When our daily lives become so busy, often one of the last things to get cleaned around the house is the bathrooms. Dirty laundry piled up, loose hair strewn across the floor, toothpaste lying in the sink, trash can overflowing, and soap scum in the shower. Yes, I said it, SOAP SCUM...it is taking over your shower and mine.
If you have more than one bathroom, then one gets cleaned and the other, well, it becomes the dumping station. You know what I mean (especially if you have kids). And if you are like me, I hate to clean the showers (even over toilets). Perhaps it was the clear plastic shower door growing up that seemed to disgust me with its build up of pink soap scum....or then maybe it was those times I did clean the showers earning money at my cleaning job in college while that mucky, gray water ran down my arms and onto my clothes. Yuck! Well, for whatever reason, I absolutely hate cleaning showers.
Everyone has a tip on cleaning the bathroom. Wipe the shower down while you are in the shower. Use a specific cleaning spray so that it breaks up soap scum. Make your husband or kids do it. Among my own rules are never buy or install a shower with those doors. Nasty to clean. Pause to cringe. I am glad they invented the Black and Decker Scum Buster (personally I like the cordless one).
There is only one thing worse than a shower full of dirt....a shower curtain liner that is covered in soap scum. You will be surprised! Take a look at the bottom that stands inside the tub.
Before I was married, I lived in downtown studio loft. Yes, it was great (and convenient). The building was even restored to its 1920's look. This included the coolest claw foot tubs in the small bathrooms. Now, if you never have seen one of these, the plumbing for the shower comes through the wall and is supported by a bar that encircles the same oval of the tub, only up by the shower faucet. From this oval bar hangs a clear plastic shower curtain all the way around the tub.
Clear liners show dirt, especially becoming cloudy white. So one tip that I learned then (thanks to my landlords) that I still use to this day is too take down the shower curtain every so often and wash it through the clothes washer.
To get serious scum off, you need to soak the curtain in bleach. This is as simple as filling the washer up with hot water and bleach. Before the cycle changes to spin, open the door and leave the curtain to soak for a while. Once the bleach had a chance to work off the scum, close the lid and finish the cycle. While you are waiting for the curtain to wash, wash down the curtain rings and the curtain rod. As soon as the curtain is done, hang it back up in the bathroom to dry over the tub. Then you will be all ready for the next time someone needs to shower.
You will be surprised how much that makes the bathroom appear that much more shiny. And your guests (and maybe your kids) will be so thankful for a clean place to shower.
Now that you have taken care of the curtain, do not forget to wipe down the shower ledge! Guaranteed you will find some dirt up there.
No comments:
Post a Comment