Tips for Cleaning the Bathroom

The bathroom is admittedly one of the dirtiest places in the house. The kitchen is obviously dirty too in terms of germs because of the food you cook and prepare, but the

Bathroom is by far and wide the most uncleanliness place in any house and for good reason. This is the first place we go (usually) when we come home from work or

Working out, it’s the place we brush our teeth, go to the bathroom, shower, etc. Because of this, it’s important that you keep your bathroom clean and that you take some

Extra steps in order to insure that you are living a healthy life. Here are a few tips for things like showers, grout, toilets, sinks and more.

Shower

One of the best ways to KEEP your shower clean is to use a squeegee. It sounds kind of weird considering this is a tool for your car windows, but if you would do this simple thing once a day when you take a shower, it would really cut down on the extra time it takes to remove things like soap scum and water spots. Another tip is to use white vinegar - this is a prime time ingredient because it can be used for most anything; pet odors in carpets and on floors, as a repellant for bugs and of course for the shower. A soak of vinegar can clean shower curtains, shower nozzles, shower doors (with an addition of baking powder) and more. If you don't love the smell of shower curtains and want another route, consider taking a few old towels and putting your shower curtain and liner into the washing machine - on cold - for the lowest amount of time. The towels will act as scrubbers and scrub away things like mildew and soap scum. Don't place plastic or rubber liners in the dryer on the heat, though, they will melt. By the way, in case you are wondering, yes things like the showerhead can have major bacteria on them specifically Mycobacterium avium which can cause pulmonary disease.

Tile Grout

Some people say that white vinegar can be used for this as well, but most people will agree that this is a job for the big boys - bleach. This will, however, need to be done in a room with ventilation, so if you don’t have at least one window and a fan in the bathroom, stick with a mixture of paste made from white vinegar and baking soda, let it

sit for a few minutes and wipe away with a cloth. Bleach can be done using the same process. Grout is a magnet for bacteria growth, soap scum, and mildew.

Tiles and the Walls

Okay, this gets pretty gross to be honest, but the tiles, ceiling and everything in between should be wiped down at least once a week. The reason behind this not only has to do with the soap scum, dirt, and bacteria in the room, but also because of dead skin cells - which can leave behind a film that is not naked to the eye, but it is there! You can also do a spray of the counters, sink, tub, walls, etc. with a cleaner and then let it sit for 20 minutes with the shower on the hottest setting. This will help the steam build up and essentially get rid of those things previously talked about. Make sure you also have mildew resistant paint on your walls!

Toilet

This is by far and wide the germiest item in your entire bathroom, besides the floor. If like most people you don’t want a lot of chemicals in the bathroom, even for cleaning, you can use baking soda and put it right into the bowl - this is a great disinfectant, whitener AND deodorizer. Next, you should be using the toilet brush to swish that mixture around, swish it down the toilet. Now, take the brush and use just a little bleach on the bristles - this is much safer than just pouring it right into the toilet. You would be surprised at just how little bleach you actually need to clean but so many people use way too much! The canister that holds the brush should also be sterilized; fill it with hot soapy water, let it sit, dump the water into the toilet and flush. Note: One of the biggest (and grossest) things scientists and researchers have learned over the past 5 years: Flushing with the cover of the seat UP, is incredibly germy. Even a weakened flush can spread fecal matter, bacteria things like salmonella all over the place. After learning this, most people decide to close the toilet! This means that if you are leaving it open when flushing that those yucky things are getting in your nose, eyes, toothbrush, seat, and many other places!!!

Hopefully these tips helped you out a little bit and you learned a thing or two - albeit disgusting facts, they are true, but they can be helped. If cleaning your bathroom really

grosses you out, especially after reading about the toilet flushing incident above, think about giving yourself a break and hiring someone to come in once a week to do all of this stuff for you. House cleaning companies in Gaithersburg can do an entire home or just specific rooms and can do all sorts of household activities that you simply cannot, do not, or have no idea how to do.