The Ultimate Guide to Cleaning a Toilet Properly

This image shows a clean white toilet with the lid open, positioned against a neutral-colored wall in a simple, well-maintained bathroom.

When it comes to cleaning the bathroom, toilet maintenance is a must. Cleaning a toilet can also be an incredibly time-consuming chore, and one that most people don’t relish. The good news is that if you have the right products and cleaning methods, keeping your toilet clean doesn’t have to be an unpleasant task.

Surprising but true: Regularly cleaning your toilet is not just the sanitary thing to do; it’s actually vitally important, for the health of your family and the health of your toilet. Toilets that are not cleaned with regularity can quickly start to give off foul odors. Bacterial buildup can occur. The toilet itself may fall into disrepair—not overnight, of course, but still, its lifespan can be significantly diminished.

Here’s something else that’s surprising but true: Many homeowners aren’t necessarily sure on the best way to thoroughly clean a toilet. It’s not necessarily a simple procedure, either. There are several steps involved if you really want to do it right.

How can you ensure that you’re really getting that toilet clean—preventing problems with it down the road? Here’s a quick step-by-step crash course.

Begin with the toilet bowl. Get one of the many toilet bowl cleaning products that have curved necks, allowing you to squirt the soap up under the rim and then let it drip down. Spray that in, then get a toilet brush and thoroughly scrub the entire bowl, including under the rim and deep in the bottom. When you finish, resist the urge to flush! Instead, let that soap sit in there for a while longer.
Close the lid, then spray the outside of the toiler with a sprayable cleaning product of your choice. (There are some great all-natural choices available.) Start wiping the toilet down with your sponge, frequently rinsing it in the bathroom sink. Don’t forget the back of the toilet, and especially don’t neglect the bottom, where dust and hairs are collected.
Lift the lid, spray the rim, and wipe it down. Don’t forget the underside of the seat, as well.
With the lid and seat both cleaned, outside and in, it is time to get back to the bowl. Give the toilet one more scrubbing with the brush, for good measure, and utilize the soap that’s been sitting there. Flush a time or two to get the soap out, and rinse your brush in the sink while you do so. Hopefully everything looks clean now—but if not, get that brush going once more!
The toilet is now clean, but it’s important for you to not let too much time pass before you clean it again! The best strategy is to do some daily maintenance. Keep some soapy water in with your toilet brush so that you can simply give the toilet bowl a quick run-over every day, which will keep nastiness from building up. You might also keep some anti-bacterial wipes in the bathroom to wipe down the outside of the toilet every few days.

This regular toilet maintenance can go a long way toward preventing toilet problems in the future! Should a real plumbing issue come up, however, we are standing by to provide you with assistance. Call us as needed and we’ll help you through whatever toilet issues you’ve got.