When you flush the toilet, do you close the lid? If you don't, you are likely releasing a “toilet plume” into the air — which is essentially an aerosol spray filled with bacteria. All that bubbling, swirling and splashing can aerosolize fecal waste, sending tiny particles airborne.
Every gram of human feces contains billions and billions of bacteria, as well as viruses and even some fungi." The easiest way to avoid this nastiness coating your bathroom is, simply, to close the toilet seat. "Closing the lid reduces the spread of droplets,” Hill explained.
Toilets are designed to efficiently empty the contents of the bowl through a downward motion into the drainpipe, but the force of the flush cycle also creates a fine spray of particles in the air. Those particles easily spread when a lid is left up during flushing.
#4 You should close your toilet lid before flushing
Mythbusters did an episode about this process and confirmed, unfortunately, that when you flush a toilet with the lid up particles of feces will be almost everywhere in your bathroom, including your toothbrush.
While it was also found to make the droplets larger and more concentrated with bacteria, the broad consensus among scientists is that it's more hygienic to flush with the lid down.
It keeps everything much better contained,” Dr. Roberts says. “It's not perfect, but it certainly is better.” A 2021 research review published in the journal Environmental Science and Pollution Research found that flushing without closing the lid leads to surface contamination of the toilet.
Mold in toilet bowl
When your toilet bowl is left unused for a couple of days, it can become a perfect environment for mold to grow. The stagnant water allows mold to thrive inside the bowl. The lid also contributes to mold growth inside the bowl.
Exposure to damp and moldy environments may cause a variety of health effects, or none at all. Some people are sensitive to molds. For these people, exposure to molds can lead to symptoms such as stuffy nose, wheezing, and red or itchy eyes, or skin.
Having mold around the toilet is something relatively common but that doesn't mean it's normal. Although most people don't realize it, you should treat the mold problem as your top priority to get rid of it since it's not good for your health, especially if you have respiratory problems, such as asthma.
Toilets are the perfect place for mold to grow because they are often damp, have little ventilation, and are usually located in warm areas of the home (such as near the water heater). In addition, toilets can be a breeding ground for mold if they are not cleaned regularly.
Because water deposits build up under a toilet's rim, it can take only 24-48 hours for colonies to start breeding. As it grows, you will see what looks like black debris or rings inside the bowl. This can cause respiratory problems for people as the mold and mildew release tiny spores into the air.
An acrid, musty stench is likely caused by mould buildup in the toilet. “But I clean all the time,” you may protest. “Why does my toilet still stink?” The reason is that mould forms under the rim, (very quickly) an area that many people may neglect to clean really well.
If you see mold on your bathroom floor and covering the base of your toilet, it usually means one thing. The wax band that seals your toilet at the bottom is leaking. Since black mold thrives in damp environments, a broken wax seal seeps out water from your toilet which fosters its growth.
Daily: Flush your toilet every day (even if it's not in use) to discourage the growth of bacteria. Weekly: Deep-clean your toilet once a week or biweekly—this includes the toilet bowl, exterior and toilet seat. Yearly: Clean your toilet tank twice a year.
You can clean toilet stains with a toilet brush, baking soda, and white vinegar. Household cleaning ingredients like Borax or a wet pumice stone can also scrub away tough mineral stains.
These varieties of mold mostly look dark brown or green with Stachybotrys — the most dangerous kind common to bathrooms — appearing so dark that it's almost black and Penicillium sometimes having a blue, green or yellowish tint to it.
Odor Toilet Tank FAQ
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. Let it sit for a few hours, scrub the tank again and flush.
A quick test for mold can be done when you dip a swab in diluted bleach (1 part bleach, 16 parts water) and dab it on the wall. If the spot quickly lightens (or keeps coming back after cleaning), assume it's mold.
Stagnant water is a great environment for mold. Toilets that are used infrequently and not flushed often are more likely to develop a mold problem than those that are flushed many times a day. If your toilet tank has mold growth, then it is passing those mold spores into your toilet bowl.
Or perhaps you are seeing some black stains in your toilet bowl or dishwasher? These unsightly stains may be a result of high levels of manganese in your water. Manganese is a natural element that is commonly found in water, soil, and some foods and, at appropriate levels, plays a role in keeping us healthy.
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.
Make the bleach and water solution in the tank
Check to make sure the flapper at the bottom of the empty tank is closed, then use the measuring cup to add 1 gallon (16 cups) water to the tank. Then add 1/3 cup Clorox® Disinfecting Bleach to the water in the tank.
Have you ever lifted the top of your toilet tank and been surprised by the presence of slimy strands or a similarly looking gelatinous substance? It's likely that this slime is caused by iron bacteria or related slime forming bacteria such as sulfur bacteria.