Ask Mrs. Clean: House Cleaning, Stain Removal and Organizing Tips

[Natalie]

Hi there, can anybody help me? I have moved into rented accomodation with a glass shower. There are stubborn water marks all over the glass panels and i cannot get rid of them, i have tried so many different things, bleach spray, white wine vinegar, shower spray, glass cleaner, screwed up newspaper, even T-Cut (for cars, recommended by a hardware store) and nothing seems to shift them. If anybody has any ideas to help me, that would be fantastic as it is now starting to drive me mad that i canoot get rid of them. Thank you. :x

[mrscleannw]

Hello Natalie, welcome.

You are either trying to fight hard water stains, soap scum build-up, or water spots. Treatment depends on what is causing the problem.

Hard Water Stains:

Hard water stains are caused by excess minerals in the water and will adhere and etch glass causing permanent damage if left to sit too long.
Straight vinegar; this is a mild acid and will help dissolve built-up minerals.
Try using salt mixed with baby oil. Just remember to wipe down the shower after as the baby oil will be slippery. Baby oil will also make it easier to clean the shower door the next time around.
Try a heavy duty product such as CLR, always follow manufacturer’s instructions.

Soap Scum:

Elbow grease used with a detergent or mild abrasive such as comet.
Try Kaboom shower, tub and sink spray. This is a stronger acid and should help remove old soap scum.
Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. This dissolves and removes miscellaneous grim, just wet with water and scrub.

Water Spots:

Try a Bounce fabric softener. While your glass shower door is damp use one or two fabric softeners, (some elbow grease) scrub the glass, then rinse off.
Clorox makes a natural glass cleaner (Green Works) made with plant and mineral-based ingredients. Used with a microfiber cloth this will give you a nice streak-free shine.

Mrs. Clean

[DejaP]

Hi Natalie,

Norwex Enviro Products has a couple FABULOUS products which might help you with your shower door. They carry a very high quality microfiber cloth (warrantied for 2 years) which takes off soap scum and hard water scale amazingly, using just water, so it's a non-toxic alternative, and it works better than any store bought product I've tried. It does require a little elbow grease, but it's often enough to do the trick. If it's not, Norwex also sells a product called Descaler, it's the healthy (and better working) version of CLR. It's an enzyme based product which literally eats through hard water scale and rust - a little pricey, but it's an amazing product, and the bottle will last you for a loooong time. I started using the Norwex products last year when my sister gave me one of the microfiber cloths as a gift, and I've completely changed the way I clean my house - got rid of all the chemical cleaners!
Deja

[diywindowcleaning]

Unfortunately when you have years of hard water build-up on any glass surface, especially showers, it can only be removed using special hi speed buffing pads and compounds. This should only be done by a professional as the glass can be damaged severely. The reason for this is that the hard minerals will actually etch into the glass itself.

Sometimes if it is just a glass shower door you can save yourself a lot of time and money by starting over and purchasing a new shower door. Coat the new door with a hard surface coating like Rain X. Then get in the habit of using a shower squeegee to remove the water from the door after every shower use. This will keep the mineral deposit from adhering to the glass. You will only need to put additional coats of Rain X about every 3-4 weeks depending on shower usage.

Also keep in mind that shower doors and windows are tempered glass. Using a razor/scraper, steel wool or scrub pads on tempered glass can leave nasty scratches.

[crussobkkg@yahoo.com]

I have glass shower doors and brass fixtures. Is there any cleaner that is safe for both

[mrscleannw]

Hello crussobkkg and Welcome to Mrs. Clean's Forum!

About cleaning shower doors with brass fixtures:
The method we posted for hard water stains using vinegar is safe for the shower door as well as the brass fixtures.
Also the method for water spots using Bounce fabric softener sheets will not harm your brass fixtures.

If you want to use another method, use a non-ammonia window cleaner.

As far as the brass fixtures are concerned, it is inevitable that they will tarnish and you will need to buff them occasionally.
If this is real brass, you may use a paste with equal amounts of white distilled vinegar and table salt.

Good luck with your cleaning, and let us know how things turned out.
Mrs. Clean

[cleaningitright]

Once again, thank you for the amazing tips mrsclean!!!!