Bathroom cleaning is my least favorite cleaning chore of all the house cleaning chores…but boy oh boy is it a bad idea to procrastinate on this hateful chore! Procrastination in cleaning this room means mildew buildup, urine stains that cause smells and that can eventually ruin flooring, hard water build-up that begins to ruin chrome faucets and an environment that no one feels clean in even after showering!
Just as with cleaning other areas of the home, one of the best tips for how to clean bathrooms is to keep up with it every day so it never gets to be a big chore in the first place.
What you will need: Sponge, microfiber rags, toilet brush, scrub brush, microfiber mop, your favorite bathroom cleaners (see below for suggested bathroom cleaners), vacuum with tool attachments.
Daily:
- After each shower, use a small squeegee and squeegee off the water to help prevent water marks on the walls and glass doors if you have them. This is one of our favorite cleaning tips that will save you tons of time later having to treat and remove hard water spots from tile and glass.
- Keep a small hand held vacuum to use on the floors each day or sweep or vacuum with your regular floor vacuum. Most bathrooms are full of hair which makes the room feel really icky. Cleaning is also very difficult without first removing the hair because as soon as it gets wet, it sticks to everything. Daily vacuuming as well as always vacuuming first before you do the deep cleaning of the bathroom is highly recommended.
- Keep Clorox sanitary wipes handy under the sink and train your family to get in the habit of doing a quick wipe of the sink and toilet seat after each heavy use.
- Keep paper towels under the sink so it’s easy to quickly dry off the mirror after everyone is done brushing their teeth and using the sink in the morning and at night. This will give a feel of clean when the mirror doesn’t have that splashed look all the time!
Weekly:
Once every week it’ll be time for a thorough cleaning of the shower/tub, toilet and surfaces and floors.
- Vacuum the floors, vacuum out hair from sink and tub/shower.
- Use a good bowl cleaner such as Clorox bowl cleaner, apply and let sit. Spray the toilet seat and base with your favorite bathroom cleaner and let sit while you move on to the shower/tub.
- Spray down your shower and tub with your favorite bathroom cleaner. We love to use peroxide cleaner for this because it is green, sanitizes, bubbles up and cleans grout, minimizes mildew and helps with hard water all in one cleaner! Grab a scrub brush or sponge and scrub walls, faucets, tub/shower floor. Rinse thoroughly. If you have a no-slip bath mat, spray it down and scrub also. These mats have a tendency to get mildew so it’s always a good idea to hang to air dry after use.
- Spray down you sink and faucets with the peroxide cleaner, scrub, rinse and dry. Don’t forget to wipe down the cabinets while you are at it.
- Spray the mirror with a glass cleaner and wipe clean.
- Now, take your toilet brush and scrub the inside of the toilet getting under the rim. With a different rag, wipe the sprayed down tank, seat and bowl exterior including the base.
- You can clean your floors with a small mop (microfiber mops are great for this) or by hand. Spray the floor with your peroxide cleaner. If you have grout, give it a little scrub especially around the toilet base. Wipe clean and dry with a rag. If using a mop: wet the mop pad in a bucket of clean water with a little peroxide cleaner or dish soap with a couple drops of bleach. Squeeze until just damp and mop away!
Monthly:
- Clean out the medicine cabinet, sink cabinet and drawers. Bathrooms are notorious for collecting old make up and tooth brushes (and hair!). Toss old items, wipe out cabinets and drawers.
- Wipe down walls including ceiling and corners. Use a little dish soap with a few drops of bleach or a cleaner such as Tilex. Have a step stool handy and it will be a quick process and will pay dividends by preventing mildew and other grime from building up in corners and on ceilings.
