Help! My tub won't clean itself!!!

[kaytieeldr]

Yeah, I know - whose does? But seriously, it drains very slowly, so there's I guess a combination of soap scum and hair dye(?) on about 2/3 of the bottom. I've tried Scrubbing Bubbles, I've tried the Clorox spray with bleach, I've tried an abrasive sponge, I've tried the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser... what WILL work? Any product? Scraping helps a little, but I don't have the strength.

Thanks in advance!

 

[aka-mad4themouse]

Kaboom might work. Or Oxyclean.

 

[oldbay]

I would try comet cleanser.

Also, for a more long term fix you may want to find out why the tub drains so slow. It may need to be cleaned as well.

 

[java]

My new favorite is Lyme Away in the Green bottle. It works great for me. Online people complain that it didn't work for them- so I guess it depends on what's causing the gunk.
Good luck.

 

[dawson5]

try a bit of the works bathroom cleaner, spray it on and walk a way for a while. We get rust stains (hard water, well water) on the bottom of our shower, nothing gets it off. Until I used the works and sprayed it on and left it. I did try tilex alone, comet, vinegar soaked towels, etc., without luck. I wonder if it's a two part deal, get rid of the soap scum first then address the stain. I would try tilex. I find very few things that it won't take out.

You also need to figure out why your drain is slow. I had my hubby take apart the boys' tub drain. I always thought it was because I washed the dog and his fur clogged it up. It wasn't that, the boys removed a band-aid and it clogged the drain. (This is one of those step ones, where you just push on it and it stops it up, push it again and it pops up.) We did try draino without any help, draino doesn't dissolve bandaids.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Thanks, everyone! And yes, I will have someone come look at the drain.

 

[postage stamp]

Is the bottom of your tub textured?

I ask because the last place we live whoever lived there before us had the same slow drain problem we did and one of the bathtubs was stained around the drain from what was obviously standing water. I tried everything that you did, do no avail. The bottom of the tub was textured to prevent slipping and I was POSITIVE that's why it was so stubborn.

 

[DMickey28]

Kaboom was my miracle working for a long time.

For the textured bottoms, the magic eraser always worked for me.

 

[ceecee]

The Works does better than any of the other expense cleansers I've tried, It's only $1.00 and it works great! Same with the toilet cleaner, it's the best. I also have one of those things Scrubbing Bubble things that spray that I use once a week and I no longer need to scrub the showers down.

 

[Shmily1]

I bought some Arm and Hammer with bleach in a yellow spray bottle ('cause I had a coupon!) and it works on everything!! It says bathrooms, but I love it for cleaning my ceramic sink!!

 

[mskayjay]

katie don't pay someone to come look at the drain. there is a screw in the center of the drain cover usually that you undo and pull out. You can now lift the drainage screen. It is probably coated with hair and stuff so don't gag! lol

I've always had the best luck using Soft Scrub on my tub and if that doesn't work and you have something like Kaboom or Greased Lightening (man that stuff is awesome!!!) fill the tub just enough to cover the icky areas, dump a ton of that stuff in there and let it soak for a few hours. You should be able to scrub it off after that.

let us know what finally works!
K

 

[everylastbreath]

A word of warning with "Kaboom" it works great, but don't use it on frosted shower doors, it will take the frosting right off. Found that out the hard way.

 

[dizzy duck]

Have you tried white vinegar? I love white vinegar. I got some stains out of Corian sinks that I thought was there for eternity. I had tried bleach, ammonia, soft scrub, comet everything I could think of. I got two gallons of the cheapest white vinegar I could find. I poured it in the sinks, filled the sinks up with water and let it set overnight. In the morning the stains were gone. No scrubbing required. It might be worth a try.

 

[wdwstar]

I agree you need to unscrew the drain cap and clean out what is down there,
i have to do that every four months in the bath tub and the bathroom sinks.
the kids have long hair and that is what i pull out of the drain. i use to use draino all the time, never worked to unclog my drains.

 

[neatokimmo]

You can buy a stick with points on it at Walmart for a couple of dollars. The pointy parts grab whatever gunk is in your drain and pulls it out when you jam it down the drain. DD and I both have long hair so I use it every month.

 

[cirquelovers]

For the tub draining problem I have found the most wonderful product, it's called Hair Away. Seriously it is da bomb! My sons tub hasn't drained properly for years and after I put that in it hasn't had a problem since! I found it at BiMart if you have those in your area.

 

[Irin997]

I have well water which is hard and tends to leave orangy iron stains behind. Last weekend I cleaned my tub with Comet which always cleans well, but leaves the stains behind. I followed up with cheap cheap cheap Bar Keepers Friend and my tub was seriously SPARKLING! Give it a try. It's like $1 or $2 from Walmart.

 

[Mrs. Charming]

I'm a big fan of X-14. That stuff could probably melt paint off of a car! It works like a charm but it definitely needs to be used with proper ventilation. HTH!

 

[Bob NC]

For the clogged drain, try a plunger. Really.

 

[FourBees]

I had the same problem and I found that there is a product called CLR for bathrooms and it works wonderful. I used the magic erasers with it and it worked great! Try it you won't be dissappointed.