While the answer may vary depending on the state of your toilet at the end of each day, there are some basic hygiene rules to follow when cleaning your toilet:
Cleaning inside your toilet:
For starters, if your toilet brush was once white but is now orange or brown, then it needs to be replaced. Ideally, a tool, sponge or cloth that can be disposed of or washed hygienically after each use should be used instead of a toilet brush, as these are notoriously tricky to keep clean.
Daily cleaning
If you can see visible evidence in your toilet bowl of the days use, then you’ll need to perform a quick clean to ensure that the bacteria within doesn’t multiply or get sprayed around the room each time you flush. Bleach is one of the best bacteria busting solutions, but you can use a more natural solution such as baking soda mixed with vinegar, should you prefer.
Weekly cleaning
If you don’t have the need (or desire) to clean your toilet bowl every day, then a thorough scrub once a week might be enough. A toilet brush soaked in bleach should do the trick, but it may require a little elbow grease to scrub properly underneath the rim. You’d be amazed and probably disgusted to know what lurks under the rim of the average toilet bowl, so thorough cleaning of that are is essential to minimize the risk of harmful bacteria from breeding there.
Monthly cleaning
As mentioned previously, a mixture of vinegar and baking soda can be used to clean toilets very effectively, and the smell won’t pervade your nostrils and sting your eyes in the same way that some chemical cleaning solutions may do. This monthly clean usually requires maximum elbow grease, especially if you haven’t been keeping up with the weekly cleaning, or you may wish to spray a solution around the entire toilet bowl and leave it there overnight without flushing. If you do an overnight soak, then the next morning you should just need to give a light scrub and your toilet bowl should look as good as new.
Cleaning the outside of your toilet:
Cleaning the outside of the toilet bowl is just as important as cleaning the bowl, since urine, hair and even faeces can hide under the seat and around the rim. The hinges of the seat tend to accumulate a lot of grime and bacteria and should be cleaned thoroughly with the appropriate solution, as should the flush handle, button or lever. Don’t forget the cistern and base of the toilet, too, and while these may only need cleaning monthly, a visual check at least once a week will give you a better idea of the required frequency.
For a sparkling bathroom, not just your toilet, consider hiring help from a professional cleaning company who will get the entire room hygienically clean within a matter of hours.
