Battling limescale in the bathroom can be a real nightmare, particularly when it comes to taps, shower heads, and toilets . This white, chalky nuisance is just a mix of calcium and magnesium, but when it clings to toilet bowls , it looks far more unsightly than when it's around taps and kettles.
Instead of its typical white guise, these spots can turn a stomach-churning brown, leaving even the cleanest toilets looking grim . One woman, fed up with trying ineffective methods to tackle the "thick" limescale in her toilet bowl, sought advice on the Mrs Hinch Cleaning Tips and Tricks Facebook page.
She posted a photo of her toilet covered in dark brown, almost black stains, and pleaded: "Anyone able to suggest anything to me? " "My toilet has had thick limescale since we moved in last year, I have got the worst of it off with bicarbonate of soda and vinegar. Sadly this is the end result and no more will come off! It looks awful and I hate it! Any suggestion will be greatly appreciated."
The plea sparked a flurry of responses, many echoing the sentiment that vinegar and baking soda weren't cutting it, instead pointing her towards a different solution - citric acid. Maria Louise chimed in with a game-changing tip: "We used everything and literally the only thing that cleared it up is using citric acid."
Abbie Marsh shared her success story: "I had the exact same and couldn't seem to shift it with baking soda and vinegar. What worked was removing as much water out of the toilet as possible and leaving it as long as possible with citric acid.", reports the Express .
Abigail Heard revealed: "So empty the water out of the toilet, fill it with citric acid and leave it overnight and when you flush the toilet it will all come off."
She marveled at the method's efficacy, sharing, "I did it to a toilet last week and I was so shocked by how easy it came away lol. I used to use white vinegar and baking soda but it never worked as good."
Meanwhile, Donna Jones chimed in with her own endorsement: "I live in a very hard water area and this can happen so easily if not kept on top of. But when it was that thick the only way I could get rid was to use citric acid and using it regularly has kept it away."
In pursuit of a flawless loo, fans of cleaning guru Mrs Hinch suggested alternative solutions for those unable to procure citric acid or unfazed by stronger stuff. Louise Anne was ecstatic about Harpic Power Plus, declaring, "Harpic in the black bottle! Put it in overnight, it peels off the next morning. So satisfying."
Emma Ross backed up that claim, stating, "Black Harpic 100 percent. I couldn't believe it when I used it. Would have turned out better if I drained the toilet first though."
For optimal results when battling toilet limescale, Lorraine Shepherd advised, "Whatever you use empty the water first it will always work better without the water in there."
Local News
