A dirty toilet ring is not the best view in the bathroom, especially when the color is golden brown or bright yellow. It even feels icky to use the bowl after seeing that!
Bacteria and natural elements such as minerals in the water cause rings on the bowl. And sometimes, no matter how much you clean the bowl, they won’t disappear. That is why we listed step-by-step solutions in this article on how to get rid of this stubborn toilet ring.
Make sure to read until the end to finally achieve a spotless toilet bowl.
Table of Contents
- Ways to Get Rid of This Stubborn Toilet Ring
- What to Prepare to clean ring in toilet bowl
- Technique 1: Clean Toilet Bowl Ring with Baking Soda and White Vinegar
- Technique 2: Get Ring Out of the Toilet Using a Toilet Ring Cleaner
- Technique 3: Toilet Bowl Ring Removal with Muriatic Acid
- Technique 4: Remove Toilet Bowl Ring Using Pumice Stone
- Technique 5: Get Brown Ring Out of the Toilet Using Bleach
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Conclusion
Ways to Get Rid of This Stubborn Toilet Ring
We included more than one type of method that you can do to remove the ring from the toilet bowl successfully, along with the things that you will need.
What to Prepare to clean ring in toilet bowl
You can choose from these cleaners or combine them to achieve the best result (see the methods below for reference)
- White vinegar (at least three cups)
- Baking soda (at least one cup)
- Toilet brush without metal bristles
- Ring King Toilet Ring Remover (at least one bottle)
- Muriatic Acid (at least two cups)
- Pumice stone (at least two pieces)
- Bleach (at least one cup)
And do not forget to wear protective gear:
- Cleaning gloves
- Protective clothing
- Safety glasses
Technique 1: Clean Toilet Bowl Ring with Baking Soda and White Vinegar
This method is magical because you already have baking soda and white vinegar in your kitchen.
Baking soda is an excellent non-toxic cleaning agent, and vinegar is a strong acid that can effortlessly dissolve dirt and mineral deposits.
When combined, a solution that can get rid of calcium rings in the toilet without scrubbing is made.
- Step 1: Pour a cup of vinegar into the bowl and leave it for 5 – 10 minutes.
- Step 2: Pour a cup of baking soda into the toilet. Promptly pour two cups of white vinegar into the toilet. Leave this for another 10 minutes.
Since this mixture will create a fizz, pull down the toilet lid. This will almost get ring out of the toilet in an instant.
- Step 4: For more effectivity, spread the solution using your toilet brush toward where the ring is. Set your timer and wait for 30 minutes.
- Step 5: Use a toilet brush without metal bristles to scrub off the remaining stains. Although usually, the solution alone is enough to get rid of toilet bowl ring.
- Step 6: Flush the toilet twice to finish the process. You may repeat the steps to remove a stubborn ring completely.
Technique 2: Get Ring Out of the Toilet Using a Toilet Ring Cleaner
Ring King Toilet Ring Remover has a good reputation on Amazon since it’s one of the few products that work.
- Step 1: Remember to wear gloves and clothing that will protect your skin.
In removing the ring in toilet bowl cleaning, turn off the flush valve first to avoid water from pouring down the product.
- Step 2: Pour an adequate amount of the toilet ring remover into the bowl, especially around the ring. Leave for 15 minutes.
- Step 3: After 15 minutes, use your toilet brush and scrub with enough force to get brown ring out of the toilet.
- Step 4: Flush once or twice, then repeat the process if necessary.
Technique 3: Toilet Bowl Ring Removal with Muriatic Acid
Muriatic acid is hydrochloric acid that is one of the most powerful cleaners that can remove the black ring in the toilet bowl at the water line. The latter is caused by mold and mineral deposits in hard water.
- Step 1: Wear your gloves, safety glasses, and protective clothing since we’re using acid. Also, ensure that you have good ventilation.
A great tip is to clean your toilet with standard cleaners before proceeding. Once you’re finished, flush the toilet bowl so it will leave enough water.
Then turn off the flush valve since we will now start with the muriatic acid.
- Step 2: Pour two cups of muriatic acid slowly into the bowl, especially around the ring.
- Step 3: Use your toilet brush to spread the acid around the ring to ensure that you’re targeting it. Leave it for an hour.
- Step 4: After one hour, take the brush and gently scrub the brown, golden, or black ring out of the toilet. Once you’re done, you can now flush or pour a gallon of water into the bowl.
- Step 5: This might only work partially on the first try. If necessary, repeat the process to get dark ring out of toilet completely.
Technique 4: Remove Toilet Bowl Ring Using Pumice Stone
Pumice is created from natural geological processes wherein lava and water mix. It is an abrasive cleaner that can scrub away calcium deposits that cause toilet rings.
- Step 1: To begin, clean your toilet through standard or routine cleaning. This is a preparatory step before using the pumice, which may help soften the dirt or rings in the bowl.
- Step 2: While wearing your gloves, take the pumice stone and dampen it. You can either submerge it in the bowl’s water or just wet it beforehand.
This will lessen the abrasiveness that can damage the shine of the toilets.
- Step 3: Scrub the ring using the pumice stone until gone. Make sure you have more than one stone, as it may fall to pieces, especially when you have a lot to scrub.
- Step 4: Do not flush the toilet with pumice stone debris. Take them out using a strainer or your hands since you’re wearing a pair of toilet-cleaning gloves.
Technique 5: Get Brown Ring Out of the Toilet Using Bleach
Bleach as an ingredient is another way to get rid of toilet bowl ring. But just like with muriatic acid and the Ring King Toilet Ring Remover, don’t let it touch your skin.
- Step 1: Turn off the flush valve of the toilet. Then, wear your gloves, safety glasses, and protective clothing.
- Step 2: Pour a half cup of bleach into the bowl and focus on where the ring is. Leave for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Step 3: Scrub the stain using a toilet brush. Remember to exert only a little force as you want to take care of your toilet.
- Step 4: After scrubbing, leave the bleach in the bowl for six minutes before flushing.
- Step 5: If the ring is still visible, repeat the process if necessary.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Are the Types of Toilet Stains?
There are three types of toilet ring stains. The common one is the brown or golden-yellowish ring, the second is the black ring (commonly at the water line), and the last is the pink toilet stain.
What Causes These Stains?
A brown or golden-yellowish ring stain is caused by mineral deposits in hard water, particularly calcium and magnesium.
The black ring is also caused by dissolved impurities from hard water that provide a place for mold and mildew. This can also lead to sewage bacteria that will give a foul smell.
Lastly, a bacteria called Serratia Marcescens causes a pink toilet ring. This bacteria thrives in moisture and feeds on phosphorus-laden ingredients such as human waste or poop, gels, and shampoos.
How to Prevent Stubborn Toilet Rings?
If the toilet bowl ring keeps coming back, then the best thing you can do is to regularly clean the toilet with standard bathroom cleaners once a week.
Together with this step, incorporate white vinegar and baking soda once or twice a month in your toilet cleaning routine.
Leave a cup of white vinegar in the bowl overnight and scrub it with a toilet brush and baking soda the following morning.
These are also effective ways to prevent black ring in toilet; then you can add toilet gel stamps that do the same purpose and keep your bathroom smelling fresh.
Conclusion
Toilet rings come in brown, golden yellow, black, and pink. Minerals cause these in hard water and bacteria. But the methods on how to get rid of this stubborn toilet ring are easy.
We can use products at home, such as vinegar and baking soda. Utilizing toilet stain cleaners is also a smart choice since they are made for that purpose, along with muriatic acid and bleach. You can go natural with a pumice stone as well.
Finally, ensure that your toilet brush is not made of metal bristles if you don’t want to scratch your toilet material.
I’m Paulk Webb, and I work as a writer for Saveourwaterrebates. I’m happy to put in the time and effort to conduct market research to identify the most pressing issues faced by households concerning their plumbing. Feel free to check out our guides to get the most informed recommendations for how to solve your problems.