The cleaning gals used real lemon juice they squeezed on the show. Put the juice in a baggie, put the shower head in the baggie, zipped it up and left it at least 15-20 minutes (show time) then took it out, rinsed it off, polished it and reinstalled it.
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To clear a clogged shower head, boil it about 15 minutes in a mixture of 1/2 cup vinegar and 1 quart water.
I keep a spray bottle of half vinegar, half water, and a spritz of dish detergent for everyday use. Once a week, I spray the showerhead with this vinegar mixture and it keeps the holes unclogged.
Get a baggy and fill with vinegar. Tie it around the shower head, leave on overnight. Wipe grime off in morning. It works well.
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
What's the best way to clean shower heads that you can't easily remove?
By Pam Griffis from Davie, FL
Use a yellow kitchen glove. Fill it with whatever you want to soak it in, and tape the ends around the shower head, and leave for a few minutes.
Or, use a plastic foldover sandwich bag--not the zip type bags, put cleaner in it, and very, very carefully, put it over your shower head,(so as not to drip or spill the cleaner on you,) so the entire shower head is immersed in the cleaner, tie it, or tape it, and let it soak. Another way, is to use a wrench that will safely remove the shower head without damaging it, then put the shower head in a cleaning bowl only, and let it soak, then rinse, and using the wrench, put it back on the shower pipe.
Also, let the water run a bit, to get all of the cleaner out of the pores of the shower head--nobody wants to turn on a shower and get drenched in cleaners not meant for them.
We have the hardest water I've ever seen so far in my life, and we were hardly getting any shower flow, even though I'd clean the showerhead on the pipe. My husband got a low-flow showerhead at Walmart for around 6 dollars. Even though our water flow is still a little low, I can't believe what we are getting in water flow now. Since the other showerhead is off the pipe, I can really soak it, and check it out, and maybe with a lot of cleaning, it will be useable again! I didn't throw it out.
Use straight white vinegar to soak the shower head.
Then you don't have to worry about chemicals
I used a sturdy plastic bag filled with vinegar and let it sit, tightly taped, on the spout. Took something like 8 hours, but it worked. The calcium and lime deposits came right off.
I would like to find an all natural ingredient to clean the deposits from the shower head, any ideas? Thank you.
By Fazy from FL
I heard if you put a baking soda mix in a bag and put the head into the bag of water and tie it around and leave it there for a couple hours.
Mix baking soda and water into a toothpaste-like consistancy use to scrub shower head. Safe enough to brush your teeth with but scrub enough and your showerhead will be shiny. :}
How do I clean a gold plated shower head that is clogged?
By Joe
Fill a zip lock bag with vinegar, place it over the shower head and keep it in place with a rubber band or string. Let this soak over night and it should remove all buildup. Flush with hot water for a bit. :)
by teamac:
The above will work fine (the bag with vinegar) if you have just a slight clog but if you have a more severe clog (as I had and thought I was going to have to call a plumber and replace the whole system). Try the below method
Check all filters clean with old toothbrush use same brush to clean both the inside of the shower head and the shower pipe with either the vinegar or lime away- which works very good with deeply clogged shower heads as it breaks down the lime and calcium deposits . You may have to soak the shower head for a few hours or overnight (as I had to do), depending on how clogged they are. This will take time and a little effort but the results are awesome and so inexpensive. It saved me so much money with such little effort and time.
My shower head is on a flexible hose. How can I clean it? No, I can not remove the shower head.
You needn't remove the shower head, Earl. Find a bowl big enough for the shower head (preferably plastic, in case the bowl slips off the edge of the tub), put vinegar and baking soda in the bowl, detach the shower head and hose from the wall (as if you were about to use it) and simply place the head in the bowl. Leave to soak a few hours. Voila! Clean.
How to clean the shower head without taking it off?
I usually take a sandwich baggie with white vinegar and keep the head soaking in the bag overnight by using a rubberband. Seems to work just fine and takes away lime deposits too. Not to mention it's not toxic to pets or children.
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Before you throw out a shower head that just doesn't spray right. Soak it in vinegar and baking soda. Remove shower head. Set in big bowl with spray side down.
If your showerhead is not running as fast as it used to, take a small plastic bag and half-fill with vinegar and attach it to your shower.
I'm trying to remember how to clean a shower head. The spray is going all over due to build up.
How do you clean shower heads? Is there anything I can make at home to unclog the holes in the shower head from lime deposits.