15 of My Favorite Budget-Friendly Bathroom Cleaning Hacks

If you are looking for budget-friendly ways to get your bathroom clean once and for all, then you need to read these easy bathroom cleaning hacks!

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Budget-Friendly Bathroom Cleaning Hacks

1. Use an electric toothbrush to scrub off grime around faucets and handles.

Before tossing your old electric toothbrush, save it for cleaning the bathroom. If you don’t have an electric toothbrush, you can always buy a cheap one. (Target has kid’s power toothbrushes for cheap.) The rapid vibration of the toothbrush scrubs away stubborn grime quickly and the long handle makes it much easier to clean hard-to-reach places.

Related: 12 Ways to Use a Toothbrush for Cleaning

2. Remove hard-water buildup from your faucet with a lemon.

Lemons are a natural way to get certain things clean without using harsh chemicals. The citric acid in a lemon is effective in getting rid of hard-water buildup. To use a lemon to clean your faucet, place half of a lemon over the end of the faucet, then wrap a small plastic bag around the lemon. Secure it in place by tying a rubber band around the bag. Wait a few hours, then remove the lemon and wipe the faucet clean.

If you don’t have a lemon, you can also spray lemon juice onto the build-up, wait about 10 minutes and rinse. Make sure to wipe the area dry afterward. This bathroom cleaning hack also leaves your bathroom smelling fresh and clean!

Related: 10 Things You Didn’t Know You Could Do With Lemons

3. Use synthetic soap to make bathroom cleaning easier.

Did you know that some soaps aren’t really soap? Most bar soaps are made with a thick material that builds up in your shower. Synthetic soaps, such as liquid or gel soap (and some bar soaps such as Zest and Ivory) cut down on soap scum. Something as simple as switching soaps can actually make bathroom cleaning easier!

Related: How to Make Liquid Hand Soap From Bar Soap

4. Soak shower heads in a bag of vinegar.

Vinegar is my favorite cleaner for just about everything. (Just ask my husband!) And it’s an amazing cleaning hack for the bathroom, too. To clean your shower heads, fill a plastic zippered baggie with diluted white vinegar and tie it around the shower head. Leave it overnight to cut through the grime, then remove it the next morning. (This also works on the ends of bathroom and kitchen faucets!)

Related: Save Money With These Vinegar Hacks

5. Keep a Magic Eraser in the shower for easy cleaning.

Magic Erasers are made of abrasive melamine foam so they can deep clean anything from tile grout to tennis shoes in seconds. Since they are activated by water, you can keep one in your shower to quickly wipe down the tub/shower walls before cleaning yourself off.

6. Use a chopstick to clean crevices around fixtures.

I bet you never thought of using a chopstick as a bathroom cleaning hack! Since they are so small, chopsticks are perfect for cleaning the gunk out of small crevices such as vents, grouts, around faucets, and other small fixtures and crevices. Just wrap a cloth around the end of the chopstick and start cleaning.

7. Prevent bathroom mirror fog with shaving cream.

Shaving cream contains glycerin that can create a protective coating on your bathroom mirror to stop it from steaming up. Just apply a thin layer of shaving cream to your bathroom mirror and wipe it off. Your mirror will not fog up after your next shower. This is one of my favorite bathroom cleaning hacks and I’ve been using it for years! You can also use this cleaning hack on your shower doors, car windshield, and even your eyeglasses!

8. Remove shower scum with cooking spray.

If you run out of cleaner mid-clean, just grab the non-stick cooking spray from the kitchen! Oil breaks down lime deposits, so spraying cooking spray on your shower tiles or bathtub will remove soap scum buildup immediately. You can also spray it lightly on your shower doors to remove soap scum. Don’t forget to rinse your tub or shower floor with hot water after cleaning so you don’t slip and fall.

9. Use cooking spray to shine your faucets.

Non-stick cooking spray is also great at making your faucets nice and shiny. Spray a little bit of cooking spray right onto your bathroom faucets (or shower fixtures) and wait a few minutes to let the oil break down the grime and/or water stains. Then wipe clean with a rag for shiny faucets that look like new!

10. Use the towel you dry off with to dry off your bathroom fixtures.

Your bath towels can keep your bathroom fixtures clean and shiny. After washing your hands or face in the bathroom sink, wipe down your faucets immediately to keep water spots from forming. Wipe down shower fixtures, too. Get in the habit of doing this every time to make bathroom cleaning go so much faster.

11. Squeegee glass shower doors after taking a shower.

If you don’t have a squeegee in your shower, you need to put one in there right now! Go on…I’ll wait. Squeegees are designed to remove water and condensation from glass quickly. After you shower, spend a few minutes wiping down your tile, tub, and shower doors with a squeegee. This will stop soap scum from forming quickly so you don’t have to clean your shower nearly as often.

12. Keep a shaker of baking soda in your bathroom for quick toilet cleaning.

Baking soda absorbs odors and is a slightly abrasive cleaner. Keep a glass shaker filled with baking soda in your bathroom and sprinkle it liberally into your toilet bowl before flushing. Doing this each time will not only keep odors down but will also clean your toilet for you, saving you from having to scrub your toilet as frequently.

Related: Baking Soda Benefits for Health & Household

13. Keep your bathroom smelling fresh with rice.

To keep your bathroom smelling fresh, put 1-2 cups of rice in a mason jar and add 10-20 drops of essential oil. (My favorite is lavender!) Cover the mason jar with fabric and place it in your bathroom. Shake occasionally to create a stronger scent. (If you don’t have rice, you can substitute it with baking soda.)

Related: DIY No-Sew Hanging Sachet

14. Clean and unclog your drain with baking soda and vinegar.

Baking soda and vinegar not only clean your bathtub/shower drain, but when mixed together they’ll also unclog it. First, pour some boiling water down your drain, then follow it with a cup of baking soda. Mix together 1 cup of warm water and 1 cup of vinegar and pour it down the drain. Cover the drain with the plug, wait 5-10 minutes, and pour more boiling water down the drain again.

15. Let the toilet brush dry completely before putting it back into its holder.

Putting the toilet brush back into its holder after scrubbing the toilet allows all the bacteria to build up on the brush. Let the brush dry completely in between cleanings by wedging it between the toilet seat and the bowl. This allows the water to drip back into the bowl instead of on your floors or collecting in the toilet brush holder.

What are some of your favorite bathroom cleaning hacks? Do you do any of these cleaning hacks in your bathroom?

Find more home tips here:

• How to Organize Your Bathroom: A Step-by-Step Guide to Getting the Bathroom of Your Dreams
• How to Decorate Your Home When You’re on a Tight Budget
• How to Get Free Furniture to Fill Your Home When You’re on a Budget