Natural Toilet Cleaner

Using a natural toilet cleaner will make everyone's least favorite job more bearable. Cleaning the bathroom is something none of us look forward to, and cleaning the toilet is probably the worst part. It’ll probably never be your favorite chore, but at least you won’t need to worry about your safety while using a green cleaning product.

The corrosive ingredients that make up some commercial toilet cleaners can cause damage to your skin, eyes, and respiratory system. Because of this, they are among the most dangerous household cleaners in your closet. It’s not uncommon to think about the dangers of the bacteria lurking in a toilet that hasn’t been cleaned in a while. But how often do you consider the safety of your cleaning products? In this article we’ll talk about natural toilet cleaners, and how and why we should use them.

First, clean the outer surfaces of your toilet with a homemade all-purpose cleaner –like a mixture of vinegar and water—in a spray bottle, and a soft rag. Vinegar is an effective antibacterial, so you can rest assured that your toilet really is clean. Just spray and wipe from the top of the tank all the way down to the floor for a spotless commode. It’s a good idea to keep rags used for toilet cleaning separate from other cleaning rags or laundry so that the bacteria aren’t transferred to other areas of your home.

To clean inside the toilet bowl, shake a little bit of baking soda around the inside edges of the bowl. Then pour in about a half cup of white vinegar. This is a good time to make sure the kids are watching. The chemical reaction will cause some major foaming. It’s fun to watch, but there’s some heavy duty cleaning going on. After you observe the foaming for a few minutes, scrub with a toilet brush and flush. Letting the baking soda sit for a while (while you clean the rest of the bathroom) before adding the vinegar will more effectively remove stains and odors.

Vinegar, used on its own, will remove hard water rings that make your toilet look less than clean, even if you’ve just cleaned it. Pour some vinegar into the toilet bowl and lightly scrub it into the ring with a toilet brush. Then let the vinegar sit for an hour or so - maybe while you check out some more of our articles : ) - and scrub again. Voila!

Remember to clean your toilet brush every now and then as well. Soaking it in a mixture of hot water and vinegar will keep the brush clean and help prevent the transfer of bacteria.

An obvious benefit to using homemade, natural toilet cleaner is that by the time you finish the first cleaning, you have already saved money. As you make the switch to homemade green cleaning products, you’ll find that you need only a few ingredients to clean every area of your home, instead of the plethora of expensive products that the cleaning product companies convince you that you need.

Another benefit to using nontoxic cleaners –and this is my personal favorite –is that because you’ve eliminated the hazardous chemicals, it’s safe to ask the kids to help out! Green cleaning really is a gift that keeps on giving.