HELP! What have I done to my toilet?

puddy

I am constantly at war with limescale down the loo. We are in a hard water area and this is not helped by my partner's reluctance to flush the loo (official reason is that he is helping the planet, the truth is he is completely absent minded - he leaves drawers and cupboards open, forgets to put things back where they were etc etc, so this is just an excuse)

So the limescale is not only very heavy but stained yellow, bleugh

So, I use the hardest stuff I can find, limescale remover, I leave it in as long as I can, all day sometimes, then scrub with a washing up brush, using the scraper on it to dislodge the limescale. Sometimes this is successful, sometimes not, Im always left with little bits further down into the bowl and in the crevices. It looks horrid

I have tried, bicarb, coke, vinegar, all the remedies and havent managed to be successful.

So I saw yesterday a wire wool (or metal scourer) on a stick and thought this was ideal, its rounded, made of thin metal strips, dont know how to describe it really but I thought it cant do any harm because enamel is really tough.

I have just tried it and its turned some of the toilet bowl grey. At first I thought it was just discolouring the enamel the same colour as the scourer but it looks like it has scratched the enamel off, is this possible, I cant believe it, it looks terrible. Not all the limescale is off, so now I have a yellow streaked limescale covered toilet with grey patches. arrrhhhhhh, what have I done?

WestonDave

Probably the only solution (and you ain't going to like this!) is to get some gloves on and feel whether the grey is raised or indented. Its possible that you've scraped metal onto the raised limescale hence the grey, or you could have scraped away the enamel.

I tend to find that if I use a toilet brush as a sort of plunger you can push most of the water round the U bend which then means that when you put the limescale treatment on it doesn't get diluted and works better. You may want to try this trick to see whether it helps clarify what you have done.

puddy

gloves? I did it with my bare hands, I couldnt really tell to be honest. I then did the pushing the water down the u bend and wish I had done this when cleaning it before as you say, the limescale remover would then have clung on to the toilet better.

Im having a cup of tea to calm me down (decaf)

diable

does your partner believe in the following, If it's yellow let it mellow and if it's brown then let it drown? If he does then tell him that nookie is bad for the environment as the environment you are in now is suffering and if he wants "some" then to get flushing...............

puddy

the irony is that he always over fills the kettle and leaves the taps dripping, so i know its a load of rubbish, he just has no idea about things

daveyjp

"So, I use the hardest stuff I can find"

You haven't yet found the hardest stuff available - 95% sulphuric acid.

Sold in B&Q as 'One Shot' drain cleaner.

diable

puddy wrote: »

the irony is that he always over fills the kettle and leaves the taps dripping, so i know its a load of rubbish, he just has no idea about things

Tell him if he doesn't pull his socks up then you will be replacing him for a more economical and environmentally efficient model ;o)))

diable

daveyjp wrote: »

"So, I use the hardest stuff I can find"

You haven't yet found the hardest stuff available - 95% sulphuric acid.

Sold in B&Q as 'One Shot' drain cleaner.

Polish Spirytus Vodka at 96% ;o))))

spadoosh

The chances are most of the chemicals you have been using removed the enamel already, hence the staining! Always found that leaving bleach or chems in the toilet too long gets rid of the enamel and then that leads to the quick yellowing. Think you will find it hard to get rid of permanently. Next time with a nice new loo make sure you dont leve chems in it for more than 2-3 mins plenty of time for em to do their magic

maninthestreet

If you want to get rid of limescale in the crevices, use a pumice stone - it's softer than the toilet bowl porcelain, but harder than the limescale.

maninthestreet

spadoosh wrote: »

The chances are most of the chemicals you have been using removed the enamel already, hence the staining! Always found that leaving bleach or chems in the toilet too long gets rid of the enamel and then that leads to the quick yellowing. Think you will find it hard to get rid of permanently. Next time with a nice new loo make sure you dont leve chems in it for more than 2-3 mins plenty of time for em to do their magic

Steel baths are enamelled, porcelain toilets are not.