2 Amazing Cleaning Formulations For Removing Hard Water Stains From Tile Shower Floors
Do your shower floors get dirty or dingy with hard water stains that are virtually impossible to remove?
Ours sure do. But now we’ve found two cleaning solution formulations that make it a breeze to keep our tile shower floors sparkling.
We live in central Florida and get hard water stains on our tile shower floors. These stains give a blackish tinge to the floor and after a couple of months, the floor looks pretty awful.
We had never had these stains in other places we lived, so this was a new problem for us.
My wife tried everything she could think of to remove the stains, but nothing worked. Clorox didn’t touch the stains. Nor did OxyClean or Bar Keepers Friend, her go-to cleaner for difficult stains. She even tried scraping off the stains with a razor blade. UGH!
Finally, I did an Internet search and stumbled across two similar formulations that are absolutely amazing. I found them in the comments to an article on HomeRepairTutor.com. You can find the original article here. Scroll down to the comments section to find the formulations.
Formulation One:
The first formulation was given by Theresa James, and is as follows:
● Add 1 cup of white vinegar to a glass measuring cup and heat in a microwave oven for 90 seconds
● Pour the vinegar into a 1-quart plastic spray bottle
● Add 1 cup of Blue Dawn dishwashing liquid to the spray bottle
● Take the spray bottle lid with the dip tube, insert the dip-tube into the bottle, and tighten the lid onto the bottle
● Shake the bottle gently to mix the solution
● Spray the area to be cleaned and let sit for 2 hours or more
● Scrub the floor with a cleaning brush or mop and rinse (typically only light scrubbing is needed)
Formulation Two:
The second formulation is from Dana. Unfortunately, she did not specify volumes for all of the ingredients so I made them the same as in Theresa’s formulation.
Also, Dana used Dawn Original dishwashing liquid but Blue Dawn can also certainly be used.
Here is Dana’s formulation:
● Add 1 cup of white vinegar to a 1-quart spray bottle
● Add 1/4 Cup of lemon juice to the spray bottle (bottled juice is acceptable)
● Add 1 cup of Dawn dishwashing liquid to the spray bottle (Dawn Original or Blue Dawn)
● Take the spray bottle lid with the dip tube, insert the dip-tube into the bottle, and tighten the lid onto the bottle
● Shake the bottle gently to mix the solution
● Spray the area to be cleaned and let sit for 30 minutes or more
● Scrub the floor with a cleaning brush or mop and rinse (typically only light scrubbing is needed)
Action Plan:
Here’s your Cerebral Advantage Action Plan for using the above formulations to clean your tile shower floors:
Step One: Prepare one of the formulations given above and apply it as described
Step Two: Let the floor dry and see how it looks
Step Three: If the stains are still present, try one of the following variations:
● Use Blue Dawn if you used Dawn Original● Add the lemon juice if you used Theresa’s formula without the lemon juice
● Use the solution hot if you didn’t heat it originally
● Try letting the solution sit longer. Let it sit overnight, if needed.
● Try a different scrubbing device (heavy scrubbing should never be needed to remove the stains on the tile, but some devices may be more effective than others)
Summing Up:
The above two formulations are absolutely amazing for removing hard water stains from tile shower floors.
I use Blue Dawn in both formulations and have had equal success with both solutions. I typically use Dana’s formulation since lemon juice is a pretty good cleaner in its own right and, therefore, in theory at least, the lemon juice should enhance the cleaning action of the solution.
I typically make the solution hot, as described by Theresa and use it hot the first time. In later applications, I just use it at room temperature. I typically get about three applications from the volumes given in the above formulations.
Be forewarned, however. Both formulations give off a strong vinegar odor so opening a window when using is recommended. Also, use them when you won’t be spending much time in the bathroom during the period the solutions are applied to the floor.
These formulations also do a fair job of cleaning the grout, although they won’t remove stubborn stains. To date, I haven’t found a really good grout cleaner. If you know of one, let me know in the comments below.
Also, let me know how these solutions work for you.
Think Right. Live Well.
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