Our shower door seems to be etched with hard water stains. Nothing I have tried will remove. It looks better when wet, but when we squeegee and it dries, it looks terrible. I have even tried sharp razor blades but nothing phases it.
Sandra from Austin, TX
If the glass is truly etched this cannot be cleaned off. The one thing I have found is to rub a thin coat of baby oil on the whole surface this needs to be repeated, doors look nice and clear. This also will work on the framework.
This is not a permanent fix; at least it looks good for a while.
Babbie (07/08/2007)
By Babette
Shout It Out or the cheap laundry stain removers. Works for me. Just wet the shower down, spray the Shout It out, let it sit, scrub with a green scrubbie, rinse and let dry.
(07/09/2007)
By This worked for me
Who in the world woulda "thunk" it, but the Pledge worked. I tried it last out of disbelief, what a fool I was. By the way, I used lemon extra moisturizer Pledge because that's what I had at the moment. It worked, but I like the Orange Pledge better. Thank you guys. (07/10/2007)
By LJ
Polishing compound purchased at any automotive store will work on automotive glass, only if the stains are not eched in. No matter what you use, if the stain is in the glass itself (glass is porous) the only remedy is an acid wash. Save your time and pay a pro $120.00 to clean and detail your car (or shower doors if that's the case). The glass used in most shower doors is cheap stuff, it might be worth your while just to replace your glass and then treat the glass with an anti spot treatment (07/14/2007)
By Robert
I had hard water stains on my glass enclosed shower. I tried everything suggested on this site without success. Then I tried the cook top cleaner as Jen 1/2007 recommended. It worked effectively and I am one happy camper!
Robin G F (07/16/2007)
By Robin
If the stain on your tub is not too hard and has been sitting for awhile a steamer works great. Have not tried on glass but i assume it will work. (07/21/2007)
By Tana
I had similar problem on shower glass. I Used Limeaway, I suggest you stand in shower while wearing a pair of cleaning gloves and squirt the bottle along the top of the glass and let it run down wait about 3 minutes and rinse. It worked well. I suggest opening the windows too, so the room is well ventilated.(07/24/2007)
By Tom
Ok, I am still sweating from cleaning my shower. I tried Limeaway which I swear by for faucets. After that didn't work I came here and tried lots of the suggestions, CLR, vinegar, Kaboom, none worked. I have used lemon oil before and it does look good for a while but it doesn't remove the stains, it just covers them. I saw the post for Bon Ami, I love that for my kitchen sink.
By Mary
Pledge + Steel Scraper = Clean Shower!
Of all the remedies people suggested, the only one that I had on hand was Pledge, but it alone wasn't enough for our awful hard water stains. That's when I noticed that with my fingernail, I could scrape off the "Pledged" waters pots. Not being interested in scraping with my fingernail for 19 hours, I grabbed a big Painter's Blade. With in minutes, the spots were gone, the blade did not scratch anything, and I was able to Windex my shower to a perfect clarity.
WARNING: This is so easy, even us husbands can do it. (09/03/2007)
By Jeromy
Try Bring-It-ON water spot remover. It's a paste that you wipe on, leave on for a few minutes to dissolve the minerals, and wipe off. Invented by a gal that got tired of trying things that didn't work. (09/04/2007)
By Don
Oh my gosh. I'm not a patient person, so instead of waiting until I got some Orange Pledge, I tried an off brand furniture polish and it kind of worked. I used the dryer sheet with a green scrubber and it kind of worked. I noticed that the products that contained "orange" in the ingredients got a lot of tries and good comments.
Since I didn't have either one of those products, I tried Goo Gone. This is an orange based goo remover I had on hand, and I cleaned my shower glass. I am very embarrassed to say it hasn't been cleaned in over a year (couldn't see through it). It took less than 45 minutes to a clean, clear shine with no water spots! The Goo Gone I have came in a spray bottle.
By Agnes -Houston
Although I don't see it mentioned. Once your glass doors are clean, use car wax to coat them. Then when the get dirty, wipe the material off and reapply the car wax. Very little is needed.
(09/23/2007)
By David
In the past I tried most liquid products, but nothing worked on our glass shower wall, and it was all too labor intensive for such meager results. Then I successfully followed Jim's advice from earlier (below) with a couple of tweaks. I found some Bar Keepers Friend (BKF) It's like Bon Ami, but I couldn't find that. BKF is safe for glass, but Comet and Ajax are not.
Next I bought an inexpensive palm sander with a rectangular surface. Then I attached a green Scotch Brite pad in place of the sand paper - mistake. The green pads will lightly scratch the glass. Then I checked out the 3M website and discovered I needed to use the blue pads, so I went and got a pack. I also tried a cut up t-shirt before going back to the store, but that did nothing.
So I attached two blue pads next to each other where sand paper would have gone, sprayed the pad and glass with water, put about a tablespoon of the BKF on the sander, leaned it up against the glass carefully to avoid spilling it, then turned on the sander. I went over a one to two square foot area and immediately over the same area two more times. Then I wiped the BKF off with a moist towel. Next I repeated the same sanding/rinsing technique three times. That did the trick. The glass looks like new. Finally I treated it with Rain-X to keep the water beading off the surface. And lastly to remind the family to squeegee after each shower. Thanks for all the advice!
(09/24/2007)
By Guest Bee
I just got this tip from a home inspector, and it works! Add 2/3 cup water to 1 packet of kool-aid Lemonade, scrub your shower doors, and rinse. Amazing results, 2 years of buildup gone without intensive scrubbing. And no environmental pollution. (11/09/2007)
By Cate
Twinkle by Drackett-- love all their cleaning products. Believe it to be safe on glass. (11/26/2007)
By Deb
Wow! OK, after reading several of your comments and looking for cleaners, I found under the cabinet "Rubbermaid Floor Grout Cleaner". Yes, sounds odd. I said what the heck and i tried it on the shower doors.
Using a blue side of a sponge, I poured some of the cleaner on the sponge and applied it to the door. Instantly you can see the cleaner turn white on the soap scum. I then lightly started to rub the sponge in a circular motion and within minutes the spot was crystal clear! I completely cleaned one door within 30 minutes.
The cleaner does contain "hydrochloric acid" so please use caution. To help, I poured it out of its original bottle and put it in a spray bottle. I recommend this cleaner also for cleaning grout. Buy a stiff bristle brush, apply, let sit for 3 minutes, brush and your done
Shawn, Illinois
(b)Editor's Note:(/b) Because hydrochloric acid is toxic, make sure to use good ventilation, wear rubber gloves and avoid breathing in any fumes. (12/08/2007)
By
Ok y'all I think I have found the miracle here. We just put our house on the market, upper price range in our area. Mind you I am a procrastinator when it comes to house work. I found this site tried almost everything, nothing worked good enough, frustrated I was sitting there thinking what I could try. My husband does all our vehicle maintenance. So I went and got his "Gojo". I rubbed just a little bit on an inconspicuous spot and instantly years worth of hard water stains gone with almost no elbow grease. It can be found at any auto store like Auto Zone/Advanced. (01/15/2008)
By JennJen718
You are so right. Used Easy Off Fume Free Max. Let it set for 15 min and hit it with my scumbuster. 5 yrs of scum and hard water stains gone. Thanks (02/06/2008)
By Lex
Don't know if this has been mentioned or not, but Spot X Hard Water Stain Remover (Got at Home Depot) worked perfectly. Only took probably 5 minutes tops to clean the door. It looks like the day it was installed.
(02/26/2008)
By Joel
Steel wool and Windex! (04/28/2008)
By Troy
I used a product from New Zealand called C-thru Water Spot Remove. It worked, an absolute treat. Took years of ugly build-up off my glass shower. Hubby did his boat windows and truck as well. It's safe to use and has no nasty smells, etc. Highly recommended. (05/29/2008)
By Marian
I have been trying everything that everyone has posted. None of it has worked for me. I finally broke down and tried soft scrub and a green scratch pad. It worked right away and beautifully. There were no scratches left over. You just have to rinse it really good. But my glass shower doors have never been cleaner. (06/12/2008)
By Michelle
SOS pad and Windex worked great for me. (06/29/2008)
By Neil
Nancy,I know you posted over a year ago but you are correct about the A-maz product for water spots. My friend's mom sent me some from California and it really worked when I tried it out last night. It did leave some smudges but, I am going to go back in today when I have more light but it really was amazing! (07/21/2008)
By Jenny
I clean windows for a living and have found a very effective way to remove hard water stains. I buy a product from Ace Hardware called the Simple Cleaning Solution. It is a powder that forms a paste when applied to a wet towel. I have to use a little elbow grease, but the the results are fabulous and my clients are amazed that I actually got the stains off.
Sometimes the showers are so damaged by the stains that it takes more time than I can charge customers for. If they want to do it themselves I tell them to go to hardwaterstain.com and order it for themselves.(b)(/b) (07/31/2008)
By Tim Bloom
I just tried the 150 grit sandpaper on my finish sander in one spot and it scratched the glass pretty bad so you might want to be careful. My doors were on ly $300 crystal clear glass brand new so maybe it's the type of glass. I swear I think it's going to be easier and cheaper to just buy new doors and this time make sure that they stay clean. Please enjoy this picture of my ruined door. (08/08/2008)
By Larry
Whoa, fauxtoman! You dropped a zero, it should have been 1500 grit sandpaper. (08/11/2008)
By hammer
Turtle wax polishing compound. Work it with a wet sponge. (09/03/2008)
By Greg
Well I was all set to go out and buy stove top cleaner but I figured I'd give old fashioned vinegar a try first. I live in South Korea and found some crazy-strong 99% vinegar that'll knock a grown man out if he takes a big enough whiff. I just successfully removed hard water stains from my shower door using a 50-50 mix of vinegar and water and a scrub pad. Maybe we just got the good stuff over here. (09/14/2008)
By comatosed
Have you tried baking soda? Combine it with white vinegar and it works a treat! (09/28/2008)
After a few months our new glass shower enclosure was getting spots. I polished the glass with glass stovetop cleaner/polish and got them off. It wasn't really severe, but it was all over the glass and it was a big chore to polish it all. (Our old shower was so badly 'etched' with spots it was almost like frosted glass, frankly it's easier to have badly spotted glass replaced.) NOTE: you do have to rub pretty hard, you're basically sanding the glass with a slightly gritty liquid, kind of like using buffing compound on a dull auto paint finish.
Once it was polished again we started cleaning and treating it every 10 days to 2 weeks and there has not been a single spot for over a year. We use microfiber cloths, an alcohol-based aerosol glass cleaner and then a gel glass treatment (similar to Rain-X but easier to use). It takes an extra 10 minutes to treat after the regular cleaning, but I prefer that to using a squeegee or wiping it down every time I shower.
The water runs right off, no daily maintenance, and it's a true joy to have a crystal clear shower enclosure all the time. (10/15/2008)
By J. Clark
Lemon oil will do the trick and it is easy, inexpensive. No scrubbing, smear it on the surface of the shower doors, rub it in real good like you are polishing your wood furniture. Wash off and clean with Windex. Just like new. (10/19/2008)
By groovycharmer
I went through the garage and tried everything: rubbing compound, rain-x, paint thinner, bug and tar remover, detailing spray didn't work! Guess what? The last can I grabbed was Finish Line's Eco-Tech Degreaser. It worked great. It's biodegradable and made from soy oil, no harsh fumes. Try it! (11/02/2008)
By Amy
I used lemon juice and wiped with a shop towel. I applied it pretty heavily and scrubbed off what I could. Then I used a 4F pumice powder that I use for polishing finished on woodworking projects. Worked great, not too much elbow grease required. I did not have extreme buildup, maybe 8 months since last cleaning. (11/03/2008)
By Andy B
I think I killed every fish in Lake Ontario with the various cleansers and potions I tried. After being fed up with cleaning the flaming doors, today I removed the glass doors and the frame and sold it on kijiji for $125!
I installed a shower curtain. The rod cost me $12, the modern - looking curtain and hooks were $65 (there are cheaper ones) and I picked up a shower curtain liner at the dollar store for - wait for it - $1! I will change the liner every 2 weeks to keep things 'fresh'. I'm a beaten man, I lost, the lime won!
My bathroom actually looks cleaner now with the curtain. There are thousands of curtains from country themes to modern patterns, depending on your desired look. (11/22/2008)
By Ed
Glisten works great! I order it online. We use it for build up on the shower heads, outdoor faucets, anything that has the hard mineral buildup. CLR was a waste of money.
I don't know why it isn't sold in stores. It is supposed to be safe for the septic and pipes as well. (02/17/2009)
By Marialaina
I can't believe this actually worked this morning. Our door are less than a year old and we have hard water so I've been getting sick at looking at the hard water spots. I tried everything from dryer sheets to Windex and couldn't get the darn spots off. Then this morning, I got out of the shower and went to clean my glasses and lo and behold it worked on the shower doors. The door were still damp when I sprayed the eye glass cleaner onto them. I just did a small area to try and it worked!
Now I'm going to run the shower again and do the entire doors. Again start with the doors wet, probably preferably after a shower then spray on the eyeglass cleaner and I just used paper towels and a bit of elbow grease, it didn't take much pressure at all! I would be worried about using too much pressure as I wouldn't want to chance breaking the doors
Hope this works for all of you as well as it did for me! (02/19/2009)
By Guest
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If you can, remove the doors and replace with a curved shower rod. then you can throw the curtain in the wash or replace it. this is why hotels use shower curtains, they don't have to clean like six panels of glass. And you can express yourself in the shower curtain design, like macaroons or elk, or learn the periodic table of elements!
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