Keeping the bathroom clean

[Haiku]

How do people keep their bathrooms clean? No matter how frequently I clean, my toilet has hair all over it, the baseboards are dirty, the sink has toothpaste and grime in it, and the floor is not clean. It's very frustrating.

 

Tara

[Ferdie]

I keep flushable wipes under the bathroom sinks. My kids use a wipe each morning to wipe down their counter and toilet seat. It takes them 2 minutes and has made such a difference.

Edited August 14, 2010 by Ferdie

[Lara in Colo]

My dream bathroom is all tile (walls, floor) with a big drain in the middle and a retractable hose. All I'd have to wipe is the mirror.

 

Lara

[hsm6kids]

My dream bathroom is all tile (walls, floor) with a big drain in the middle and a retractable hose. All I'd have to wipe is the mirror.

 

Lara

Thats my dream kitchen, I always tell DH if we ever build a house I want a kitchen that I can just spray down with a high pressure hose and the water would go out a drain in the middle of the floor.......bathroom to match the kitchen...perfect.

[Ellie]

I have a friend who requires her dc to clean the bathroom every morning, before school even starts. It's still an effort on her part--show dc exactly what to do, make assignments, check the bathroom by a certain time to see that it was done, send dc back if not, yaddayaddayadda--but it's the only way she's able to keep the bathroom presentable.

[Parrothead]

Clorox wipes, a bath rug or two and rules.

 

Generally I'm the last one in the bathroom in the morning. Before I leave I grab a couple of wipes. One for the sink/counter, one for the seat and one for the tub rim.

 

 

• Put the cap on the tooth paste,
  
• Wipe your toothpaste spit out of the sink.
  
• Wipe your shaving mess out of the sink.
  
• Flush!
  
• Dry off in the tub/shower so you don't get the rugs wet.
  
• Hang your towel.
  
• Clothes in the hamper.
  
• If the hamper is full take it to the laundry or tell an adult it needs to go to the laundry.
  
• Tub toys must be emptied of water and put in their box.
  

It stays pretty tidy between cleanings.

[Moxie]

What do you do about hair on the floor? After my daughter and I dry our hair in the AM, it looks like someone fought with a pony in the bathroom! If there was a closet in there, I'd just keep a swiffer handy. Alas, no closet anywhere close.

[LuvToRead]

Our bathroom gets cleaned every morning, before school, too. Always wait until everyone has their teeth brushed before cleaning. I keep a bottle of cleaner handy and cleaning rags. I just squirt the sink and wipe, squirt the toilet (I keep cloths I use for the toilet separate, and mark them with a "T"), and wipe. I shake out the rugs, sweep, and mop. I use a sponge mop, and just spray the same cleaner I use on the sink and toilet. Then I set out fresh towels.

 

About once a week, and actually clean the inside of the toilet bowl. I also clean the shower while I'm using it. Plus, only using liquid soap vs. bar soap keeps the soap scum down. I also wipe down the walls once a month. We had bead board that goes half way up. I clean the light fixtures when they look like the need it. I also clean the mirror several times a week, just when it looked like it needs it.

 

We have 1 bathroom, and 4 people, and it stays clean this way.

 

HTH

[Georgia On My Mind]

We use the disinfecting wipes, a lamb's wool duster for the baseboards, everyone sprays the shower and tub enclosure down with a shower spray we make from alcohol and jet dry after each use and this cleans it without scrubbing. Commodes get scrubbed once a week with a couple of Tbs of bleach or more if needed and rim wiped in between with the disinfectant wipes. Scooba cleans the floors and corners get wiped with a wipe once a week. Mirror gets a once a week with microfibre cloth and water. The bleach is cheap, wipes only bought when on sale with coupon, tub spray costs pennies per bottle and Scooba uses vinegar and water. Cheap and about as chemical free as I can get and feel like the germs are chased away.

 

Oops, I forgot to say Roomba sweeps the hair whenever we need it but most of female hair drying is done at dressing tables in our rooms. I got Scooba for Mother's Day three years ago and Roomba for Christmas this year. They are my ready helpers and don't talk back or have to go somewhere else when it's time to work. I recommend both highly.

Edited August 14, 2010 by Georgia On My Mind

[LibraryLover]

One of my kids has the thickest curly har. If normal people 'lost' the amount of hair he does, they would be bald multiple times over. I have to wipe out hairs in that bathroom daily. I encourage him to as well, and sometimes he remembers. lol

[Ester Maria]

How do people keep their bathrooms clean? No matter how frequently I clean, my toilet has hair all over it, the baseboards are dirty, the sink has toothpaste and grime in it, and the floor is not clean. It's very frustrating.

It all starts with cleaning after oneself - instill a habit into your DC to wash the sink after they've used it if there's anything in it, wash the bathtub / shower after they've used it (which includes removing hair from there), remove the hair from hairbrushes immediately after they've used them, and generally pick up after themselves for every additional mess they've made.

 

If all members of the family have internalized that habit, that's 80% of the job done. It's not cleaning per se that solves this issue - it's maintenance of what has been cleaned. You can clean the house every morning, but if people aren't used to picking up after themselves, it'll be a mess by afternoon, especially with multiple and younger kids. So I'd start there, and even if you don't clean your bathroom every day, I'd do some kind of a "light cleaning", to clean the floors, get rid of hair, and generally make sure the place is hygienic.

[ChristusG]

I've started cleaning the bathroom about twice a day. It takes about 2 minutes each time. My kids leave water all over the counter from washing their hands and brushing their teeth. I take the bathroom hand towel and wipe the water from on the counter and hang it back up.....the counter is clean and it is just water so the towel is still clean. At the end of the day I'll usually take a Lysol wipe (kept under the sink for convenience....if I actually had to go and get a Lysol wipe, I know I wouldn't do that....so I've started keeping what I need in the bathroom) and wipe down the counter and sink. Then I'll use another to wipe off the toilet. I probably swish the inside of the toilet about once a week.....or if I see that it needs it.

 

As for hair, we don't really have that issue. I don't sweep the bathroom nearly as much as I should.....but because the sink and toilet look fine, the bathroom looks nice and clean.

[Haiku]

How do people keep their baseboards clean?

 

Tara

[JoyfulMama]

I've started cleaning the bathroom about twice a day. It takes about 2 minutes each time. My kids leave water all over the counter from washing their hands and brushing their teeth. I take the bathroom hand towel and wipe the water from on the counter and hang it back up.....the counter is clean and it is just water so the towel is still clean. At the end of the day I'll usually take a Lysol wipe (kept under the sink for convenience....if I actually had to go and get a Lysol wipe, I know I wouldn't do that....so I've started keeping what I need in the bathroom) and wipe down the counter and sink. Then I'll use another to wipe off the toilet. I probably swish the inside of the toilet about once a week.....or if I see that it needs it.

 

As for hair, we don't really have that issue. I don't sweep the bathroom nearly as much as I should.....but because the sink and toilet look fine, the bathroom looks nice and clean.

:iagree:Ours get cleaned daily, as part of morning routines. However, I also do a quick clean-up any time I use a bathroom.

How do people keep their baseboards clean?

 

Tara

I wash the baseboards down when I wash the floors, and have never had a problem. I do the same in the kitchen.

[LibraryLover]

I just figure things will get messy with so many people sharing a space. Once a week is enough to keep typhus at bay...

 

Lint clings to damp surfaces...and a bathroom is a lint magnet. Towels, clothing, shedding skin... I suppose one could wipe down everything daily. I know I would not feel like doing this each day. If I don't, would the kids? If the baseboards are making one crazy, maybe have a some rags nearby to wipe them down when you're in there...can you reach ? lol

 

As for daily, I tell the kids to get their stuff out of there...hampers are in rooms, fi. I also ask them to rinse the sink after use. Hang towels etc. That's pretty much all I can manage without losing my sanity,

[Dawn in OH]

How do people keep their bathrooms clean? No matter how frequently I clean, my toilet has hair all over it, the baseboards are dirty, the sink has toothpaste and grime in it, and the floor is not clean. It's very frustrating.

 

Tara

 

For the hair, I go in once a day with a mini broom and dustpan and brush everything off to gather the hair (preferably at a point in the day when the bathroom is dry, otherwise the hair just gets moved rather than swept up). I also hit the baseboards at this time.

 

Everyone is responsible for cleaning their own toothpaste spittle out of the sink. Yeah, I'm quite crazy about that one.

 

There are Clorox wipes in the bathroom, if anyone tinkles on the seat, rim, etc. they are required to wipe it up.

[Karis]

My dream bathroom is all tile (walls, floor) with a big drain in the middle and a retractable hose. All I'd have to wipe is the mirror.

 

Lara

 

 

 

Mine too!!!

 

I'd also add a laundry chute :001_smile:

 

Side note - Taking garlic capsules (odorless) decreases hair shedding. ;)

[dsmith]

My problem is my mil and her baby powder. Last night I went to use the upstairs bathroom and slid the length of the bathroom, landing on my butt! I got up covered in white powder. It's always everywhere - on the shelves, in the tub, the top of the medicine cabinet... She shouldn't even use it with her severe asthma, but does anyway. I guess I need to do at least the floor after she gets dressed, but I can't clean everywhere every day! I'd rather deal with the bad aim than this.:001_smile: Perhaps dh will be more successful talking with her.

[Rebecca VA]

We vacuum our bathrooms every couple of days. There are attachment brushes for baseboards. We just shake out the bath rugs, move the dehumifier over a few feet, and vacuum away!

[KellyW]

EVERYONE participates in cleaning the bathroom. After brushing each person wipes out the sink and around the counter. I have found that charging a token amount (.25) gets the job done.

 

Toilets are a little trickier, but if you leave a mess you need to clean it up. This has been done consistently since they were old enough to understand and we've got it pretty well in hand.

 

I take care of the floors, because the hair just seems to morph. I sweep in the morning after I brush.

 

A full out clean is done once a week and I always wipe down the baseboards, because it's such a small room it takes me less than 5 minutes.

 

The key IMO is having everyone help out. Once they are invested it seems to be less messy.

 

 

 

Kelly

 

DD (8th grade)

DS (2nd grade)

[Cricket]

My dream bathroom is all tile (walls, floor) with a big drain in the middle and a retractable hose. All I'd have to wipe is the mirror.

 

Lara

 

Yes! We manage an RV park and one of the duties is to clean the bathrooms. Ugh! We recently remodeled one and the guy put tile halfway up the walls and slanted the floor so it either runs into the shower drain or out the door. I have a hose that connects to the hot water and a pressure sprayer with a soap dispenser in it. Absolutely wonderful!

[Dawn in OH]

My dream bathroom is all tile (walls, floor) with a big drain in the middle and a retractable hose. All I'd have to wipe is the mirror.

 

Lara

 

 

I say that at least twice a week!

[JVA]

I didn't read the other replies but......

 

with a houseful of kiddos, it takes constant vigilence- like every other day. I assigned the kids to takes turns. I put a 3X5 card on the inside of the vanity door and wrote down the 'jobs'....what exactly constituted a clean bathroom....and I inspected it. Sometimes the bathroom cleaner had to return and re-do. It's a LOT of oversight at FIRST, but once they get it and you enforce what CLEAN means, it will get easier. And yes, there were consequences for not completing the task properly- after a decent learning curve. I know it's easier to do it yourself, at first, but they need to learn and contribute. I hope it gets better.

[TXMary2]

Clorox wipes, bar mops, toothbrush, swiffer and vacuum.

 

Clorox wipes for daily wipe down. Bar mops- wet and soapy to wipe down basboards and floor edge to baseboards. Vacuum using the edger on tops of baseboards and where they meet the tile. Toothbrush for gross edges and hard to get into spots. Swiffer wet jet for quick mop up. Vinegar water once a month for deep mopping,

[DarlaS]

What do you do about hair on the floor? After my daughter and I dry our hair in the AM, it looks like someone fought with a pony in the bathroom! If there was a closet in there, I'd just keep a swiffer handy. Alas, no closet anywhere close.

 

I vacuum when it's dry (like before shower time or late afternoon).

 

I can commiserate--I have one teen boy with enough hair for three people (and I have a thing about hair--it makes me gag).

 

Seriously--look at all that hair!

 

 

[MaMa2005]

My dream bathroom is all tile (walls, floor) with a big drain in the middle and a retractable hose. All I'd have to wipe is the mirror.

 

Lara

 

:lol: That one made me laugh out loud!

[EKS]

You didn't mention the urine all over the toilet and the floor in front of it.

[Guest]

I've been buying the tablets you put in the tank in the toilets - awesome, awesome, awesome. I've also put a thing of baby wipes in there and my son is responsible for wiping down the sink and toilet each day. (He then throws them in the trash; I think he's too young to be using the Clorox-type wipes.) As for hair, we haven't got there yet, but when I was younger my mom made sure that I picked up all the hair off of the floor whenever I brushed my hair. As for baseboards, I just use the mop whenever I mop in there. It's not white glove perfect, but it's definitely presentable. Showers are where I really have the problem. :tongue_smilie:

[Jennifer in MI]

How do people keep their baseboards clean?

 

Tara

 

My kids. They're closer to them, so they get to clean them. Once/week one of them gets the first floor and one gets the second floor.

[MamaT]

All three of our bathrooms get cleaned every morning before school. The tubs/showers are cleaned twice a week. It is scheduled in our rotating chores. So are the baseboards.

 

I'm not sure how to handle the hair stuff. :confused: My daughters are black and when their hair is not braided, I am constantly picking up hair after them. Thankfully, most of the time we keep their hair in braids.

[justamouse]

I yell, "Who's the yeti who shed all over the bathroom!?"

 

I have microfiber cloths I use to wipe it all down, then I just throw them in the wash. But I do yell that. :001_smile:

[AnneGabe]

Doing it every single day majorly cuts back the time it takes for me.

 

A quick wipe down of the sinks, counters and toilet seat. Dump baking soda and vinegar in the toilet and let that sit while I spot clean the mirrors.

 

A five seconds scrub of the toilet bowl, flush, sweep the floors.

 

Done in five minutes :001_smile:

 

Mopping only ever happens twice a week (while I'm pregnant- once a week :tongue_smilie:) and does take an extra five-ten minutes per bathroom :glare:

[cat in black]

We use the disinfecting wipes, a lamb's wool duster for the baseboards, everyone sprays the shower and tub enclosure down with a shower spray we make from alcohol and jet dry after each use and this cleans it without scrubbing.

 

 

 

Could I get your recipe for the shower spray stuff?

[Melissa B]

We have three bathrooms. Dd12, dd10 and I are each responsible for one bathroom. All three must be completely clean before school begins each day - toilets and tubs scrubbed, sinks washed, floors swept, etc. Then the girls (and I) must look in on their assigned bathroom during lunch break and dinner break to do any quick cleaning necessary.

[Wyndie]

How do people keep their baseboards clean?

 

Tara

 

This is a task that is awarded to children who get too mouthy. One child in particular gets to do it much more often than the others. ;) I give them a spray bottle of vinegar/water and rags. They spray it all down, wipe it up, toss the rags in laundry. I don't know what I'm going to do when they grow up and leave. :lol:

 

My mom looses alot of hair too so when she visits, she just uses a peice of toilet paper and scootches it across the floor when she's done fixing her hair. That seems to pick it all up. I didn't even know she was shedding until she told me that and she said it only takes a minute.