Cleaning your toilet tank is pretty quick and easy with vinegar and baking soda. You only need to do it once or twice a year, and it can help get rid of bacteria, mold, and mineral deposits to keep you and your family healthy.
What can I put in my toilet tank to make it smell better? White vinegar and baking soda in equal parts is a cost-efficient and effective means of getting rid odors in a toilet. Add them to the tank, mix them in and then use the toilet brush to gently scrub the tank.
Pour 1 liter of white vinegar into the toilet bowl, making sure that you splash it around the sides of the bowl as you pour. Let the vinegar sit in the toilet untouched for 3 - 4 hours. Turn on the water to the toilet and allow the cistern to fill back up.
Baking soda is also an insider tip for removing limescale in the bathroom. Mix two or three teaspoons of baking soda with water to make a soft paste, rub it onto the spots and let it take effect. A few hours later you can easily and carefully scrub off the limescale.
Vinegar is a great toilet cleaning solution. Not only is it free of chemicals and naturally antibacterial, it's also an acid, so it will remove minor lime and calcium deposits. All you need to do is pour a couple cups of vinegar in your tank and let it sit for an hour or so, then scrub and flush to rinse.
The toothpaste must be menthol, with Fabiosa explaining that the paste will produce a "small disinfection" while releasing a minty fresh scent, too. It's the perfect way to ensure your loo is as fresh as possible after every flush, with 5-Minute Hacks revealing it works for up to three months.
A popular TikTok video promises your bathroom will smell like clean laundry every time you flush the toilet if you pour a cup of fabric softener into the toilet tank. However, like many social media hacks, this one is too good to be true, and plumbing experts warn that you'll actually be ruining your septic system.
Procedure for Cleaning the Cistern
Drain the cistern. Use a pressure washer or stiff brush to clean debris and sediment from all surfaces. Remove bottom sludge using a wet-dry vacuum. After washing and pumping out the sludge begin refilling the cistern.
Combined, baking soda and vinegar can sometimes clear a clogged sink, but in many cases, they can also take care of a toilet clog. However, to avoid a small eruption all over the bathroom floor, you'll want to measure them very carefully.
Tips to Keep Your Toilet Clean Longer
The aforementioned baking soda and vinegar is a safer alternative for keeping your toilet bowl sparkling. You can add them to the toilet bowl at the end of the night for a good, cleansing soak until morning.
The primary benefit of drinking baking soda is for the temporary relief of indigestion or heartburn. There is also evidence to suggest that it may reduce muscle fatigue during athletic training. One 2020 meta-analysis found that sodium bicarbonate supplementation does improve muscle endurance but not muscle strength.
Meanwhile, people in the UK and Australia tend to refer to baking soda as bicarbonate of soda. This is often shortened to bicarb. It's the exact same substance, just with a different name. So when you see the words 'baking soda' in an American cleaning recipe then go ahead and use bicarbonate of soda.
According to Abrams, an ordinary bar of soap placed inside a mask, a net, or any other porous material should be a perfectly safe way to keep a toilet bowl clean when you flush it. But there are a few caveats to consider.
Clean, but in different concentrations. In general, plumbers caution against the use of any chemicals inside a toilet tank and suggest instead using bowl-based toilet cleaners. Adding anything but water to a toilet tank could result in potentially costly repairs, Abrams says.
In this case, a basic toilet cleaning product may not be enough, and you will need to use undiluted bleach. As a one-stop cleaning solution, pour one cup of bleach around the bowl. Then tackle every inch with a toilet brush or a handheld scrub brush. Let it sit for five minutes, then flush.
After you've poured the vinegar into your toilet, leave it to work its magic for 3-4 hours. If your limescale is particularly bad you can leave it overnight.
If there is a slimy layer around water inside of your toilet tank it is likely caused by iron bacteria.
You should clean the toilet tank twice per year. If you are using water from a well in an area with hard water, clean the tank quarterly to keep the flush valves in good working order.
Vinegar will not damage your toilet in any way if it's left in your toilet overnight. In some cases, leaving the vinegar in your toilet overnight is recommended to get the best cleaning results. No matter what material your toilet is made from, the vinegar will not damage your toilet.