Here are some helpful tips for how to clean a toilet, including those tricky areas, like the back ledge under the tank.
Today I’ll be answering a reader question from Tamara, who wrote in response to Anna’s post on getting rid of that “boy bathroom smell!” She asks:
“Any tips on how to clean toilet bowls, under the tank on the back ledge of the bowl, you know, that little space straight in front of a 4 year old’s aim?”
HOW TO CLEAN A TOILET (THE BACK LEDGE, UNDER THE TANK)
Here’s what you’ll need:
- Flat head screwdriver
- Rubber gloves
- Disinfectant of your choice
- Disinfectant wipes
- Paper towels and bleach water
- Disinfectant spray
Start by laying a towel, or a few paper towels, down on the ground, for 2 reasons: 1- to save your knees from hurting while you’re on the ground cleaning, and 2- to keep any unwanted yuck from the toilet, off the floor surface. Next, before doing any cleaning, make sure to flush the toilet. No one wants to hover over a dirty toilet bowl!
Under the tank, on the back ledge of the bowl, is kind of a tricky little place to get into! First try using an old toothbrush or a pipe cleaner. If you aren’t able to scrub all the gunk out, grab a plastic knife, wrap a disinfectant wipe around it, and slide it along.
If the toilet seat seems to be in your way (and you have an extra 10 minutes) take it off. This will not only give you more room, but it’s great for getting around, and underneath, the hinges of the seat, which are also hard to clean areas, but a place where germs and bacteria can hide out. If you don’t know how to take the seat off, no worries – read on!
How to Remove a Toilet Seat
Step 1: Use your fingers to pull the plastic covers off the hinges.
Step 2: Take your flat head and turn each screw counterclockwise until either the screw itself pulls out, or the the entire seat pulls up.
On the underside, you can see there is a bolt. It may help to hold the bolt with one hand while unscrewing with your other.
Step 3: Lift the seat off. You should be able to completely remove it now do a thorough deep cleaning of all that build-up!
To clean my rim, I use a disinfectant wipe, then I wrap a clean one around my flat head screwdriver, and stick it in the holes where the bolts were.
Removing the seat gave me the added room I needed to really get inside that small crevice under the tank. I also gave the seat and hinges a good rinsing in the sink, with soap and hot water, before screwing them back on!
Before putting the toilet seat back on, use a sponge and some toilet bowl cleaner, to give the rest of the toilet a thorough deep cleaning. I always prefer to use a sponge, instead of a toilet brush, because a sponge is more absorbent and is better for grabbing bacteria, and other unwanted yuck.
Simply screw the lid back on when you’re finished cleaning!
There you go – that’s how to clean a toilet and remove the backsplash.
If you prefer to use natural ingredients, you can use baking soda and white vinegar (like Anna does in THIS POST), instead of using disinfectant wipes, or bleach.
And I couldn’t help but share this little saying that kept popping in my mind as I wrote this post. I saw it back in high school at a friend’s house and have never forgotten it!
Here is a printable version if you want to hang up a little reminder in your bathroom!
Kim
I have boys and have a “huge” problem with this issue. I clean by spraying the entire seat and ledge with a good cleaner. After allowing few minutes to allow cleaner to work, use a empty dish detergent filled with water to spray with clean water. I always have a towel to catch most of the water. I have also found that a white folded washcloth behind the seat works to catch a lot of the sprays and can be thr.own in with the laundry
Any time we move, my first investment is always a new toilet seat -plain, white-painted wood – the kind you can pop off without unscrewing. They’re about $20, and make a world of difference.
That is so smart!
I have three toilets with that type of seat and think it should be mandatory that they all come off like that!
I agree with Anna! We purchased new toilets and they came with the seats that pop off, but for our 1/2 bath we just purchased a new toilet seat that comes off. I remove them every time I clean the bathroom and it has cut down on the smell.
I have a toilet seat that looks like the one in your pictures, but all I have to do is move the top of the screw knob to the left and I can lift the whole seat up. No unscrewing necessary. This seat comes in wood and plastic.
My dad always said, “we aim to please. You aim, too, please.” Still makes me chuckle.
Haha, love it!
My grandmother had the saying on the wall in her bathroom. Love the memory and the tips for getting the toilet really clean!
I use my steam cleaner which is just tremendous for cleaning all the little nooks and crannies which are otherwise difficult to get to and the best thing is…. no nasty chemicals! Joy!
It’s also great for cleaning around the base of taps too, which can also be difficult to get into. Sending hugs from a chilly Scotland x
LOLOL, love your saying at the end. My aunt had a picture behind her seat (she had 4 boys) that said “If you sprinkle when you tinkle, please be neat and wipe the seat!” 🙂
Use a steamer.
I’ve always taught my boys to sit down while peeing, I never have to deal with the clean up others do.
Awesome! Their wives will be happy!
That’s amazing! Me too! It keeps the toilet so clean this way, doesn’t it? ?
Sadly, that only works if their dad is on board with it and does not think it uh, emasculating. It would solve a LOT of problems including stepping IN puddles in FRONT of the toilet.
Ah! I hate that! I usually go in and wipe the floor before I walk up to the toilet, SO gross!
My ex=husband and 3 sons nearly drove me crazy spraying urine all over all the toilets in our house. Years later I met and married a very tall man who was taught by his mother to sit when he peed. Every day I thank this woman I never met!!!
I only have one son. When he was little I just had him sit to pee as well. I guess I don’t get why you teach them to pee standing at such a young age. And as for the when you sprinkle whipe the seat thing, I don’t really want to sit on their wiped off pee either. Just personal preferance I guess, but my son is 15 now and I still don’t have issues with urine everywhere.
Amen to that!! I’ll bet if THEY had to clean it up, they would sit down!
OMG…. I have 2 boys and I’m constantly cleaning the toilet, around the toilet and there still was a lingering pee smell…. I took the toilet seat off and there was a pool of urine inside the caps where the screws are!!! I will be popping those puppies out every time I clean from now on!!!!
I had a close male friend from Switzerland who used to complain about the same thing (he lived in a house full of guys). He had been taught to pee sitting down for this very reason! I think teaching the men in your life to pee sitting down at home is much easier and more hygienic. Just sayin’
I totally agree!! ?
My husband wouldrun a bead of silicone caulk at the base of the tank to keep the puddle from going under the tank.
Wow, what a coincidence, I wrote, & put this exact verse up, except for an & between sweetie and wipe, over 20 years ago, in the restroom at work. Who did you get this from? I’m wondering if they were one of my employees!
Hi – That sign has been amusing and reminding people for many, many years. I think a new generation is rediscovering it!
I just heat a big measuring cup of water and white vinegar and lay old towels on the floor at the base of the toilet. Then just pour the hot mixture over the back of the toilet seat and all the yuk in the crevices get washed right out! It’s a beautiful thing! Of course, I have more laundry to do, but I love this. It even helps with cleaning that hard-to-reach area behind the toilet. 🙂
When mopping the floor, dunk the mop into the bucket then, without squeezing the mop out much, let the mop water drizzle all over that area of the toilet behind the seat. This lets that water run down through all the nooks the urine has run into and cleans them out. Of course you then have to mop up all that water that ran down onto the floor, but this method is easy and gets rid of all that hidden urine and its smell. I also found Hydrogen Peroxide in a spray bottle gets rid of the smell. Of course Lysol’s aerosol spray will do it too, but you have the Lysol smell to deal with.
My husband and two son’s sit. The general rule in our family is that urinals are made for sanding up to urinate and toilets are designed to sit on. Haven’t had urine smells in my bathroom since.
That’s amazing, I love that rule. 🙂
I have said it before and I will say it again a steam machine works so much easier then unscrewing the toilet seat .
Why are women responsible for cleaning up urine splashes and drips (and other nastiness) left by men? My spouse will not check under the seat when he’s finished using the bathroom and often when I go in to use it, it smells anything but fresh, and it looks terrible. I’ve asked him nicely, complained loudly, and even huffed and puffed when I’ve cleaned up after him and he absolutely will not check the seat. So I do it under duress. Why can’t they just sit down if they can’t stop dripping and splashing? I’ve asked my spouse more than once, if he EVER found anything – urine drops, blood, ANYthing, on the seat or under it after I’d used the bathroom. His answer, “No, of course not”. Then I asked why did he think it was ok to leave nasty stuff for me to find, smell, and have to clean up then. No answer to that. I’ve even tried just leaving his mess, but that doesn’t work either. He just ignores it. So, out of frustration and issues of cleanliness, I break down and clean it. If anybody has a solution, PLEASE let me know. I am sure I’m not the only one with a spouse who refuses to clean up after himself. We don’t even have words about it. He just won’t do it and I resent having to.
I hired a maid to deal with it twice a month!! 🙂 And she cleans the kitchen for me too!….where he dribbles tea on the counters and cabinets when he pours it! Best $100 I spend a month!! lol And she helps me with other projects too. I clean the other parts, dishes, laundry. But it has made a world of difference for me! He even suggested it! Just a thought!
ARGH, I have one of those too. My best weapon to date is to teach my boys to clean the bathroom, it has made them more careful….as far as the adult…..I don’t have any answers…..just that I feel very disrespected when it comes to this.
I totally agree! Why do women have to clean up after the men. My ex husband always denied making a mess, blaming it on our son, but when he moved out, the mess moved out too!
My “little boy” is my 74 year old husband. He says since he’s 6’4″ tall it’s just hard for him to always hit the bulls-eye, especially for those middle of the night trips. I say that’s no excuse for leaving trails down the front of the bowl and the on the tile floor. Finally found the remedy: Clorox Urine Remover for Stains & Odors. Spray on, wait 5 minutes and blot off. As an extra…it even cleaned the grout! The main ingredient is hydrogen peroxide. It’s biodegradable, too. Can also be used on fabrics and carpet…pet stains, too. I didn’t notice any odor.
I raised three boys. Night time toilet visits are difficult for half asleep boys. I tiled my bathroom floor and used tile mop boards . I used a very healthy bead of good caulk around entire toilet before re-install. I bought one of the first ‘steamer’cleaners and used it weekly around splash areas and front of toilet and floor, tile enables me to splash around a bit w/my hot soapy water when scrubbing entire toilet, the mopping it up. Then I made a little wooden sign. It said: “Hold It Down And Watch It, Hot Shot”. Now a days you could even use glow paint!
I fold a towel paper into a tube and stick it into the gap under the tank.. easy to change the rolled tissue or towell paper.
How about a noticeable sign above the toilet that says: PLEASE, HAVE A SEAT! LOL In all seriousness, there’s no reason why men can’t sit – they just like the macho feeling of standing up and aiming. I’d say that’s fine, as long as they clean up after themselves every single time they pee!
Pet urine spray! It has an enzyme that “eats” urine and smells nice too. after I clean I spray all around and let it seep into where the urine would then air dry to to it’s magic!
Just found this. In college, a friend put up a sign similar to Debbie’s dad. “We aim to please, so please aim.” It has a good cadence.
I’m in shock. I don’t understand the concept of pee anywhere but in a toilet bowl. Just saying….
How do you replace a toilet that is lose on the floor without calling a plumber?
You probably just need to replace the seal. Take the toilet off, buy a new seal at the hardware store (you can ask them about how to install it) and that should take care of it. I’m not a plumber though so this is just my opinion from our experiences in the past. 🙂
As the grandmother of five boys, mother of two boys and long time wife, I would make only one suggestion – teach them all to SIT WHEN THEY URINATE OR DAILY TOILET DUTY IS THEIRS!!!
When we built our house, our boys were 3 and newborn. My 3 year old was potty trained and I KNEW I didn’t want the pee pee smell in my brand new bathroom so I had my husband caulk the tank to the bowl and any other little crevice. Worked like a charm! Still is with our 3 year old grandson,?
Great tip! Thanks! -Bethany (Ask Anna assistant)
I remove the seat occasionally to do a thorough clean and I always put a little Vaseline around the holes before putting the seat back on. It creates a bit of a seal that keeps the urine from seeping in between those plastic screws. I also take a paper towel and fold it longways into the gap between the tank and bowl. I replace that every week when I clean the bowl.
I recently met a woman with 4 boys. She put a urinal in the only bathroom in their house. As a first time guest using her bathroom, I had my “Eureka” moment and thought she was a genius!
I raised 3 boys and my ex-husband was lazy with his aim. If I could do it all over again I would install a urinal in the kids’ bathroom and sacrifice one of the double sinks in the master bath to make room.
My mother taught school for 30 some years. Mostly first and second grades. Her idea was to take fingernail polish and paint a bulls eye in the bottom of the bowl. It helped her out a lot. Not perfect but worked through the day until the janitor could get to it at the end of the day.
Sit down to pee.
I love the printable reminder. Going to have to use that in my home as a gentle prompt.
Thank you! I hope it works for you! 🙂
Years ago when I had a husband and a growing son, I hung the following in the hallway bathroom: “Aim carefully, it’s shorter than you think!” Husband was NOT thrilled but my son thought it was hysterical. The sign did solve the problem (either that or the fact that I made them both responsible for cleaning that bathroom every Saturday morning).
This has been a big issue around my home lately and I don’t have kids. Hate when I step in it. I get my q tips out and clean in that crevice behind the toilet, wipe up the tile and ask him to go use his bathroom in the basement. It is good to know that I’m not the only women that this is a issue for.
I have males coming out of the wood works here. Three sons, 4 grandsons… I use my steam cleaner and a little essential oils one is eucalyptus oil the other is tea tree oil and I don’t have those smells anymore it really works
That’s a great tip, thank you Veronica! 🙂