Does it gross you out to clean toilets? The cocktail of toxic chemicals in the commercial toilet bowl cleaners should gross you out even more. The warnings on the back of the bottles will reveal the risk involved in using and storing these cleaners in your house – go grab yours and read it, you’ll be surprised, and motivated to ditch it for these natural alternatives.
One of our missions at DIY Natural is to help you rid your house of chemical cleaners and dangerous toxins. Before we learn about a few natural ingredients to help keep your toilet bowls sparkling clean, let’s take a closer look at the toxic blue enemy, a.k.a. commercial toilet bowl cleaners.
The dangers of commercial toilet bowl cleaners
Most commercial toilet bowl cleaners contain harsh chemicals that can pollute your home’s environment.
Hydrochloric acid is an active ingredient in many toilet bowl cleaners. This corrosive chemical is extremely toxic, posing an alarming risk to children, pets, and especially the unfortunate family member who has the chore of cleaning toilets.
Inhalation of hydrochloric acid fumes is harmful to the nose, throat, and respiratory tract. If it gets on your skin it’s highly corrosive.
Chlorine bleach is another harmful ingredient. Bleach is highly caustic, meaning it can burn, corrode, or destroy living tissue. In addition to burning your eyes, nose, and skin, it can easily aggravate asthma symptoms.
While bleach and hydrochloric acid definitely give germs and stains the 1-2 punch, it’s not necessary to pollute your home and risk the potential health hazards when disinfecting your toilet. There’s a reason you’re not getting this message from large corporations though, they can’t make any money if everyone starts cleaning their toilets with, say, vinegar. {gasp} Heaven forbid we forgo those blue concoctions that Big Business peddles as “the ONLY thing that can kill germs in our bathrooms.”
Yeah right, we know better.
Natural cleaners for toilets
There are several natural ingredients you can use to formulate your own toilet bowl cleaners. Making your own allows you the freedom to use whichever ingredients you feel are safest for your family, are readily available, and will perform the best.
White vinegar: You’re probably bored of hearing all the hype on green-living websites about how wonderful vinegar is for natural cleaning. But I can’t stop singing its praises. Vinegar is a mild acid. It disinfects, eliminates odors, and is extremely safe. (Find white vinegar here)
Borax: Contrary to inaccurate information on some websites, borax is NOT the same thing as boric acid (which is toxic). It is actually sodium tetraborate, and is only as toxic as regular table salt or baking soda, in very LARGE amounts. Borax is a great multi-purpose cleaner that whitens, deodorizes, and removes stains. (find borax powder here)
Lemon juice or citric acid: Citric acid, also found in lemon juice, binds to minerals in the toilet bowl making them easier to eliminate. It may help diminish tough toilet stains left by hard water. (find citric acid here)
Essential oils: Pure essential oils are some of the best secret weapons to use in DIY cleaners. Many of these plant-based oils boast antibacterial, antiviral, and even antifungal properties. Tea tree oil has been studied more than any other essential oil, and has been found to kill most forms of bacteria when added to cleaners at a 0.5% – 1.0% concentration. (Read more about tea tree oil here.) Other essential oils that possess antibacterial properties, and are beneficial in bathroom cleaners are lavender, citrus oils, peppermint, rosemary, and eucalyptus, among others. (find 100% pure essential oils here)
Baking soda: Baking soda is wonderful for scouring and deodorizing a toilet bowl. It doesn’t possess any germ-fighting benefits, but it will help keep your bowl free of debris, stains, and those ugly rings. (find baking soda here)
Homemade Toilet Cleaner Formulas
Take your pick from these natural toilet bowl cleaners that we use and love.
Tea Tree Toilet Bowl Scrub
This deodorizing formula utilizes the antibacterial properties of tea tree oil to kill germs in your toilet bowl and on toilet surfaces.
- ½ cup baking soda
- 1 cup distilled white vinegar
- ½ teaspoon tea tree essential oil
Combine vinegar and essential oil in a small spray bottle. Spray vinegar mixture inside bowl, and also on toilet seat, lid, and handle. Allow cleaner to sit for several minutes. Sprinkle baking soda inside toilet bowl and scrub inside of bowl with a toilet brush. Use a clean dry cloth to wipe vinegar solution off seat, lid, and handle.
Heavy Duty Toilet Formula
This toilet bowl formula can take care of nasty rings in your commode, or any other tough toilet cleaning. It leaves a sparkling bowl and eliminates stale toilet odors.
- ¾ cup borax
- 1 cup white vinegar
- 10 drops lavender essential oil
- 5 drops lemon essential oil
Combine all ingredients in a bowl or squirt bottle. Swish water around inside of toilet bowl with toilet brush, or simply flush to wet the inside of the bowl. Pour the entire mixture into the toilet bowl, and allow to sit for several hours or overnight. Make sure family members do not use the toilet during this time. Scrub the bowl and flush toilet to rinse.
Lazy Day Toilet Scrub
For no fuss toilet cleaning, keep a spray bottle of vinegar and a shaker-top bottle of baking soda in your bathroom. When toilets need cleaning, spritz thoroughly with vinegar and allow to sit for several minutes. Sprinkle baking soda inside the bowl, scrub the inside of the bowl, and flush toilet. To clean the outside surfaces just spray with vinegar, let stand a few minutes, and wipe clean.
Source: diynatural
