Toilet encrustations are among the most unsightly marks that can affect one's home. A yellowed toilet bowl is something that can cause quite a few problems both at
an aesthetic and a cleaning level.
The bathroom is in fact one of the rooms at highest risk due to the accumulation of germs and bacteria, and for this reason its cleaning needs special attention.
Not cleaning one's bathroom even for a few days could cause those annoying and unsightly yellow stains to appear in no time, which will make even a new bathroom unpleasant and could lead to making a bad impression with our guests.
But do not fear!
Today we will see together how to clean toilet encrustations and how to deal with daily cleaning.
How often to wash the toilet to avoid encrustations?
Avoiding toilet encrustations is much simpler than one might think. The trick lies in understanding how best to clean the toilet and creating a well-consolidated routine.
In fact, for the care of one's toilet it is important to take into consideration two types of cleaning that we will have to do.
- Ordinary toilet cleaning: Clean your toilet every day with the right products. Use ordinary toilet cleaners that can be found on the market. For cleaning external parts you can use either the same cleaner or cleaning wipes.
- Deep cleaning: Clean the toilet thoroughly at least once a week. If, on the other hand, the bathroom is used by more than two people you will need to clean it between 3 and 4 times a week to avoid encrustations.
Applying these simple measures will allow avoiding limescale formation, both for sanitary ware and for bathroom washbasins.
Now that you have seen how often to wash the toilet let's see together how to perform a deep clean and definitively eliminate limescale and encrustations.
How to clean an encrusted toilet effortlessly
We have seen how often to wash the toilet to prevent encrustations from forming that force us to use "strong methods".
Instead, in case yellow stains have already appeared or a limescale encrustation has formed, do not fear!
Let's see together how to clean the encrusted toilet and recover its shine and surfaces without ruining them.
Use specific cleaners to clean your toilet
Let's see together which cleaners available on the market are most suitable for cleaning the toilet thoroughly.
- Bleach: this is the classic method for yellowed stains. Spread it over the walls of the bowl, leave it to act for 15-20 minutes with the window open and flush until the water runs clear again. On its own it works and it does not attack the ceramic: problems only arise when you bring it into contact with other products.
- Anti-limescale liquid: To make the most of this product spray the anti-limescale cleaner on all bathroom surfaces and leave it to act for 5 minutes. Afterwards, flush the toilet until all anti-limescale residues have disappeared.
- Bleach after the anti-limescale cleaner: if the whiteness you get from the anti-limescale cleaner alone does not convince you, bleach can give you that extra step — but not on top of it, and not straight away. Anti-limescale cleaners for sanitary ware are acidic products: bleach in contact with an acid releases chlorine gas, which is toxic in a space as small as a bathroom. First flush two or three times and wait until the bowl has refilled with clean water, then apply the bleach, leave it for 15-20 minutes and rinse again. One product at a time, always, with a rinse in between.
- Muriatic acid (hydrochloric acid): this is the most aggressive option and should be kept for hard deposits that have resisted everything else. Use only a small amount (100-200 ml poured down the sides of the bowl), leave it to act for 15-30 minutes at most — not all night, as you often read: you would ruin the glaze and the seals — and never mix it with bleach: together they give off toxic fumes. You will find doses, full precautions and the cases where it is better to avoid it in our dedicated guide to muriatic acid in the toilet: when to use it and the alternatives.
- Ammonia: it works well on organic stains, mixed with coarse salt in equal parts until you get a paste to spread over the deposits. Leave it to act for a couple of hours with the window open — not all night in a closed bathroom, the fumes are irritating — then work on it with the toilet brush and rinse. Never use it together with bleach, nor straight after an acidic product: between one product and the next you rinse thoroughly.
WARNING: always use one product at a time and rinse thoroughly before moving on to another. Bleach and acids (muriatic acid, anti-limescale cleaners) or bleach and ammonia must never come into contact: the mixtures release toxic gases. Gloves, goggles and an open window apply to every product on this list.
We have seen what the best types of products on the market are for cleaning encrustations.
If, on the other hand, you wish to use natural products with a low ecological impact, there are many effective and economical alternatives that can be used.
Let's see them together in the next paragraph.
Descaling the toilet from limescale with natural and economical methods
There are several alternatives on the market that can be just as effective without, however, releasing harmful substances into the environment.
Let's see some alternatives together:
Salt, baking soda, and vinegar
This mixture is phenomenal against those unsightly yellow stains or dark streaks that are created with limescale.
- Create a mixture of salt and baking soda in equal measures and entirely cover the walls of the bowl and the drain. Leave it to act for a couple of hours.
- Afterwards pour in vinegar, better if mixed with hot water.
- Use the toilet brush to scrub the toilet walls and remove the stains
- Flush the toilet until all residues disappear
Borax
Borax is a product widely used for house cleaning and beyond. To remove toilet encrustations it is possible to use it in different combinations:
- Borax and lemon juice: Create a mixture in equal parts, you will obtain a paste to spread on areas encrusted with limescale. After leaving it to act for a few hours, scrub with the sponge and rinse.
- Borax and vinegar: cover the encrusted areas with borax powder, spray half a glass of vinegar over the top and leave it to act for a couple of hours. Then scrub with the toilet brush and rinse.
Citric Acid
Citric acid is the most effective natural alternative against limescale deposits: it costs little, it has no smell and it is safe for septic tanks. Dissolve 150 g of citric acid in 1 litre of hot water, pour the solution into the bowl and spray a little onto the walls and under the rim with a spray bottle. Leave it to act for 1-2 hours, then scrub with the toilet brush and rinse by flushing. For weekly maintenance a third of that dose is enough: the point is to stop limescale settling, not to dissolve it.
How to prevent the formation of toilet encrustations
After managing to clean the encrusted toilet, it will be necessary to avoid the formation of further limescale that could bring you back to square one.
But what to do to avoid limescale formation?
- Treating the water upstream: if the water in your home is hard, limescale settles again with every flush, and scrubbing changes nothing. There are two routes and they are not the same thing. A polyphosphate doser on the bathroom line does not remove calcium from the water, it stops it sticking to surfaces: it costs a few tens of euros. A ion-exchange water softener genuinely removes it, from the water of the whole house, and it is a proper installation. Before choosing you need one figure only: the hardness of your water, which you will find on your water company's website.
- Microfiber cloth: Use a microfiber cloth to clean surfaces and prevent water residues from accumulating. In this way you will avoid the formation of encrustations
- Lemon: Use this product at the end of your cleaning. You can either scrub the surface or use a mixture of lemon and water to clean the walls of the toilet.
Putting these small measures into practice will allow you to always best maintain the health of your bathroom, not only for sanitary ware but also to remove shower limescale and always have a clean and shining bathroom.
FAQ: frequently asked questions about toilet limescale
How do you descale a toilet that has yellowed with limescale?
Start with the least aggressive method: citric acid (150 g in one litre of hot water, 1-2 hours) or a specific descaling gel, then mechanical work with the toilet brush. Only move on to stronger products if the deposit resists.
What is the most effective DIY toilet descaler?
Citric acid: more concentrated than vinegar, odourless and safe for septic tanks. Hot vinegar and baking soda work on light, recent deposits.
Can I use muriatic acid to descale the toilet?
Only as a last resort on hard deposits, in small doses and for 15-30 minutes at most, never together with bleach and never with a septic tank. All the precautions are in the guide to muriatic acid in the toilet.
Why does my toilet get encrusted so quickly?
The most common causes are very hard water and ceramic whose glaze has become porous (often after years of aggressive products). In the first case consider a water softener or treating the water upstream; in the second, the definitive solution is to replace the toilet.
How often should the toilet be cleaned to avoid encrustations?
Ordinary cleaning 2-3 times a week and a light anti-limescale treatment (citric acid) once a week in hard-water areas: that way deposits never get the time to build up in layers.
Related guides: muriatic acid in the toilet: when to use it and the alternatives · how to clean limescale from the toilet · how to unblock the toilet. If the ceramic is now porous and gets dirty within hours, consider replacing it: you will find modern, easy-to-clean toilets in the toilet and bidet set collection.
