A quick guide to shower cleaning

Can you remember how clean your shower was when you first got it? The glass was all smooth and crystal clear. It’s not like that anymore though is it?But don’t worry, you don’t have to go get a new shower! We’ve got a quick guide to shower cleaning that will help you get that shower looking sparkly clean again without making yourself sick with toxic chemicals.

How to Clean Your Shower, Step by Step

Before getting into prevention and soap scum removal, here’s the full routine for a proper shower clean from top to bottom:

• Clear the shower of bottles, loofahs and anything else so you can reach every surface.
• Wet down the walls, glass and floor with warm water to loosen surface grime before you start scrubbing.
• Apply your cleaner of choice (a natural option like the vinegar spray below, or a bathroom cleaner) to the walls, glass and fittings, and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes so it has time to break down soap scum and grime.
• Scrub tiles and glass with a soft bristled brush or non-scratch sponge, working top to bottom so dirty water runs onto areas you haven’t cleaned yet rather than ones you have.
• Pay extra attention to grout lines and corners, where mould and mildew are most likely to build up, an old toothbrush works well here.
• Clean the showerhead by unscrewing it if possible and soaking it in a vinegar solution for 30 minutes to clear mineral buildup (the same approach works for descaling a kettle), then rinse and reattach.
• Rinse everything thoroughly with warm water to remove all cleaning product residue.
• Squeegee or towel-dry the glass and tiles to finish, this is also your best defence against the soap scum coming straight back.

The Absolute Domestics Guide To Keeping Your Shower Soap Scum Free

We understand that there are about a million better ways to fill your weekend than pulling on some rubber gloves and scrubbing soap scum so here’s the best tips we’ve got for getting your shower back to normal.

1. The Best Offence is a Good Defense

The easiest way to clean your soap scummy shower is to avoid ever letting the soap scum build up. How do you do that? Two easy life adjustments – get off the bar soap and keep your shower dry.

Get Off the Bar Soap

Let’s face it, bar soap is gross. It collects bacteria and germs (among other things) and it’s the number one cause of soap scum. Liquid soap on the other hand smells great and doesn’t actually contain any real soap. It’s a form of detergent that won’t harm your skin and won’t form soap scum. Need we say more?

Dry Your Shower

Yes it sounds a bit arduous and it will probably require a shower-drying towel or squeegee, but keeping your shower dry is a great way to prevent soap scum build up. The residue you leave in the shower after you use it is the stuff soap scum dreams of. If you dry it after each use you can eliminate the moisture before soap scum has a chance to develop.

2. You Don’t Need to Use Harsh Chemicals

You don’t need a chemistry professor to tell you that using potent chemicals in a confined space, like say a shower, is not great for your health. And if you’ve ever cleaned your shower with harsh chemicals before, you know that bleachy smell hangs around for a while.

Luckily there are plenty more natural options for cleaning your shower without posing health risks to your family.

Vinegar

Vinegar is a cheap and effective method of getting rid of soap scum without affecting the health of your family, or the environment for that matter. All you need to do is;

1. Fill a spray bottle with white vinegar and apply some to the glass surface of your shower.
2. Give the glass a good scrub with a soft bristled brush.
3. Rinse with warm water and squeegee off any excess water with a dry cloth or towel.

This is a really easy way to get rid of that persistent residue of soap scum that makes your shower look cloudy and feel slimy.

Lemon Juice and Salt

I know what you’re thinking, are we cleaning showers here or having fish n chips? Well it just so happens that what tastes good on your beer battered cod is also great for removing soap scum and rust from metallic shower frames. It’s simple, just;

1. Make a paste from one tablespoon of salt and two tablespoons of lemon juice.
2. Use a toothbrush to scrub the mixture into the corners where the rust or soap scum is.
3. Let the mixture sit for a few minutes before rinsing it off with warm water.
4. Squeegee any excess off with a cloth or towel.

I’m sure most of you have lemons and salt laying around so you don’t even need to leave the house for this one!

Eucalyptus Oil

Eucalyptus oil works wonders on built up soap scum and leaves your shower smelling as fresh as the Australian bush. You’ve just got to make sure your shower’s glass surface is dry and then;

1. Apply some eucalyptus oil to a cloth or towel.
2. Rub the soap scum affected surface of your shower until it feels smooth.
3. Rinse with warm water and squeegee with a soft cloth or towel.

Dealing With Mould and Mildew in Grout

Soap scum isn’t the only build-up a shower deals with, mould and mildew in grout lines is just as common, especially in showers that don’t get much airflow. A vinegar spray works here too, apply it directly to grout lines, let it sit for 10 to 15 minutes, then scrub with an old toothbrush. For more stubborn, established mould, a dedicated grout cleaner or diluted bleach solution may be needed, always ventilate the bathroom well and never mix bleach with other cleaning products. Keeping the bathroom ventilated (an exhaust fan or an open window after showering) is one of the simplest ways to stop mould coming back in the first place.

3. Getting Motivated

This is without a doubt the most difficult part of this guide. The easy way out of course is to hand the task over to your Absolute Domestics cleaner, book a regular clean to keep on top of it weekly, or a one-off clean if the bathroom needs a proper reset first.

Frequently asked questions

How often should you clean your shower?

A quick wipe-down or squeegee after each use goes a long way, but for a proper clean, once a week is a good baseline for most households. Showers that get heavy daily use, or homes with hard water, may need attention every few days to stay ahead of soap scum and limescale.

What’s the easiest way to clean a shower?

Prevention is the easiest method, using liquid soap instead of bar soap and squeegeeing the shower dry after each use dramatically cuts down on how often you need to deep clean. When you do need to clean, a vinegar spray left to sit for a few minutes before scrubbing is one of the simplest, cheapest and most effective methods for glass, tiles and fittings.

Should you dry your shower after every use?

Yes, ideally. Drying the glass and tiles with a squeegee or towel after each shower removes the moisture and residue that soap scum, mould and limescale all need to form. It only takes a minute and is one of the most effective habits for keeping a shower looking new for longer.

How do you disinfect a shower naturally?

White vinegar is a natural disinfectant as well as a soap scum remover, spraying it on and letting it sit for several minutes before rinsing helps kill common household bacteria and mould spores. For an extra boost, eucalyptus oil has natural antibacterial properties alongside its scum-cutting ability.

How does shower cleaning fit into a broader routine?

A weekly shower clean fits naturally into a wider routine, see our house cleaning checklist for how bathroom tasks slot in alongside the rest of the home, and our typical house cleaning duties guide for what a professional visit usually covers.