Cleaning the toilet with baking soda, vinegar and citric acid

Causes of urinary stone and limescale

If dirt and scale build up in the toilet, take immediate action to prevent bad odors and buildup of deposits.

Inside the toilet, the following types of pollution are formed:

Urinary stone is the result of laziness and negligence of the owners. Most often, yellow inconspicuous spots form on the plumbing of people who forget to flush after themselves. Initially, drops of urine dry up and form a thin hymen. With repeated absence of flushing, a stronger film is formed - urinary stone. You can get rid of it only by special methods, but it is better to prevent its occurrence by carrying out prevention.

Limescale - minerals contained in water (borehole or river, tap water). The more often you wash away after yourself, the more actively the film forms. You need to get rid of limescale regularly, because over time it clogs the holes that supply water to the toilet, which leads to plumbing failure.

Enameled plumbing is less prone to the formation of plaque that cannot be removed, but on rough surfaces it appears more often and more intensely.

Cleaning the surface of the toilet with baking soda and vinegar

What if the "faience friend" is decorated with a yellow coating and exudes an unpleasant odor? "Grandmother's" means will help clean the toilet:

Pour half a glass of baking soda into the toilet, add vinegar to this powder. Apply the mixture evenly to all surfaces. Depending on the degree of contamination, wait 10 to 30 minutes, then remove the plaque with a brush. Mix the remaining part of NaHCO3 with warm water until a slurry is formed and treat the external surfaces with this mass, rinse with water.
Take a glass of acetic acid, using a brush, rub it on the tank and other external and internal parts of the toilet. After 20-30 minutes, moisten the brush, sprinkle it with a handful of soda, then use it to clean the treated areas. Repeat the procedure until your "faience friend" gets rid of dirt and plaque.

Pay special attention to the rim - under it most of the dirt accumulates.

Both methods are great for bleaching and removing mold, dirt deposits, and bad odors. The only drawback of the second method is that it is suitable for cleaning only for those housewives who agree to put up with the pungent smell of acetic acid.

Watch the video: a blogger deliberately clogs a toilet pipe, and then tests folk methods to eliminate the blockage.

How to clean a washing machine with baking soda and vinegar

How to fix a toilet cistern

Over time, plaque accumulates on the walls of the tank and deposits form, which affects not only the drain system, but also the state of the toilet itself. So, rust is fraught with the appearance of yellow stripes in the places where water is drained, and lime deposits on the bottom violate the tightness of the valve, as a result of which the tank can barely noticeably leak.

To gain access to the inner surface of the tank, you must remove the cover. How to do it?

In older float-type models with a side lever, the cover is not fixed and can be easily removed by lifting it up.
In models with a vertical stem (the handle that you need to pull to drain the water), you should first pull the stem up and unscrew the handle from the thread, and then remove the cover.
Modern toilets with a push-button flush system are not much more difficult - to dismantle the lid, you need to remove the button along with the rim. This is done as follows: press the drain button and, holding it in this state, wrap the bezel counterclockwise several times; then you can release the button and freely unscrew the part.

Now it's time to start sanitary and hygienic procedures.The same products that are used to clean the toilet will help fix the problem inside the tank: acid-based gels, vinegar, oxalic acid, Coca-Cola, pipe cleaners (see recipes above).

Method 1. Drain the water from the tank. Pour a bottle of cleaning gel ("Sanoks", "Sanfor", "Adrilan") into the bottom of the tank, wait until the tank is filled with water, and leave for 8-10 hours.
Method 2. Apply a cleaning agent (liquid, acid powder, gel, vinegar with soda) to the walls, bottom, parts of the drain system with a sponge and wait for the allotted time, then rinse with warm water, drain, and refill the tank.

Chemistry on guard of purity

Improvised substances can clean non-critical pollution. When lime deposits look more like a toilet bowl coating, and the formation of a urinary stone has acquired a dark brown hue, folk remedies are useless. Only heavy artillery in the form of powerful chemical cleaners can cope here.

Orthophosphoric acid. This tool will help not only clean the mineral plaque on the bottom of the toilet, but also get rid of the rust that covers the details of the drain and filling fittings inside the tank. For cleaning, it is necessary to pour about 100-150 g of the drug into the bowl and into the toilet bowl, wait 10-15 minutes and thoroughly rinse the surface of the product with running water. The main advantage of this tool is that it does not destroy rubber and plastic products.

Hydrochloric acid

It must be used with extreme caution, protecting not only the skin, but also the respiratory tract. It is enough to wipe the limescale with a substance, and it immediately dissolves.

And to remove a urinary stone, pour ½ cup into the bowl and leave it for 10 minutes. When using, make sure that no plastic or rubber connections have been made when connecting the toilet. Hydrochloric acid will dissolve them along with plaque.

Chlorine. Used in whiteness and dissolves all organic compounds. Chlorine vapors are dangerous for the body, so this cleaning method is highly undesirable. Also, after using chlorine, rubber seals lose their elasticity and begin to leak water.

abrasive preparations. The use of powders in cleaning sanitary ceramics is quite effective. But small granules can leave microscopic scratches on the surface of the toilet, disturbing the smoothness of the product's coating, which subsequently leads to even more lime and urinary stone deposits.

It is best to use specialized detergents that are designed only for toilets. Be sure to read the product label before use.

With critical and extremely abundant growths of mineral deposits, you can use a liquid electrolyte, which is used in car batteries. Use it only as a last resort, when other means have not brought results. It contains sulfuric acid in its composition, so do not forget to take care of your own safety.

Clogged toilet what to do

A plunger is usually used in cases where the blockage is still passable and the water, although slowly, leaves the toilet.

If the water from the toilet began to leave slowly, it means that a blockage has formed in the drain system. Before calling a plumber, you should try to cope on your own - in most cases this works.

Before the advent of modern means, the toilet was cleaned with a plunger, pushing the blockage further into the sewer pipe, but now another method is popular: with the help of acid, its cause softens or dissolves and itself goes into the pipe with a stream of water (of course, if we are not talking about an object that accidentally got into to stock).

Scoop out the water from the drain, so that only a little remains, and pour half a pack of soda into its opening. Push the soda with a plunger as far as possible and pour a glass of vinegar into it.The reaction proceeds for 20 minutes; after this time, flush the toilet drain with boiling water (1.5-2 l).
Use a special tool for cleaning sewer pipes - "Mole", "TiretTurbo", "Deboucher", "Mr. Muscle", etc. As an alternative, for small blockages, you can pour a two-liter bottle of Coca-Cola into the drain hole.

Cleaning a Clogged Toilet with Baking Soda and Vinegar

The cause of such a problem can be anything: from various household garbage to the accumulation of food debris washed down the drain. If your toilet is clogged and the water has stopped flowing, try using a mixture of baking soda and vinegar:

Pour 1/2 pack of regular baking soda (NaHCO3) down the drain;
Pour in 2 cups of acetic acid;
If possible, it is better to plug the drain with a large rag or towel to prevent the evaporation of the gas released during the reaction.

This method will help eliminate small "plugs". The main thing is not to increase the dosage, if necessary, it is better to repeat the procedure again.

Soda ash (Na2CO3) will also be a good helper in getting rid of blockages. With its help, you will get rid of stubborn dirt, simultaneously cleaning the inside of the toilet. For this:

In a deep metal container, mix 5 tbsp. l. food and soda ash. Pour the mixture down the drain. You can also apply it to interior surfaces using a rag or sponge.
Wait 30-40 min. Take two spray bottles, fill one with ordinary whiteness-type bleach, and the other with acetic acid. Spray the vinegar solution down the drain and along the walls, pour bleach over everything.
Close the toilet lid, leave the room. After 30-40 min. rinse with plenty of water, ventilate thoroughly.

Work with such a mixture can only be carried out with rubber gloves and a respirator - its components are poisonous and can cause burns to the mucous membrane.

If the drain is clogged “tightly”, caustic soda (NaOH or caustic soda) will come to the rescue. The cleaning algorithm will depend on the form of release of caustic soda.

If NaOH is present in crystalline form:

Pour 4 kg of caustic soda into an iron bucket with a volume of 10-12 liters, stir until it is completely dissolved. In the process of mixing, the water will become warm. Don't be surprised - the rise in temperature is due to a fast chemical reaction.
Carefully pour the solution into the sewer, wait about an hour. Rinse with plenty of water. It is better to fill the whole solution - it is not recommended to store it, over time it loses its properties.

If you have liquid NaOH at home, cleaning with it is done like this:

Shake the closed container with the gel;
Pour into the drain from 200 to 250 ml. substances, leave for 2-4 hours;
Wash off with plenty of warm water.

These tools will help to independently and quickly break through the blockage, and completely clean the drain. When using any kind of soda to clean the toilet, remember that all work should be done only with rubber gloves.

You can also clean the bath with baking soda and vinegar, read about this method here.

Ways to clean the toilet bowl at home using folk remedies

To avoid the doubts that gnaw at us, let us recall our grandmother's recipes long forgotten by us. These little tricks will help you get the much-needed desired result.

How to clean a toilet with baking soda

To clean the toilet from limescale to a radiant sheen, think of regular baking soda. So, we clean, like our grandmothers, with “Baking Soda”. This recipe will tell you how to clean the toilet at home with baking soda and vinegar. The main thing is to do everything according to the instructions!

Before the scheduled cleaning, do the following:

sprinkle abundantly the inner surface of the toilet bowl with baking soda, let it stand for half an hour;
then fill with vinegar;
while everything foams and boils, we carefully work with a brush.

The result of the effect will amaze you: no rust, no limescale, no urinary stone, just a perfect shine.

How to clean the toilet with mustard powder

Here is another long-forgotten recipe for how to clean the toilet with folk remedies. Probably every housewife in the house has an unopened pack of mustard powder. Yes, it can be used to clean the toilet to a shine, preparing a remedy from mustard, vinegar and ordinary starch, which is undoubtedly found in every home.

The recipe is the following:

take 1 tablespoon of mustard powder;
add 1 tablespoon of citric acid there;
we fall asleep 1/2 part of a pack of starch;
mix everything thoroughly with the addition of plain water.

The toilet bowl cleaner is ready, let's start cleaning. Apply to the surface of the toilet and leave for a while, then rinse with a brush. The effect is guaranteed excellent and without much effort.

Cleaning the toilet with vinegar

Let's think about ordinary vinegar. It will also give an excellent and effective result, effortlessly rid the toilet of a urinary stone inside.

Recipe and how to use:

we take and heat up to forty degrees a glass of nine percent vinegar;
add a small pinch of salt to the warmed vinegar;
mix all this until the salt is completely dissolved and pour it onto the walls of the toilet bowl;
leave overnight for a better result;
in the morning, rinse with running water from the tank.

Everything is perfect, easy and simple - the toilet bowl is cleaned to a shine.

Cleaning the toilet with wood ash

Recall another popular recipe for cleaning the toilet using wood ash. So, a couple of packs of citric acid and wood acid will make your toilet smile and shine with amazing shine.

Recipe for preparation and method of application:

we take ordinary wood ash (it will give the effect of abundant foam, which will facilitate further cleaning);
mix the ash with citric acid (everything in equal quantities and proportions);
at night we fall asleep in a glass of the toilet, in the morning we clean everything with a brush, easily and effortlessly.

This composition will help get rid of unwanted contaminants.

A lot can be remembered and put into practice, but of course it’s better not to forget that daily cleaning with such an ordinary brush and a little ordinary toilet cleaner will give you the opportunity not to think about the difficulties of cleaning unwanted smudges. All the work done in time will keep your toilet in perfect condition and save your nerves, effort and time.

And now we offer to watch a video on how to wash the toilet correctly, as well as the rules for caring for it:

We wipe the toilet bowl with special means of household chemicals

Modern chemicals clean enameled plumbing from limescale, sediment, urinary stone, blackness and rust. To clean the bathroom, purchase the product in the household chemicals department or online, read the instructions for use and handle safely: wear rubber protective gloves and a respiratory mask to protect the respiratory tract.

Cleaning Coca-Cola

It is easy to wash the bottom and the thicket of the toilet bowl from the urinary stone with Coca-Cola.

Its components effectively corrode contaminants that have fallen into the zone of prolonged contact. Therefore, many housewives buy this inexpensive drink for cleaning kettles and plumbing:

Remove the water by pushing it into the drain with quick movements.
Pour out 1.5-2 liters. coke in the toilet.
After a couple of hours, wipe off the dissolved dirt with a toilet brush.

Given the liquid consistency of the drink, the removal of intense contaminants under the rim is almost impossible. Therefore, housewives use Coca-Cola as a prophylaxis against urinary stone and limescale.

"Whiteness"

Washing the toilet from streaks with "Whiteness" is simple, since chlorine resists many types of stains and stubborn dirt.

The disadvantage of this tool is an unpleasant smell, but it is inexpensive, so it is used by many housewives.

Using "White" to clean the toilet step by step:

Remove as much water from the toilet as possible.
Pour "Whiteness" on a brush or contaminated enamel

To enhance the effect, add any thick consistency to clean the toilet.
Rub the toilet bowl vigorously, paying special attention to problem areas.
After 2-3 hours, clean with a brush and remove the remaining deposits with a non-metallic scraper.

hydrochloric acid

When using this remedy, be sure to follow the safety rules so as not to damage the skin and lungs! Douse the toilet bowl with hydrochloric acid, rub it with a brush and close the lid. After 15-20 minutes, rub the dirt again and wash off the acid. Do not use the product if the drain is made of plastic pipes.

Automotive electrolyte

Electrolyte for cars helps from stone, corrosion and plaque, returning the original whiteness and shine to the bathroom.

Additionally, the tool will clean the sewer from blockages and eliminate red rusty streams. The principle of treatment is the same as that of hydrochloric acid, but use this method as little as possible so as not to damage the enamel.

The main methods of cleaning determine the source

It will be possible to choose the most effective way to deal with pollution of this kind only after it is possible to establish the causes of their appearance, chemical composition, and so on.

limescale

Limescale in the toilet bowl is formed due to the accumulation of mineral compounds under the rim, which are found in very large quantities in tap water.

In some cases, the formation of smudges occurs in places where water drains. They are yellow or orange in color. The activity of their occurrence directly depends on how often the water is washed off there.

If you leave plaque on the nozzles through which water enters the tank, they will become clogged over time, which, in turn, will lead to an increase in the filling time of the tank.

urinary stone

Urinary stone is also a plaque in analogy with calcareous deposits, but it has a completely different nature. It is a mineral substance excreted from the human body along with urine. The stone is painted in a dirty color of yellow shades, in some cases it may have a gray color. If the ceramic product has certain irregularities from the inside, then the stone will form there.

To prevent the stone in the toilet from starting to form, even at the time of purchase, you should check how smooth the surface inside this ceramic product is. It is best to give preference to sanitary porcelain. Its cost is somewhat higher compared to faience, but its structure is denser - this can be achieved largely due to the rather high temperature at which this product is fired. This material has excellent performance characteristics:

due to its density, it will not accumulate limescale;
even texture does not give yellowness from urinary stone;
it will be much easier to clean and wash such a surface even with improvised means.

The key reason for the appearance of various deposits is the lack of preventive cleaning. When the product takes on a neglected appearance, the question of how to clean the toilet from rust and other deposits is much more difficult to solve. If you wash it regularly, it will retain its original appearance for a long time.

How to restore the whiteness and freshness of the toilet

The main problems faced by the owners of "faience products" are yellowness, smudges and deposits:

urinary stone;
limescale;
and accumulations of rust.

If the previous owners left the plumbing in a state of disrepair, then you will have to work hard to eliminate the complex of problems, otherwise it is better to replace everything right away.

Although sediments differ in their chemical composition, they are equally affected by the same oxidizing agents.

Household chemicals

Thanks to modern cleaning products, keeping the bathroom clean is not difficult.

The composition of special products for the treatment of sanitary ware includes aggressive acids: hydrochloric, oxalic, orthophosphoric, sulfamic, etc., which dissolve urinary and limestone, remove rust and plaque.

In case of minor deposits, it is enough to fill the places of their accumulation with toilet gel (CillitBang, Sanoks, Sanfor, Adrilan, Comet for toilet bowls, Toilet duck, etc.) and wait the required amount of time, indicated on the package. Usually it is 10-30 minutes, but with heavy pollution they can withstand 8-12 hours, for example, leave until the morning.

How to properly clean a toilet? Video instruction:

Home folk remedies

Acetic or citric acid - also effective in the fight against urinary stone, lime deposits and red smudges.

Heat 9% vinegar to a temperature of 40 ° C, add baking soda at the rate of 2 tsp. in a glass of liquid and mix thoroughly. Apply the resulting mixture liberally to problem areas and leave for 8-10 hours - the procedure is best done before bedtime.
Citric acid is used in its pure form. Pour the contents of several sachets (the amount depends on the extent of the problem) over the deposits so that the powder covers them, and after 2 hours, rinse the toilet with hot water.

White

Sodium hypochlorite is a strong oxidizing agent, it destroys urinary stone and limescale, simultaneously eliminating yellowness and traces of rust on the toilet bowl. Pour the contents of one bottle overnight into the outlet neck (drain point), and spread the rest on the inside of the toilet bowl. Wash off in the morning with warm water.

With chronic and abundant deposits of urinary stone, the above remedies may be powerless. In this case, you will have to repeat the cleaning procedure several times or apply more powerful chemicals.

Oxalic acid

In its pure form is sold in hardware stores

The product is poisonous and requires special precautions: use it only with gloves, and cover your face with a medical mask or a damp cloth so as not to accidentally inhale it

Apply oxalic acid powder on top of urinary stone growths and lime, leave for 1-2 hours. After the time has elapsed, rinse with warm water.

Special household chemicals

In supermarkets, you can buy a professional pipe cleaner - it is very effective in relation to salts and limescale.

Coca Cola

The mild acidity of Coca-Cola makes it an excellent cleaner.

Oddly enough, the strength of the cola is comparable to a professional tool - it is no coincidence that experienced plumbers recommend it for cleaning pipes and drains. Pour 4 liters of drink into the toilet, after removing the water from the drain. Leave overnight, drain the water in the morning and brush the inner walls with a brush.

Why plaque forms

To understand how to clean the toilet at home, you need to determine which type of pollution is predominant in your case. There are few hard-to-remove contaminants, usually they are the following.

Urinary stone. Consists of complex mineral salts that get on the surface of the toilet bowl and under the rim with urine. Often the problem appears in families where households forget to flush after themselves in the toilet or the toilet bowl itself is rarely subjected to preventive treatment. If a urinary stone has already formed, then it is difficult to get rid of it, conventional means cope with it poorly.
Lime scale. In homes with increased water hardness, the calcium salts contained in it eventually settle in the tank and on the walls of the toilet bowl. On top of the limescale, various contaminants of a different kind quickly accumulate.To whiten the toilet bowl, in this case, acid-based products are used.
Rust. The appearance of rusty streaks is also related to water quality. It could be old, rusty water pipes or iron-rich water from a well.

Mechanical damage to earthenware contributes to the accumulation of dirt. It is not necessary to wash the surface of the toilet bowl and cistern with metal brushes or coarse abrasive materials. Also, do not pour hot water into the toilet bowl - this causes microcracks to form on the surface.

To improve the quality of water, various filters are used or prophylactic agents are constantly added to the toilet bowl in the form of special blisters and tablets.

How to fix a toilet cistern

The condition of the cistern affects the drain system and how often limescale appears, so clean it as often as you clean the toilet bowl.

Due to the contamination of the drain tank, rusty streams appear in the places where the water drains, and a white coating affects the tightness of the valve, due to which the tank can leak imperceptibly, causing additional costs for paying for water.

To clean the tank, remove its lid:

old tanks have a loose, easily removable lid;
designs with a vertical stem are more difficult to disassemble. Pull the stem up, twist the threads and remove the cover;
on push-button toilets, press the button and twist the shiny part remaining under your fingers to the left. When it moves away from the cover, there is no need to hold the button, screw it to the end and pull it out together with the threaded body.

To clean the inside of the tank, you can use folk or household products. If the drain system has plastic parts, refrain from using automotive electrolyte and hydrochloric acid.

The most popular drain tank cleaning methods:

turn off the water, pour some household chemicals into the tank, turn on the liquid supply again and fill the tank. Do not use the toilet for the next 8-12 hours so that the products have time to corrode hardened deposits;
turn off the water and treat the interior surfaces with acids, soda, coca-cola, or other toilet cleaners to remove lime and urinary stone. Wait for some time (from 3 hours, depending on the intensity of pollution), rinse off.

After processing the drain tank, the water supply jet will increase. If you regularly carry out the treatment with folk methods, you will increase the life of the toilet parts, and it will begin to flush better.

Features of cleaning the lid and toilet seat Vinegar, soda and Coca-Cola are well suited for cleaning the lid and seat. They do not cause an allergic reaction and chemical burns (like chlorine and stronger acids). The cleaning process is as follows:

Prepare the solution using the recipes above.
Soak a rag in it.
Rub all problem areas and the outside of the plumbing.

To clean the toilet seat of a dirty toilet, unscrew the bottom screws, remove the seat and wash it in the shower/tub tray with a solution you have prepared yourself.