Washing Your Toilet and Bathroom

Ok, since I have some free boring time in my hands (I need a break from reading tech books) in the office, I have decided to write another "aunty" entry. So, aunty teckiee presents Washing Your Toilet and Bathroom.

Previous aunty teckiee entries can be found below;
- Doing your own laundry Part 1
- Doing your own laundry Part 2
- Cleaning a keyboard for dummies

Now price and princesses, I know you are going like "EEkkkk washing the toilet?! No way!" in you head so the first thing you have go to do is change your minutest about the toilet. According to the Myth Busters tests', food that was dropped on the toilet seat contains the least amount of bacteria colonies (when incubated) compared to the rest of the floors and tables they have tested. So don't be too grossed out about this.

First thing you have go to do is gather your cleaning detergents and tools. Here's what I usually use;
- Bathroom cleaner (e.g GIF. Optional: Beach)
- Bathroom scrub (the green sponge/cloth usually found at the back of a dish washing sponge)
- Bathroom brush (with hard brisels to brush the bathroom floors)
- Old unused toothbrush
- Rubber gloves
- Rubber slippers
- Toilet brush
- Old unused bath scoop

Before you start cleaning, put on the rubber gloves and slippers to protect your skin from the harmful chemicals in the detergents.

Okay, first up, the basin and the bathtub. Washing the basin and the bathtub is easy. Just wet the bathroom scrub, and the sink/bathtub first and scrub clean using some bathroom detergent. Sometimes dirt tend to built up at the water drainage area (the drainage area and the 'overflow hole' at the top)and at the tap area. Use an old toothbrush to clean out those dirt. Rinse the whole basin\bathtub and rewash using less detergent or water just to make sure no trails of dirt are left.

Next up, the mirror, glass/plastic doors and shower curtains. The cleaning process is the same for all three, just scrub them with water and bathroom detergent. For the shower curtains, you will have to remove them from their hooks and scrub them on the floor. You can hook them up before rinsing because I think it's easier to make sure all the detergent are off. Let the shower curtain drip dry. As for the mirrors and glass/plastic doors, use a cloth to wipe off the remaining water dots left visible. If you let it dry just like that, you might end up getting water dot stains on the mirrors and doors. Using 'spray N leave on' detergent for these three is a no no.

Third up, the walls and floors. For the walls, use the scrub, and for the floors, use the brush. Remember to wet the washing area first to really get the area cleaned. And of course, apply pressure when cleaning, no point washing if you are just wiping. You can't get the dirt off that way. There are 'spray N leave on' products for the walls in the market, you can try using them. And for the lazier people, there are 'spray N walk away' products too. But my advice is to always wash the walls once in a while is you use these type of products. As for the floors, I usually dilute bleach in a bath scoop and pour it all over the floor an hour or so before I start washing the bathroom. The bleach will actually eat into the dirt and bring them up to the surface for easier cleaning. You can do the same to the walls as well, just use a spray instead of a scoop. Rinse the walls and floors properly as the remains of soup can actually dirty up your walls and floors quicker.

Last but not the least, cleaning the wonderful toilet :P Like the walls and floors, I usually pour a little of beach into the toilet bowl an hour before I start cleaning to remove whatever dirt/invisible stain built up in the bottom of the toilet bowl. First take the toilet brush and brush the toilet bowl. Make sure you clean deep into the bowl and the side (some toilet bowl have side dimples that are harder to clean) as well. Then flush the toilet. That's round 1. Ok, take your scrub and scrub the toilet water tank, toilet seat, toilet seat cover, the outer of the toilet bowl with bathroom detergent. Rinse the detergent off.

Now, time for round 2 if the toilet bowl cleaning. This part maybe seem disgusting, but I think I'm used to this already. Squirt some bathroom detergent on to the inside sides of the toilet bowl, letting the extra detergent roll toward to the toilet bowl water. Then using your scrub, scrub the inner sides of the toilet bowl. Then, stick your whole hand into the toilet bowl and do scrub the flooded part of the toilet. Make sure to scrub the floor of the toilet bowl and the side dimples as well as they are the filthiest.

If you are thinking "GROOSSSS she actually sticks her whole hand inside!" Well, at first I thought that too, but ...;

1# The toilet bowl is pre soaked with bleach and pre cleaned with the toilet brush already.
2# You are wearing the rubber gloves remember. There's no skin to toilet contact la.
3# That's the only way to get a sparkling clean and white toilet.
4# You'll have confident in reusing that toothbrush you accidentally dropped into the toilet bowl... HAHAHAHA I'm just joking.

You can use the stick of the toilet brush to ask as your hands actually, but of course using your hard to clean saves time and will make sure you get into those hard to clean places.

There you go, a sparkling clean toilet/bathroom. Remember to clean your bathroom window, shower head (unscrew and clean with toothbrush), and water collector tub occasionally too as they built up dirt and lint as well.

Have fun cleaning! ....Writing this post reminds me of my secondary school days where the Form 1 and 2 students have to take turns to wash the toilets... LOL once had a water balloon fight!

Note: See comments by readers for more useful tips