how do i clean up toilet bowl enamel?

Question

Bought a new house and the toilet enamel has i think corroded away (nice). anyone know if there is a way of bringing it back to life? sure i saw something on kim and aggie once!!

Answer 1

It's more likely you have calcium build-up on top of the enamel. You'll need a strong acid solution to remove the calcium. Try something like lime-a-way first and if that doesn't do it, you'll need muriatic acid (hydrochloric). Wear protective clothing and rubber gloves as muriatic acid and even lime-a-way can burn. Be sure to provide good ventilation when using muriatic acid - vapors can damage lungs and eyes!

If the enamel is indeed worn off, you'll need to get a new toilet.

Answer 2

What I try doing is getting as much water out of the toilet bowl as I can then place squirt Lime-Away on it. Let it work on the calcium for 15 minutes to a half hour or so. Then take a soft scrub sponge, like those green and yellow ones, and scrub the calcium off. The coke or vinegar might work too. I wouldn't recommend using the Muriatic or hydrochloric acid. That may be a little too strong. Also, I wouldn't use steel wool. If you use too strong of a cleaner or steel wool you can damage the enamel of the toilet. The enamel/glaze on the toilet basically is glass. I learned that from taking a ceramics class. Glass is basically inert and won't react to most things. However, if you scrub through that glaze you do away with the ability of your toilet to resist permanent stains, etc. So never use a scrubber like steel wool that is harder than the glaze and can scratch the glaze and eventually wear through it. Once you wear through the glaze, it's time to get a new toilet. Also, if you read on some of those cleaner directions, they say not to leave them on it too long or they can ruin and eat through the glaze.

Answer 3

If you have bought a new house, do you mean a new build, or one off a resident, give the toilet a soak in bleach, harpic and limescale remover, if none of these work , it is quite easy to replace with a new one, select one that is of a similar design then unscrew the screws that hold it to the floor, the feed pipe disconnect, and the waste pipe is only made of rubber so that should come off easy, when replacing put fairy liquid around the rubber , this will help it slide on, screw down the new connect up and flush away , do remember to switch the water off before disconnecting , if you lived near New Milton Hampshire I would come around and do it for you , free

Answer 4

Use an angled bleach bottle and squirt atleast half a bottle in the rim before you go to bed.In the morning get your toilet brush and scrub as hard as you can it should have soaked in and will lift the limescale and dirt off alot easier.Also you could get a tub of bicarbonate of soda and with some rubber gloves on and a scourer scrub as hard as you can,you will find that it should shift some of it too.It will probably just be a build up of dirt from the toilet not being cleaned properly.

Answer 5

Please be careful and don't mix cleaning agents! Your loo might blow up!
Assuming its clean (and you've bleached it a couple of days ago so all the bleach has washed away).
If its looks rough textured it is probably limescale. If it above the waterline you will have trouble reaching it. Try buying a couple of bottles of white (clear) vinegar. Soak it onto loo roll (not kitchen paper which might block it!) and slap that on the limescale. Leave it for as long as you can.
If it still looks rough you can 'rub' it away with the rounded edge of an old knife, just rub the blase along it and it should come off quite easily - this shouldn't damage the porcelain.
The vinegar on loo roll is great around taps too. Bathroom will smell like a chippy, but not for long!

Answer 6

It may not have corroded, it may just be a severe build up of limescale. Tonight before you go to bed tip a whole bottle of coke down the pan and leave it until the morning. If that doesnt work then you could try white vinegar and bicarbonate of soda. If it is really bad you may have to invest in a new loo. The coke worked for me though.

Answer 7

Put some cola down the toilet over night and dont flush til the morning. You will need about a litre of cola though. Or use caustic soda and leave that in over night. Its available from hardware stores.

Answer 8

I have read with interest all the answers. I have come to the conclusion that people hav'nt a clue about chemistry. If it is limescale then acid is the chemical of choice. Hydrochloric acid will remove limescale, "Brickclean" from a building supplier will work. B&Q (UK) DON'T mix caustic soda, bleach with it, they are ALKALINE

Answer 9

Go to your local hardware store and explain the problem there is a king of acid that will do the trick but be careful and make sure the house is empty and will be for the time it takes to work.

Answer 10

The works!