Hello, I am hoping some of you may have suggestions for that pesky soap residue that starts to accumulate on glass shower doors, making them look white and filmy, rather than sparkly and transparent, the way glass is meant to be. A plumber mentioned a "trick of the trade", which is turpentine, but the chemical smell is awful, and it lingers for days. I tried CLR, which is supposed to get rid of calcium and limestone, but not only is it not very effective and expensive, but it takes a lot for even a slight removal of the film after tons of scrubbing with a sponge. My sister has shower curtains, so she had no suggestions. I was hoping for something more effective and perhaps less expensive than CLR, which requires scrubbing and multiple applications. Does anyone have any suggestions? I feel like it makes my bathroom look "dumpy" if the shower door is dull and white, no matter how clean and nice the rest of the bathroom looks. Not sure if this is worth mentioning, but it seems to have gotten worse after I started using Dr. Bronner's natural soap, which contains oils. Thanks in advance!
Great suggestions! I may try the vinegar since it's readily available and if not, I will try the magic erasers or the Bar Keepers Friend (I use the powdered form of it to clean the tub floors and walls). Maybe you all can also give me tips for a stainless steel kitchen sink too, it's no longer sparkling clean and even the Bar Keepers Friend can't make it look like new. It looks dull! Stainless steel's pretty, but tough to keep looking clean, especially the appliances, which keep the finger prints on them, something that always happens when you have kids!
Use an SOS pad. Honestly, I just tried it in my tub for the first time a few months ago and the thing looks so sparkly and new I LOVE it!! What CAN'T an SOS pad do?? :)
(I have found NO product cleaner that works even near as well as the SOS pad. I have since quit buying shower cleaners, etc, and just go SOS! Bonus, no nasty CLR smell...I hate that stuff!)
On the shower, I use comet and a green scrub pad, then follow up with vinegar and water. We have very hard water here in Vegas, so it doesn't take long to look like ick. I keep a squeegy in the shower and after every shower, we squeegy the excess water off the walls and glass and that helps through the week.
I use cleanser on the stainless steel sink too. I have also used arm and hammer washing soda on the toaster, which had baked on butter prints. It came right off, although the box does have a warning about using on stainless steel. I did it anyway since I didn't care.
Mr. Clean Magic Erasers!
Magic Clean Erasers
Make a half and half mixture of vinegar and Dawn (the basic blue stuff). It mixes better if you warm it up a little bit. I've seen suggestions that you should add the Dawn to warm vinegar, but I find it works better if I put about a quarter cup of vinegar in my glass measuring cup, add a quarter cup of Dawn, and then microwave the whole thing for about 30 seconds.
Add it to a spray bottle - you don't have to use it while it's still warm, it just mixes better that way.
Spray on the shower, leave it for at least an hour - preferably two or three, but all day is fine, too.
Come back, rinse it off. If it doesn't all come off, give it a quick swipe with a washcloth.
Done. Total time spent on it? About 3 minutes - including microwaving and mixing the solution. (Plus, the Dawn helps with the vinegar smell. Not that it's odorless, but it's not that super-strong vinegar smell, either.)
I have heard using a Bounce dryer sheet along with a Mold and Mildew cleaner will do the trick.
Also, after you get the dirt/mildew under control, spray the shower door with a water repellant (you can find them in the car section at your local Walmart) to avoid any hard water stains.
Don't forget to squigee (sp?) the doors after each use.
Vinegar works great and the spray comet (white bottle green label) also works great. Magic eraser helps too.
I also use marine polish about once a year. It is a long, hard, sweat equity job but the glass stays clean for a long time. It works like RainX.
Also the #1 rule in our bathroom with the glass shower..... NEVER, EVER GET OUT OF THE SHOWER WITHOUT USING THE SQUEEGEE and wipe down and dry the shower before you get out. It does not take that much time and saves a ton on time in the long run from all the scrubbing to remove buildup.
Kaboom. Amazing on our glass shower doors.
Vinegar and water works on the stainless steel kitchen stuff, too - that's what the restaurants used ages ago (also why mom said she'd never have stainless in her kitchen - a PITA to keep clean)
I spray first with a shower cleaner and let is sit for a few minutes to 1/2 hour and then I use the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. I did buy the off-brand of magic erasers and they didn't work worth a darn! I find that if I do it once every two weeks, they stay nice and transparent!
Scrubbing Bubbles Bathroom Cleaner.
Just used it. A few months back, @#%^ !#$% MIL came to visit and "helped" by replacing all my cleaners with her choices.
Fast forward to last week and it was time to clean the glass shower door. Tried vinegar. Tried windex. Tried professsional window washer stuff. Finally tried the MIL's Scrubbing Bubbles...
Sigh, it worked.
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on the stainless - i actually just searched this (unrelated to your question) on MMP and tried the vinegar, store bought stainless and neither worked. Finally tried the Pledge and worked great! Then a couple drops of baby oil on a microfiber rag - and now they shine like new!!!
Bar Keepers Friend. They make it in liquid form. Put a thin coat over the doors, and rinse away. I clean everything with this stuff. We have really hard water and soap scum. After trying vinegar with no success, a friend mentioned this. It was esp appealing as it has no bleach. Works great!
ETA: If you go to their website www.barkeepersfriend.com, you can get a $.50 off coupon. :) I think you can get it just about anywhere.
For stainless steel, I found "Stainless Steel Magic" works the best.
Sold at grocery stores. Grey bottle. Spray & wipe w/a soft cloth (this part
is essential).
straight white vinegar and elbow grease
Bar keepers friend will work great on the glass door and your kitchen sink too!! It is hard to rinse off you so may have a film of it on your shower door. I prefer Lime away for my shower door, spray it on, use the scrubby side of a sponge and rinse.
S.
N., Have you tried straight vinegar? I spray white vinegar on the shower door and let it sit about 10 min, then I get a sponge dipped in vinegar and scrub. Then I let it dry and see if I need another application. At the end I just windex the streaks off. A giant jug of vinegar is also very cost effective.
The other thing you might try is a Magic Eraser. That is the only thing that seems to get my tubs clean.
I know I'm late to the party, but my husband used to be a mechanic, so I had incredible build up of grease, grime, and soap scum (not to mention hard water).
The best product I found was Arm & Hammer Scrub Free Soap Scum remover. Spray it on, let it sit about five minutes or so, then rub with a sponge or rag or brush.
Also, try creating a homemade daily shower spray once it's clean to keep it that way. I use one that has vinegar, rubbing alcohol, dishwashing liquid (dawn), and jet dry/electrosol. The Dawn cuts any grease and grime, and the jet dry prevents hard water from adhering to the surface of the glass. Another option is to get it clean and then apply a water repellant made for car windshields (can't think of the brand name at the moment).
