How to Get Rid of Hard Water Stains
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We’ve been busy getting our house ready to sell the past couple of weeks and I’ve been a cleaning machine, hitting anything and everything. One thing that really needed help was the icky water dispenser tray in the refrigerator that was covered in hard water stains. I see them staring up at me every time I fill my glass, but it’s quickly forgotten as soon as I walk away. I didn’t want potential buyers to see all of that nastiness, so it was time to clean it up.
I’ve tried wiping the tray with a rag from time to time, but it just wasn’t cutting it, so I used an old trick that cleaned it right up in about 15 minutes.
I can’t believe I’m airing my dirty laundry again but here it is, and it’s a close up.
I know…gross. We wipe it all the time but it just doesn’t get rid of the hard water stains.
I don’t have a removable tray so I had to work right on the refrigerator, but this is so easy that it wasn’t an issue. All I had to do was to take a dry paper towel and lay it on top of the tray, making sure the stains were completely covered.
Then I poured vinegar on the paper towel, soaking it. That’s it…a paper towel and white vinegar. 15 minutes later and the hard water stains came right off without scrubbing. If it doesn’t all come off on the first try, you may have to soak it a little longer, and maybe use a scrub brush. Fortunately, mine came up very easily. Once the drip tray was clean, I used a new vinegar soaked towel to wipe the water spout.
I mean seriously, you can’t get any easier. I thought I would have to scrub it or get the chisel out, but one shot and I was done. It’s all shiny and new again.
Now I have to get in there and clean the freezer. Ugh…not a job that I like to do, and it there’s nothing quick or easy about it.
What cleaning chore do you hate to do?
Check out another cleaning trick that I use for a dirty shower curtain.
I love how well vinegar dissolves hard water deposits… it’s like magic, and I don’t feel like I’m releasing a bunch of back chemicals in my house like I would if I was using some caustic cleaner like limeaway or something. Hope your move goes well… looking forward to hearing about your new place. 🙂
Vinegar is an awesome cleaning tool, better than all of the chemicals out there now. We are finally in our apartment, a long two weeks, but I’m excited to share an update on all of our happenings tomorrow. 🙂
I guess the thing I like cleaning the least, beside the toilet, is the ceramic stove top. I am such a messy cook…sometimes I think I cook more food on the stove top than the in skillet. I think I will try this same trick on it, though. Thanks!!
I’m with you Jenn, I don’t like cleaning the stove either. I think that this trick may just make it easier to clean. I’d love to know if it works for you. 🙂
Nice job on the fridge, Kristi. I guess cleaning the shower is pretty distasteful for me. Soap scum. Ick. We squeegee the shower every time we use it, but around the bottom at the base it gets grimey. I don’t like using chemicals, so try to find natural products. Recently I saw an article recommending vinegar and baking soda for this, so I’m going to try it.
I know what you mean about cleaning the shower, Nancy. The hubs has taken over this job since I hurt my back. I don’t know what’s worse though, cleaning it myself, or reminding him 15 times before he actually cleans it. 😉
I use vinegar and baking soda as my only cleaners. I keep a spray bottle in both baths and the kitchen for quick clean ups and use it every night before bed for wiping out the kitchen sink and counters. Viniger is a natural disenfectant and doesn;t etch surfaces like bleach and cleanser does. The job I hate most is cleaning the oven. Told my husband before we married that I don’t do windows or ovens. I eventually started cleaning the windows but he did the oven if we happened to not have self cleaning.
Ugh, we’ve had a few ovens that weren’t self-cleaning and they are the worst. Your hubby was a good guy for doing that awful chore. Great tips for using vinegar, thanks so much for sharing.
My mom has her house on the market and someone actually complained about this. We had no idea how to remove the stains without damaging the plastic. I’ll have to give this a try. Thanks for sharing this trick!
Thanks, Melanie, so glad that you found this useful. Best of luck to your mom with her house. 🙂