Keeping your bathroom ship-shape inevitably includes the chore no one ever wants to do: Cleaning the toilet. Getting this job done isn’t rocket science, but there are a few tips and tricks you can add to your cleaning routine. Frequent cleaning doesn’t take too much work and you’ll have a squeaky-clean toilet for longer if you go the extra mile. Freshen up your cleaning routine with a few of our tips – we’ll go through everything from the basics of cleaning a toilet bowl and cleaning the toilet seat to getting rid of tough stains and grime.
To clean the toilet properly, we recommend working from the inside out. That way, any drips or splashes (ick – we know, bear with us here…) which escape the bowl can be cleaned up at the end and you’re not doing twice the work you ought to be. Sounds good? Let’s get started.
Firstly, get all the gear you need. Toilet cleaner, a toilet brush, and disinfecting wipes are usually part of a household’s cleaning supplies, but we suggest going the extra mile here for the best way to clean a toilet. Get a pumice stone for cleaning brown stains on a toilet, elbow-length rubber gloves (You can see where this is going and while glam it ain’t, effective it sure is).
Now, add your toilet bowl cleaner to the bowl, and give it a good scrub with your toilet brush. This gets rid of any yucky residue, meaning that at least it is clean on the surface before you get a little closer. For really tough stains in the bowl, let the cleaner do its thing and sit for a bit. While this is happening, give the seat a good wipe down with the disinfectant wipes, and then lift the seat to get at the rim. Give this a proper wipe down too. You’ll want to get some toilet cleaner under the rim too to remove limescale or other build up from hard water. You may find that you get stains in the toilet from where the water flushes out – this is normal wear and tear, and you can correct staining with regular cleaning.
Rinse the toilet bowl by flushing it a few times. You can also rinse your toilet brush by holding it into the water stream of the flushing toilet. You should now have a clean toilet bowl, seat, and toilet rim. Now we’ll get to the expert stuff.
Grab your gloves ‘cause this is where you need to get up close and personal with your porcelain throne. Have you spotted rusty or beige stains in your toilet? You’re not the only one! Cleaning brown stains from your toilet needs extra work, but you won’t need to do it often.
If you can turn off your toilet’s water and drain it, do so, but you can clean your toilet just as well with the water still there. Put on your gloves, grab your pumice stone and get started on any stains there may be, both under and above the waterline. The minerals and chemicals in your water may add to discolouration, as well as urine deposit build up – sorry, had to be said. Pumice is an ideal alternative to steel wool (too hard and scratchy and could damage the porcelain) and sponges (too soft and won’t get the job done). Be like Goldilocks and use the tools that are just right and you’ll get a stain-free, clean toilet bowl quickly!
Tip! If you’re a little more squeamish (totally understandable), then you can also try and find a pumice stone on a stick, which acts like a toilet brush for stubborn stains.