Cleaning off Hard Water Stains
- , by Trudy Chuoke Trudy Chuoke
I had a note left on my desk the other day to call a customer. When I talked with her, she told me she was doing some decorating work at a customer’s house. The customer showed her the shower in the master bedroom. Her customer was disappointed in how the shower looked because she had hard water stains and couldn’t find anything that would clean the stain. My customer called her dad, who was a plumber, and he said the only thing that might get it off was Muratic Acid. But he didn’t suggest it because it is so dangerous.
And that’s so true. Muratic Acid should only be used outdoors where there is lots of air. Using Muratic Acid in a closed bathroom is an invitation to disaster. The fumes can overpower you. Plus, if you get it on yourself, you get a bad burn. But there is a safer answer to cleaning hard water stains, and that’s Delete Germ.
Delete Germ was originally developed for hospitals to clean bathrooms because it removes hard-water stains and acts as a disinfectant. It’s great to use on ceramic tile, porcelain, and glass. I asked my customer what was on the shower floor, so she sent me a picture. The picture showed little glass pebbles. Perfect. Delete Germ would remove the hard water easily and completely.
Using Delete Germ is easy. For toilets, just put a stream around in the toilet bowl, then lift the lid on the tank and put about a ½ cup down the overflow tube. Let Delete Germ work overnight. The next morning, get your stiff toilet bowl brush and start scrubbing the bowl. Once the stain is gone, flush the toilet. If you have a hard-water stain above the water line, use a Flexi Scour to remove it before you use Delete Germ. You can safely use Delete Germ every week. And when you go on vacation, put Delete Germ in all the toilets before you leave, and let it work while you are gone. It will start removing hard water down below the water line, which is good. But Delete Germ works on other surfaces as well.
You can clean ceramic tile in the shower. But you want to clean differently. Apply Delete Germ (full strength) to the tile and IMMEDIATELY start cleaning. I like to use a ScotchBrite green scrubby sponge. Wearing gloves, start cleaning the tile. At first, the tile will feel rough, and that’s the hard water and the soap scum buildup. But once you start cleaning and Delete Germ starts breaking down the hard water, the tile will get slick because it is clean. Then you want to rinse, rinse, rinse, and rinse again. Don’t leave any Delete Germ residue on the tile.
You can clean a porcelain tub. Work the same way as the ceramic tile. Apply Delete Germ and IMMEDIATELY start cleaning. Then rinse, rinse, rinse and rinse again. That’s very important.
Delete Germ can be used to clean glass. Which was perfect for the customer with a glass pebble tiles and also it does an excellent job on glass shower doors. Does your shower door look hazy because of hard water? Clean it with Delete Germ, and it will look as clean as when you first installed the door. There is nothing pretty in the bath like a crystal clear glass shower door. Just remember, clean quickly and rinse thoroughly.
So why do I say 'clean quickly' and 'rinse right away'? Delete Germ is a mild acid. That’s why it works so well. But you have to have respect for the product. You can let it sit overnight in the toilet because it's full of water. But never let it just sit on the glass shower door, or ceramic tile, or porcelain tub, because it might etch it. But if you use it as I instruct, you won’t have a problem, and your tile, tub, and glass shower doors will look beautiful.
But there are some things that you can’t clean with Delete Germ. Acrylic tubs and showers, marble, granite, cultured marble, and metals cannot be cleaned with Delete Germ. No plastics or fiberglass either.
We have had Delete Germ for over 40 years. It cleans and disinfects and has a minty-fresh fragrance. I wear gloves when cleaning and always use Scotch-Brite to clean all surfaces. It’s on the website. For your first purchase, buy a quart. But save your quart, and the next time you buy, purchase a gallon because it’s much more economical.