If you get brown stains in your toilet bowl, the good news is that it's not caused by anything that you, ahem, do in the bathroom. It's actually due to high concentrations of minerals in hard water, like calcium, iron, and manganese, that build up inside the toilet bowl over time, according to Hunker.
It happens because of the evaporation of hard water that leaves behind mineral deposits. These minerals dry out and catch other dirt and bacteria around the buildup, creating layers of green and brown stains.
You might notice the staining in your toilet bowl takes on an orange, pink, or brown tint. This is a result of the calcium carbonate mixing with an iron or manganese compound. This can happen around your taps too, but is more common in the toilet bowl.
If there are brown stains, it is probably from iron in your water. If you discover a thick, slimy mess, it is likely from iron bacteria growing in your toilet tank.
The stains appear most often in homes located in hard-water areas, where the combination of minerals and iron bacteria in the water can cause rust particles to cling to the porcelain or enamel surfaces of bathroom fixtures.
The carbonic acid that is in coke is what helps to clean toilet stains. Picture the acidity slowly working its way through the stains, melting them away. It can take a while depending on how stubborn the stain is which is why it's vital to have a suitable cleaning method depending on how bad the toilet condition is.
Simply sprinkle baking soda on the stains and scrub with a brush. Use bleach: Bleach is a powerful cleaning agent that can quickly remove stains. However, it should be used sparingly as it can damage the porcelain on toilet bowls. Apply bleach to the stains and let it sit for several minutes before rinsing away.
While it can be put to a number of helpful uses around the home, WD 40 is particularly good at softening rust and limescale deposits in the toilet (and bathroom). All you have to do is spray it on the desired section of the toilet, wait a few minutes, then scrub it away with a toilet brush.
Sprinkle your baking soda (it doesn't need to be an exact amount, just coat the bowl) around the bowl and watch as that chemical reaction sizzles. Swish that solution around using the toilet brush and then let it sit for about 15 minutes. If the stains are still visible use the wet pumice stone and flush.
Baking Soda and White Vinegar
White vinegar is well reputed for its gentle cleaning properties. It can help clean, disinfect, and remove stains without damaging the surfaces. Combined with baking soda, the duo makes the best mixture to fight off the rust stains in the toilet caused by copper, molds and minerals.
When cleaning a toilet bowl, WD-40 works by softening the rust and lime deposits, so they can be easily wiped away. You don't need to use much of it. Simply spray on the affected area, wait a minute or two and brush it away with a regular toilet brush.
Multi-purpose bathroom cleaners will not eliminate rust stains effectively, and cleaning with chlorine bleach can even cause rust stains to become permanent. The good news is there are ways to clean the stains, both environmentally friendly and chemically.
To remove tough stains, add the baking soda and vinegar mix to your toilet and then allow the solution to sit in the bowl for up to 30 minutes. During that time, the chemical reaction between the sodium bicarbonate and vinegar will work to eat away at those stubborn hard water stains.
Pour a half cup of bicarbonate of soda into and around the bowl and let it sit for at least 15 minutes. Then, apply white vinegar over the baking soda. This produces a fizzing reaction that activates the acid and can break down the most stubborn build-ups of limescale.
Pour a cup of vinegar into the bowl, then mix it around with a toilet brush. Add a cup of baking soda to the coated areas and immediately follow up by adding another cup of vinegar. Wait about 10 minutes to allow the baking soda and vinegar to interact, creating that effective fizzing action.
Hard water stains are known by many names – limescale, mineral deposits, mineral buildup, hard water deposits – but the meaning is the same. Hard water stains appear as chalky white residue that results from buildup of excess minerals present in hard water.
Toilet seat stains are common and can be caused by product build-up, urine, fake tan, dead skin, mineral deposits and certain cleaning products. The stains can range from orange to yellow to brown or green, depending on the cause of the stain.