Hard water can be a huge nuisance. (And not just because it doesn’t make enough suds when you’re washing your hair.) This menace leaves an ugly trail of white deposits behind on your faucets, fixtures, and shower doors. Here are the top 5 secrets to getting rid of the hard (water) evidence without harsh chemicals.
- Magic Eraser: I’m a huge fan of these little white enchanted scrubbing machines. I’ve been known to use them to clean everything from shoes to tile grout. That yucky white residue on the shower is no joke, but with a little water, these really do “magically erase” hard water! Make sure you always test in an inconspicuous place, and do not use them on anything shiny, as they are essentially a fine sandpaper.
- Vinegar: You can chalk this one up to science. Essentially, vinegar contains acetic acid, which reacts with calcium carbonate and lime scale (yucky white residue left behind in your bathroom.) As the two react, the acidity breaks up the buildup with little effort.
- Citric Acid: Here’s our college chemistry lesson all over again. Just like vinegar, we can thank citric acid for being acidic. Also, thankfully, we don’t have to special order industrial strength citric acid (which can get pricey.) Concentrated lemon juice or even lemon halves will do the trick.
- Cleaning Concoction: Fill half of a spray bottle with vinegar, add ¼ cup lemon juice, fill the bottle almost to the top with a dish soap of your choice, and then shake well. We’ve talked about the benefits of vinegar and lemon juice already, and adding the liquid soap also helps it to cling better to surfaces. If you spray this on the affected area and allow it to sit overnight, it will take less elbow grease to knock out that hard water.
- Bar Keeper’s Friend: I’ve been using BKF for about 2 years now. One of my favorite uses is to sprinkle some on a wet microfiber cloth to remove hard water from glass shower doors. It doesn’t take a lot of scrubbing at all, simply wipe the glass with the cloth and then rinse well. Make sure you rinse the glass thoroughly so there is no residue or streaks left behind.
Have the hard water blues? Try one of these tips, and leave us a comment to let us know how things went!
