A few weeks ago, I shared how I keep our showers clean in about 10 minutes a month. I mentioned that although I try to use mostly homemade cleaners in and around our house, I still hadn’t found a great homemade cleaner for the shower.
Well, after that, I got a bunch of emails with different “recipes” for homemade shower cleaner; and although I was skeptical, I decided to try a few of them out.
Anyway, after experimenting these past 2 weeks (yes, our shower is now extremely clean) I’ve picked my favorite… and it’s REALLY simple!!
Recipe for Homemade Shower Cleaner
Thanks to Anna for sending me this “recipe”!
Step #1: Pour 1 to 2 c. of white vinegar into a plastic spray bottle
Step #2: Heat it up in the microwave until very warm. {you do NOT need to reheat it every time you want to clean your showers}
Step #3: Pour 1 T. of Dawn dish soap into the spray bottle.
Step #4: Put the top of the spray bottle on and gently shake until they are combined.
That’s it!!
Just 2 simple ingredients and about 5 minutes of your time and you have a very inexpensive, homemade shower cleaner that works wonders on soap scum and smells great too!
NOTE: This cleaner is also great for removing greasy buildup in the kitchen!
Jessica says
Why heat the vinegar? Just wondering.
Meghan says
The vinegar heated up is what causes you to cough. I’ve made home made bbq sauce, and it’s TERRIBLE in my kitchen when I’m heating the vinegar. I did what the other poster recommended, and used them cold, and was pleased with the outcome.
Cat says
I did the same. Don’t heat the vinegar.
Just mix equal amounts, wipe or spray on, leave overnight and wipe down. Works great. I used to choke on the fumes of chemical shower cleaners.
Andie says
Hey! I want to try this recipe but i can’t find the Dawn brand liquid… Can you recomend another substitute? One that I might be able to buy in Australia? Cheers!
Irene says
Fairy dish washing liquid is the Aussie equivalent. It’s only sold in Coles Supermarkets.
Brenda says
I use straight white distilled vinegar in spray bottle. I spray down the shower/tub, sprinkle some baking soda on the bottom of the tub, squirt some dawn on the bottom of the tub. Then spray I sponge w/ vinegar, sprinkle some baking soda and a squirt of dawn on the sponge. Then I get naked, hop in, wipe it down. Then I take my shower.
Jasmine says
Pictures please Brenda…;)
Penelpoe says
“Then I get naked, hop in, wipe it down. Then I take my shower.”
Brenda, I agree with Jasmine…PICS!!!
Brandy says
I tried this today and it worked very well. However, I was completely overwhelmed by the chemical smell and cannot believe no one mentioned it! I was coughing while spraying just like if I was using a harsh, store-bought shower cleaner. I might try it again with a another dish soap like Seventh Generation and see if it’s less smelly.
Smbeck97 says
I agree with Brandy! Tons of fumes and it was very strong. It worked quickly and easily, but wow, Fumes, Fumes, Fumes!
mandy says
Brandy did you ever use the Seventh Gen. mixture? Was there less fumes? I can’t tell which is hitting my throat worse, the vinegar or the dawn…WOW!!
Brandy says
I haven’t tried it with Seventh Generation yet. I’m not sure what causes the fumes either! I wonder if heating the vinegar makes it smell stronger. Either way I’m not trying the original recipe again!
Heidi says
I just made this with Dr. Bronners Castile soap. It did NOT work. There is a layer of fat floating on the vinegar. I did not clean my shower. It is cleaner, but not clean by any means. I’ll have to try the seventh generation soap mentioned above, I just didn’t have any on hand.
I am guessing that dish soap is not a true soap and more of a detergent and therefore a different chemical makeup that plays nicer with vinegar than soap. Based on my experieince, I don’t think soap flakes would work either.
Ellie says
Maybe if you boil down the soap flakes and then add it to the warm vinegar it may work
Sue says
Just made this with Shaklee dish detergent. Seemed to work okay but will make it again and increase the vinegar a little. Have been looking for an alternative to clean my shower doors without harse chemicals and this is perfect. Thanks!!!
Sue says
Just made this with Shaklee dish detergent. Seemed to work okay but will make it again and increase the vinegar a little. Have been looking for an alternative to clean my shower doors without hares chemicals and this is perfect. Thanks!!!
Michaela says
I just tried this. This is awesome! I need a scrub brush to get the rest off, but the difference I see just with a sponge is phenomenal!
Jane says
I just made a batch of the cleaner per the recipe. Plus, it cleaned really great! Big minuses, I almost broke my neck when I stepped into the tub! I had to hang on and rinse it before I could do the shower and doors. The cleaner is way too foamy. I rinsed and rinsed and still bubbles. Then when I wiped the shower dry, as I always do, it was still foamy. Can you add water and have it still work? I am disappointed. As it is now, the cleaner is unsafe to use and won’t rinse properly even though it does clean well. Maybe I was supposed to fill the bottle with water?
Andrea says
Hmmm…not sure Jane. I’ve made this cleaner several times exactly like I mentioned in the post and it’s never been to sudsy for me. I actually JUST cleaned our shower with it last night. It is a bit slippery when I first get in the shower to rinse everything down, but I’ve personally never had an issue with too many suds. Sorry!
Cady says
I don’t know where Jane is but maybe they have more phosphates in their detergent there? Isn’t that what always made soap so bubbly years ago before they were banned in the US?
I would think that adding water would just make it more soapy. Maybe she should try half the amount of soap next time? And the vinegar is what helps it to rinse away so cleanly.
Huh.
Got me stumped.
Liz says
Rinsing with cold water might help, since that will kill off the suds.
Karen says
This worked great! I found using a used dryer sheet with a little spritz of the cleaner works almost as well as magic eraser! And leaves a nice fresh scent. Thank-you!
lydiarom says
Jenny: I believe your right but for whatever reason it works so great! I think you heat the vinegar strictly for the reason of getting the soap and vinegar to mix. It creates a “gel” like substance and sticks to the walls/sides of the tub. It works great though, I just finished using it myself!
Jenny says
If vinegar is an acid and soap is a base won’t they just cancel each other out? I also thought it would “curdle” if soap and vinegar were mixed together?
Michelle says
Hi All,
I came across this post a few days ago – and am so grateful I did. We have lived in our home for a little over 3 years. From day one we have tried everything to remove the soap scum from the clear shower door and window. Nothing worked, and we tried them all…kaboom, clorox, windex, mr. eraser, etc., nothing worked, still always had the nasty little scum. Well, let me tell you, I made the DIY version, and viola, it is indeed clear. My DH is thrilled. Finally, we can see each thru the door! Thanks again for posting!
Jardine says
Does this work with any dish soap or does it have to be the ones mentioned?
Lyndsey says
I live in South Africa and stumbled across this post. We don’t have Dawn in South Africa, but we do have a really good product called Sunlight liquid dishwashing soap. It worked superbly well. Infact I am going to half the sunlight soap proportion next time around, as it was quite soapy. But awesome post, thanks a mil.
Holly says
Don’t have Dawn here….would pure soap flakes work?
Brenda says
Thanks so much for posting this! I was looking for a homemade shower cleaner that wasn’t so toxic as all the other harsh cleaners I had tried and this is amazing! I made a variation of it and could not believe how well and how quickly it worked!! Great post!!
Sarah says
Im assuming you spray, wipe, then rinse, right? It’s so thick that it leaves residue if you don’t. It was very sparkly (my tub) after I sprayed and wiped, then rinsed with water.
Susan says
Do you happen to have any ideas for a homemade shower cleaner for a natural stone tiled shower? I’m super worried about damaging the grout with regular cleaners.
Thanks!
Cady says
This worked great for me! I can’t believe how easy and fast I cleaned my entire shower stall!
Kelly-just heat some water in a pot on the stove. The purpose of heating the vinegar is to help the Dawn dissolve and mix in with the vinegar.
I used 1-1/2 cups vinegar and 1/2 cup Dawn.
Love it!
Andrea says
Thanks Cady — glad it worked for you! I’m cleaning the showers again this weekend 🙂
Cady says
Thank you, Andrea!
Now that I know it works so well and so easily I might start cleaning mine more often instead of waiting for it to get BAD.
I used to do it weekly but even then it takes so long to clean the hard water mess off the glass that I procrastinate. And it never seemed to be really clean, even when I used Soft Scrub.
I’m wondering if spraying this on the shower walls after every shower will help cut down on the cleaning. Have you used it as a preventative?
Cady says
I used it as a preventative and it worked very well. I sprayed it lightly every couple of days after my shower then rinsed the next time I got in. Easy-peasy.
Here’s another short cut I just tried and it’s AMAZINGly easy:
Due to oversleeping and running late I haven’t sprayed it for a couple of weeks. Okay. A month. Whatever.
My back has been hurting a lot so I’ve put off cleaning it because the thought of bending over with a sponge was just too much.
I got the sponge mop out and used it to foam up the walls, floor, door and glass. I did all this w/o even setting foot inside the shower. I let it set while I used the foamy sponge on the bathtub then rinsed it all. My O’Cedar mop has a scrub brush on one side of it and that was great for getting in the textured surface of the faux marble floor to get the gunk out! It even got all the stainless trim in one swipe.
Man! I had it all cleaned in under 10 minutes, didn’t have to bend over once, or use the sponge and I didn’t even get my hands wet.
Talk about a lazy woman’s way to clean the shower and tub! I’ll be doing it this way from now on!
Natalia says
Thank you, Cady!
You just gave me some courage!
I’ve been reading this post again, since I have a huge job to attack this week. Our tennant moved out (finally!!! – we had to evict him) and left the house in a discusting state (not to mention destroyed walls and hardwood floors, broken windows & doors, etc.) The bathroom and kitchen are the most miserable places…
Thanks to your suggestion, I’ll make sure to buy a sponge mop to use in the bathroom and extra-long gloves (maybe even a gas mask ;)) for cleaning the appliances, esspecially the fridge (yuck!)
Andrea has the best advise and I love reading helpful comments like yours.
Thank you!
Kelly says
Is there a way to do this without a microwave?? We don’t own one, nor do we wish to get one but I like this idea for a cleaner. Will probably use Seventh Generation dish soap, as that’s what we have and use allready.. Any other ideas??
cindy says
Just heat the vinegar up on the stove 🙂
Trista says
OH MY GOODNESS!!!! I can’t believe how well this worked. It removed soap scum from my bathtub walls that I have been trying to remove since we moved in to our house (four years ago!) I thought it was something I was just going to have to live with since the harsh commercial cleaners couldn’t seem to do the job. I sprayed this on, and let it sit for a few minutes (5 minutes max) and the soap scum just rubbed off. I just want to sit and stare at my bathtub! I can’t believe how well this worked! DEFINITELY A KEEPER 🙂
Cathleen says
I loved this cleaner! It really cut through the soap scum in the shower and the grease on the splash board by my stove!
I just made my second batch today – the first time I used Dawn and loved it, today I used a bargain brand and find it a little too watery – next time I’m going to use Dawn again.
Michelle says
I live in England where the water is disturbingly hard. I have tried so much to get the scum off my glass shower doors. This worked really well. I used a magic eraser to add some extra scrubbing power. I also like it because I don’t feel like my hands are poison if I need to pick up the baby in the middle of cleaning. Thanks!
Amanda says
I made this using Seventh Generation dish soap, and only used 1/2 cup of dish soap to 1.5 cups of vinegar. It worked really well and wasn’t so sudsy.
Stristan says
Even though this recipe is homemade, it doesnt qualify as non-chemical. Dawn is not an all natural product and the one pictured here is antibacterial so it likely has Triclosan in it. This is great for a homemade product, but if one is searching for non-toxic, keep looking. I wonder though, if this would work with a different dish soap, like seventh generation or even a Castile soap?
Cap says
I just finished using this to clean my bathroom with my grandbabies running around. What a nice feeling to be able to clean with a nonchemical, non bleach formula. I didnt have to worry about the babies, it was great and the bathroom looks good too!!! I had no problem with the suds or the spray nozzle!! thanx
Danielle says
This isn’t a nonchemical formula. It’s made with dish soap, which has lots of chemicals.
Nana says
Hello!
I`ve tried this recipe minutes ago in a small batch (it looked to easy not to try it) and it worked wonderfully even as a toilet bowl cleaner ( for now it’s ok, it doesn’t cover all the smells, but I’m aware of the fact that it will need some time and a few more repetitions of the cleaning process to be great)
Partly, it cleaned the lime stone deposit around certain areas of the sink and bathtub.
It smells great and I can clean lots of objects without using gloves.
I’ve used a regular dish wash cleaner (an European brand named Fairy) but next time I’ll try it with a bio detergent like Frosch or even with soap nuts.
(I´m not a native English speaker, so excuse my grammar)
Thomas says
Does the brand of the liquid dish detergent matter. You used dawn, but would Joy work just as well?
Twylia says
so good to see this recipe…I have to say, though…since I started using Dr. Bronner’s, I don’t get nearly the soap scum I used to. Like, never. I have also used oregano oil and alternately hydrogen peroxide to keep moldy/mildew down…
Amy Eckstein says
I LOVE this product! I have soft water, and it does suds up. I spray it after I shower, scrub, then rinse the suds from the shower walls using aplastic pitcher I keep with the cleaning products.. I have two young boys, once a week they use bath paints (corn starch, clear bubble bath, couple drops of food coloring), after they paint the bath we clean it together..
Linda says
We have extremely hard water, so cleaning is always a challenge. This worked exactly like it says it does. I sprayed it in the shower and tub and let it soak while I did the rest of the bathroom. All I did was wipe and rinse–CLEAN shower without hard water marks. It does take some rinsing, but well worth it. This works better than anything I’ve ever used and it is far cheaper!
Susie says
I love this combination, although at first I went out and bought Gain dish soap! And it leaves a wonderful after-scent for about a day after you clean the shower. I love that. One problem I’m having is with the spray bottle. Twice now, after I’ve sprayed the mixture for a bit, the spray head will get all clogged up, I’m assuming because the mixture is so thick. Last time, I put the end into water and tried to get it to spray the mixture out – no dice. So I’m just taking handfulls and spreading it all over my shower walls, floor, whatever. Actually, it covers the area quite nicely. This is a good idea.
Another good idea, and I got this one from the Queen of Clean. Getting rid of toilet rings. First, flush the toilet and shut it off so the water doesn’t come back up. Then spray all around the ring (rust streaks coming from the top, whatever you want to get rid of) with warm vinegar. Then sprinkle Borax over the warm vinegar and let it sit for 30 minutes. Using a piece of drywall sandpaper (hardware store), scrub around the ring and everything else. Use a little elbow grease and amazing! The ring goes away pretty quickly. I’ve tried everything to get rid of the toilet ring because we have hard water. This is the only thing that’s ever come close to working, and it works wonders! Good luck.
Debbie says
A pumice stone will scrub the ring away also, you can flush the commode and turn the water off so it won’t fill back up and take pumice stone and scrub the ring, it will not scratch the commode and the ring will come off.
Jennifer says
I used this last night and it worked beautifully. I even went back over what I cleaned with my magic eraser and it didn’t pick up anything (had to test it out). It has been a while since I tackled our main bathroom and there was some serious build up. With a stiff brush and this cleaner it broke through the soap scum in no time. Not much elbow grease with this stuff. The vinegar smell was a little overpowering at first, but it dissipated fairly quickly.
I made the mix with more vinegar than dish soap after reading the reviews. I found that if you spray it and let it sit for a while it dries out, so on the second shower I cleaned it within a few minutes and that worked better. I think next time I will use an even higher ratio of dawn so it won’t be as thick. This cleaner also cleaned all our chrome perfectly without any spots. I’m very impressed.