A toilet seat is one part of the toilet that you want perfectly clean 24/7. The reason is clear – you and your kids touch the seat every day, so it’s important to keep it neat and clean.
But how to clean a toilet seat? We recommend using baking soda because it easily removes stubborn stains from toilet seats. However, you may also try vinegar, bleach, and even Coca-Cola.
In this post, we will show you how to do that.
Tools You’ll Need to Clean the Toilet Seat
Before you start working, remember to get the basic tools. You probably have these items at home, which makes toilet seat cleaning a convenient DIY bathroom project.
- Rubber gloves are necessary to protect your hands from harsh chemicals
- Paper towels to wipe the toilet seat
- Toilet brush to remove sturdier waste deposits
- A bucket to hold your cleaning solution
- A scratch-free scouring sponge
- Baking soda, vinegar, Coca-Cola, or bleach – pick your weapon
If you don’t have some of these items, you can choose to improvise. For instance, a piece of cloth should easily replace a paper towel. The same goes for a toilet brush, as you can probably use an old toothbrush instead.
How to Clean Your Toilet Seat?
After testing dozens of cleaning solutions, we picked the four most practical and efficient ways to clean a stained toilet seat. Our advice is to remove the lid because it makes the cleaning process a lot simpler.
Anyone can do it quickly – locate a couple of bolts connecting the seat to the toilet bowl. Use a flathead screwdriver to twist the bolts counterclockwise until they fall out of the threaded hole.
After that, you can detach the toilet seat. You should also remember to clean the toilet bowl while you’re at it – our hacks can help you remove all toilet stains simultaneously.
Now let’s go back to the actual cleaning solutions.
Solution 1: Remove Toilet Seat Discoloration with Baking Soda Paste
It’s easy to fend off toilet seat discoloration with baking soda paste. To do this, you only need half-cup of baking soda and some water. Apart from that, a few drops of soap or dishwashing liquid will help the paste flow smoothly over the toilet seat.
Here’s what you need to do:
Mix a half-cup of baking soda with warm water. Use a small bucket to stir the two components and make a thick paste. Now you can apply the paste to the toilet seat, but remember to cover both sides of the toilet lid.
The best is to apply the paste with your hands, but you have to wear cleaning gloves. Let is sit there for 20 minutes, then clean a toilet seat with a soft sponge to remove yellow stains.
The baking soda will help lift off any stubborn discoloration, so you’ll feel like getting a new toilet seat.
Solution 2: Clean a Toilet Seat with Vinegar
Distilled white vinegar has a mild acidic property, which is quite effective against stains. The cleaning procedure is similar to the first one — you just need to apply the substance and clean the toilet seat.
We love vinegar because it cleans a toilet bowl as well, so you can hit two birds with one stone. How does it work?
Pour half-cup of the vinegar into the bucket and add two cups of warm water. Now you can grab a sponge and soak it into the cleaning liquid. Use the sponge to cover the toilet seat with vinegar.
Wipe the toilet seat until it becomes clean and shiny. Let it air-dry, or use a paper towel to dry it off. If you want to disinfect the entire toilet, pour a cup of vinegar into the toilet bowl and let it rest for 10 minutes.
After that, you can flush the toilet to clean it.
Pro Tip: Don’t flush the paper towel after cleaning the lid. Although paper tissues seem harmless, they are not water-soluble, so they might block the toilet. It will disable your plumbing system and force you to unclog the toilet.
Solution 3: How to Get Stains off the Toilet Seat with Bleach
One of the most common cleaning agents is chlorine bleach — it can make your toilet seat clean and polished. However, remember to wear rubber gloves and protective eyewear at all times because the substance might irritate your skin or eyes.
For this method to work, you need to pour 1/2 cup of bleach into the bucket and add four cups of hot water. Mix well and soak the sponge into the cleaning solution. Now it’s time to clean the toilet seat — circular motions should scrub the stains.
If the stains are too hard to wipe off, use a toilet brush. Our suggestion is to allow the bleach to sit on the toilet seat for five minutes – it gives the substance more time to work and eliminates all the stains.
After that, the only task left is to flush off the lid with water. Most seats look great after bleach treatment, but we do not recommend flushing bleach down the toilet bowl — it may end up clogging the drainpipe.
Solution 4: Use Coca-Cola to Clean the Toilet Seat
It may seem strange, but Coke is a convenient way to keep the seats clean — especially if you drink it often. In this case, you don’t need to purchase other cleaning products.
Coca-Cola contains phosphoric acid, which enables it to fend off tough stains and urine smell. The method is very simple – just pour the drink over a piece of cloth and put it on the stained toilet seat.
Let it do the work for 15 minutes, then wash the seat with a piece of cloth and water to remove sticky residue. Don’t expect Coke to do miracles on the entire seat, but you can expect it to eliminate yellow stains.
You can also scrub the toilet bowl with a toilet brush to remove stains from it. After all, Coke is a well-known toilet bowl cleaner.
We hope that your favorite seat is clean by now, but you should not forget one thing — attach the lid to the toilet bowl. Regardless of the cleaning method, you will need to reinstall the seat and place it on the toilet again.
Doing it is simple — put the lid back in its original position and secure it with a pair of bolts. Turn the bolts clockwise, but don’t overdo it because you might break the plastic seat. After screwing the bolts, your toilet is fully functional and ready for use.
Why Does Your Toilet Seat Look So Bad?
Many homeowners wonder where do toilet stains come from. It’s a logical question because you want to identify the cause of the problem and possibly stop it from reoccurring.
The thing is that toilet seats are overly exposed, so they get in touch with urine too often. You know how it goes — you’re not paying attention while taking a leak, or your kid is not targeting properly. In each case, toilet seats hide urine underneath.
Seeing urine leaks is seldom easy because they enter the cracks around the bolts or simply hide under the seat. It also makes toilet stains hard to approach and clean, but removing the lid makes the job easier.
The best way to prevent toilet seat stains is to teach your kids how to use the toilet properly — it will make everyone’s life easier in the long run. Of course, you should also pay attention when doing your thing in the bathroom.
The Bottom Line
Cleaning a toilet seat is simple — you only need to remove it and apply your favorite toilet bowl cleaner. Both round and elongated seats are flat and smooth, so it’s easy to wipe and remove all the stains.
Remember to wear gloves when using chemical cleaners to protect your skin from harsh substances. Everything else is just a matter of scrubbing and brushing, so you’ll have a seat perfectly polished in minutes.
FAQ
What is the best cleaner for a toilet seat?
The best cleaner for toilet seats depends on your preferences. Some people prefer strong commercial cleaners because it guarantees success. Others will use more natural solutions to protect their health and the environment.
Our recommendation is to use vinegar and baking soda. The two substances are natural, so you can use them without the fear of damaging plastic or metal parts of the toilet.
How do I get the yellow off my plastic toilet seat?
You can get rid of the yellow by cleaning your plastic toilet seat. Yellow marks are likely urine-induced, so they don’t require a strong germ-killing cleaner to fend off.
For instance, you can use bleach to scrub the stains and then clean the seat with water. Other options include vinegar, baking soda, commercial cleaners, and even Coca-Cola.