Removing Soap Scum from a Bath Tub or Shower

I live in a rental and have never been able to properly clean off a residue from shower tiles and shower screen. It is a whitish colour and is either soap buildup or mineral deposits.

By Leonie from Perth, West AU

Answers:

Removing Soap Scum from a Bath Tub or Shower

Here's what I do. Using Comet or a liquid cleanser (using a lot) I wipe down every inch of the tub/shower and walls. Let it sit for awhile then starting with the tub. I have a scrub brush that I use to scrub off the soap scum. I usually only wipe down the walls with the cleanser. Then I let it sit again. I feel the scrub brush is key when cleaning soap scum.

I even use a smaller tile brush to get into the grout lines and along the caulking lines. Finally, I take my shower wiping down everything. Certain soaps seem to leave more of a residue than others so that maybe one thing you could change to help keep the soap scum at bay. Do this often so It won't build up. (12/08/2009)

By Sharon

Removing Soap Scum from a Bath Tub or Shower

You can also try white vinegar. A lot of times the whitish stains are actually calcium from your water and vinegar works great to remove calcium. (12/09/2009)

By Loretta

Removing Soap Scum from a Bath Tub or Shower

I was told that liquid soap won't leave scum like the bar soap does. The bar soaps have fillers that produce the scum. (12/11/2009)

By hopeful

Removing Soap Scum from a Bath Tub or Shower

There is a toilet bowl cleaner called "The Works". In a fit of genius, I tried using it to clean the tub and the sink in my old apartment that had very hard water and tough stains. It ate right through all those old scum and mineral stains. Just be careful and be sure to use gloves because it contains very harsh chemicals. (12/12/2009)

By Jess

Removing Soap Scum from a Bath Tub or Shower

20 Mule Team Borax is the best thing to clean anything with. No odor either. I would make a paste on difficult scum and rinse. Maintain by putting some borax in a spray bottle and fill with warm water. I love this stuff. I find it at K Mart and there are numerous uses for it including scrubbing your face! (12/14/2009)

By Susan

Removing Soap Scum from a Bath Tub or Shower

I used Lime Away in the green bottle. Spray on let sit for about 10 or so minutes then us a metal 1 inch putty knife to remove big soapy areas, like the place were you set your soap bars. I then used a SOS or Brillo pad to remove all the thin layers and streaks of soap scum. This was about 5 years worth of soap scum that was from bar soap that was the same color the tub walls.

Keep the drain closed then let all the cleaners do their stuff to get the tub floor sparkling clean! This house is 22 years old and the fiberglass tub looks brand new. I will also be putting RainX on the tub so soap scum cannot build up for months. (12/17/2009)

By ann Kankaanpaa

Removing Soap Scum from a Bath Tub or Shower

This is a last ditch effort. When my husband and I bought our house, the shower stalls were literally black. I don't think they had ever been cleaned. So, I put on a mask and cleaned the showers with straight bleach. This is very potent. If you do not have a mask, do not try this. I turned on all our bathroom fans and opened all the windows. I was amazed at how clean it got and has stayed with regular cleaning. (01/06/2010)

By Sabrina