Cleaning Sinks & Toilets In a Flash
Master Baths Faster
Bathrooms get messy fast, but there's no reason you have to spend all
your spare time scrubbing them. For tried-and-true tips to speed up bathroom
cleaning, benefit from the extensive experience of the cleaning gurus
at Merry Maids.
Think Sink
- For light stains, rub your bathroom sinks with a fresh-cut lemon.
- For dark stains, such as rust, rub the sink with a paste of borax and lemon juice.
- Wipe a stainless steel sink with vinegar or a touch of oil on a cloth to make the sink sparkle.
- Club soda will give new shine to your counter tops.
- To freshen the drain, pour ¼ to ½ of a box of baking soda down the
drain, followed by ½ cup of white vinegar. Cover the drain tightly for
a few minutes and flush the drain with cold water.
Commode Cleaning
Toilet bowl ring
Bleach may take the color out of a toilet bowl ring, but the ring itself
continues to build up and stain. You can usually remove a young ring by
brushing briskly with acid bowl cleaner. If the chemical action of the
bowl cleaner doesn't dissolve the mineral buildup entirely, you can scrub
it with an abrasive (green) nylon-backed scrub pad while the acid is working.
An old ring involves a heavier encrustation and requires stronger measures.
However, avoid sandpaper, razor blades and other remedies than can result
in damage to you as well as to the bowl surface. Follow these steps:
- Get a pumice stone and wet it in the toilet water.
- Rub the pumice stone on the ring, keeping it wet while you scrub.
- Do not use pumice bars on colored, enameled, or plastic fixtures – only
on vitreous china toilets.
- Once you've removed the ring with the pumice bar, use bowl cleaner
twice weekly thereafter to keep it from reforming.
To prevent toilet bowl ring, consider these preventive measures.
- Clean the toilet bowl while you're away by pouring in ¼ cup of bleach
and leaving it until you return. (If your pets stay in the house, be
sure you close the lid.)
- Keep the toilet bowl ring-free by pouring a half-gallon of white vinegar
in it once a month. Let the vinegar soak overnight before flushing.
- Do not add bleach if you're already using a tank-held cleaner
that's released when the toilet is flushed. The resulting chemical reaction
can release dangerous fumes.
- To avoid clogging and odors, pour a cup of baking soda down the bowl weekly.
Toilet bowl cleaners
Safety is important when selecting and using toilet bowl cleaners. Most
toilet bowl cleaners contain either hydrochloric or phosphoric acid. Phosphoric
acid cleaners are less harmful but slower acting. Formulations containing
hydrochloric acid will get rid of hard-water deposits faster but must
be handled with GREAT CARE, as they can damage skin, fabrics, carpet and
metals. Nonacid cleaners are safer to use, but are less effective on hard-water
scale. Never use bowl cleaners anywhere except the inside of the toilet
bowl, and always use rubber gloves and eye protection when you apply them.
Nine-percent hydrochloric is reasonably safe to use – if you need to
use a bowl cleaner containing more than 20 percent, leave it to the professionals.
Odds and Ends
- If you have trouble getting to dirt in bathroom corners, cut an old
whisk broom at a 45-degree angle to make a pointed tool.
- To keep the bathroom fresh smelling inexpensively, place a fabric
softener sheet in the wastepaper basket. Or, add a dab of fragrance
on a light bulb. When the light is on, the heat will release the aroma.
To make bathroom cleaning even easier on yourself, schedule maid service
from the professionals at Merry Maids.
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To make bathroom cleaning even easier on yourself, schedule maid service
from the professionals at Merry Maids.
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