the store thinking "another overpriced nothing added item", could be my guess was wrong.

    My master BR toilet and the toilet off the kitchen must each be flushed several times a day, and something builds up on the sides that looks dirty - as in stains.

  • emma
    11 years ago

    Erma, you might try turning the water off and removing any standing water in the stool before you leave.