You deserve to sit in a clean toilet, so you must stay on top of things to ensure you have the necessary supplies to remove debris and stains. There are many varieties of toilet cleaners, but this post aims to examine cleaning a toilet bowl with hydrochloric acid.
Also known as muriatic acid or hydronium chloride, hydrochloric acid is found in some toilet bowl cleaners because its corrosive properties help remove tough stains. Depending on the manufacturer, a toilet bowl cleaner can have different percentages of hydrochloric acid, ranging from 7% to 40%.
With hydrochloric acid, your toilet bowl will be sparkling in no time, making it not only hygienic but also pleasant.
Can Your Use Hydrochloric Acid To Clean Toilet Bowl?
Hydrochloric acid helps clean toilet bowls because it removes grime and dirt effectively, leaving your toilet stain-free. While you could try removing stubborn stains with vinegar, which is much safer to handle, you must consider using the much stronger hydrochloric acid if the problem persists.
However, since hydrochloric acid is a strong acid, it’s highly corrosive, capable of destroying metal, burning skin, etching stone, and even stripping away enamel. Therefore, you must handle it carefully and don’t use it regularly for the sake of your toilet and drainpipes.
How To Safely Handle Hydrochloric Acid When Cleaning Your Toilet Bowl
Hydrochloric acid is a potent chemical that can hurt your eyes and skin and damage your bathroom floor or anything else it comes into contact with, so you must handle it carefully. Here are the safety precautions to follow if you use hydrochloric acid to clean the toilet bowl.
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Put On Protective Gear
Before handling hydrochloric acid, put on chemical splash goggles, chemical-resistant gloves, and a chemical-resistant apron to protect your skin and eyes. In addition, inhaling this acid can cause breathing issues, especially if you are asthmatic, so put on a mask to avoid breathing in the fumes.
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Keep Your Bathroom Ventilated
The fumes from hydrochloric acid can be harmful to your respiratory system, so you don’t want them concentrated in your bathroom. Therefore, run the bathroom fan before cleaning your toilet bowl with the chemical.
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Clean Any Spills Immediately
You don’t want the hydrochloric acid you spilled on your bathroom floor or any other surface sitting there for long, thus causing corrosion. Therefore, clean up the mess immediately to protect your property.
Sprinkle a generous amount of baking soda over the stain if it’s recent or fresh. If the stain is much older, mix water and baking soda to create a thick, consistent paste and cover the entire stain with it.
Once you do so, let it rest for a couple of minutes, then wipe it using a cloth.
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Follow The Manufacturer’s Instructions
On the container with the hydrochloric, you will find the manufacturer’s instructions on how to handle the chemical. Make sure you follow them precisely for your safety and to avoid damage.
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Store The Acid Well
Set aside a wooden cabinet to store hydrochloric acid and ensure your kids don’t have access to it. Avoid a metallic cabinet because the fumes from hydrochloric acid corrode metals.
In addition, label your acid bottles to avoid mixing them up.
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Handling Hydrochloric Acid Exposure
Get medical attention immediately if hydrochloric acid comes into contact with your eyes or skin. If your skin is exposed to acid, rinse the area with clean water for about 15 to 20 minutes.
You should also rinse for at least 15 to 20 minutes if it gets into your eyes. Additionally, remove your clothes if acid gets on them before it soaks into your skin.
Read also Acids To Clean Toilet Bowl
The Best Toilet Bowl Cleaners With Hydrochloric Acid
Toilet bowl cleaning products can either be calcium, rust, and lime removers with lower hydrochloric acid concentration or general cleaners with higher acid content. If you are shopping for toilet bowl cleaners with hydrochloric acid, here are some excellent options.
1. Lysol Power Toilet Bowl Cleaner
This cleaner comes with many useful features and is excellent for daily purposes. It is designed to get rid of tough stains, leaves your toilet super clean because it’s a disinfectant, and will leave your bathroom smelling great due to its pleasant smell.
Lysol power toilet bowl cleaner is outstanding in destroying rings in your toilet bowl, and it’s safe for your septic and plumbing systems. Moreover, it’s easy to use, offers value for money, retains its smell, and removes stains with a bit of scrubbing.
2. Lime-A-Way Toilet Bowl Cleaner
This gentle toilet bowl cleaner is safe for your plumbing system and perfect for daily use. It’s equipped to destroy stubborn rust, calcium, and lime, even the ones stuck below the waterline.
The toilet bowl cleaner will leave your toilet smelling fresh, shiny, and completely clean by removing even the toughest stains. Some consumers find Lime-A-Way toilet bowl cleaner denser compared to other cleaning fluids.
Consider this cleaner if you are looking for a toilet bowl cleaner for deep cleaning.
3. Zep Acidic Toilet Bowl Cleaner
Looking for a toilet cleaner bowl cleaner suitable for urinals and toilets, consider Zep acidic toilet bowl cleaner, a gel formula with 10% acid. It’s designed with an angled neck to make applying the cleaner under-the-rim easy.
It is a thick gel, so it will easily stick to vertical surfaces. In addition, it leaves a pleasant fresh smell afterward and is highly effective in removing calcium deposits and rust.
However, don’t use it to clean bathtubs, floors, countertops, sinks, and enamelled surfaces.
Read also How To Protect Floor Around Toilet
Conclusion
Hydrochloric acid will help transform your porcelain throne by removing stubborn stains, lime, rust, and even calcium from your toilet bowl. However, safety is of utmost importance when handling this chemical, so adhere to the safety precautions.
Additionally, the market offers many toilet cleaning products with hydrochloric acid like those mentioned above. You only need to select the one that suits you best.
See also Is Drano Safe for Shower Drains