How to Clean a Toilet Plunger: 6 Methods
When cleaning your bathroom, do you clean your toilet plunger? If you don’t regularly clean your toilet plunger, you should!
Cleaning the toilet plunger might be the most overlooked task when cleaning in the bathroom. However, it is just as important to clean your plunger as anything else in the bathroom.
Bacteria and viruses can live on bathroom surfaces for up to a week, whether they are on a sink or on the toilet plunger (source).
Fecal to oral transmission of diseases like hepatitis A, hepatitis E, cholera, and E. Coli can occur when an infected person’s hands aren’t properly washed and they touch anything after, including door knobs and toilet plunger handles (source).
This article will detail how to clean a plunger with a variety of household ingredients like boiling water, vinegar, dish soap, hydrogen peroxide, aerosol disinfectant, or chlorine bleach.
Read on to learn which is right for you!
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Why Should I Clean vs. Disinfect my Toilet Plunger?
We already know that bacteria and viruses can live on bathroom surfaces for up to a week. If that’s not enough encouragement to clean every surface in your bathroom, consider that salmonella bacteria can colonize and live for up to 50 days (source).
Bacteria and viruses like salmonella bacteria and E. Coli are killed by disinfectants like bleach. Check out the CDC’s complete disinfectant list.
For regular cleaning purposes, like your weekly cleaning routine, a milder option like soap and water or vinegar will work well to wash away germs, grime, and dirt (source).
For deeper cleaning needs, like after an illness outbreak in your home or as part of your deep cleaning, consider hydrogen peroxide or chlorine bleach.
How to Clean a Toilet Plunger
The objective of cleaning a toilet plunger is to kill bacteria and viruses. This can be achieved through a variety of methods ranging from no/low chemicals (like boiling water) to hydrogen peroxide to chlorine bleach.
Project Overview:
- Skill Level: Beginner
- Active Time: 5 – 10 minutes
Tools and Materials:
- Your choice of boiling water, vinegar, dish soap, hydrogen peroxide, aerosol disinfectant, or chlorine bleach
- Toilet Brush
How to Clean a Toilet Plunger with Boiling Water Instructions:
Cleaning a toilet plunger with boiling water is a great method to use when you are out of cleaning supplies. Simply use the boiling water to kill bacteria and viruses.
Boiling water kills viruses, bacteria, and pathogens by using heat to damage structural components and disrupt essential life processes (source).
NOTE: While using boiling water to kill germs will be effective, it is not as effective as using vinegar, soap, or chlorine bleach (source).
Step 1: Boil a Pot of Water
Add water to a pot and boil it on the stovetop.
Step 2: Pour into a Small Carrying Device
Pour the boiling water into a small carrying device with a heat-protected handle and carry it to the toilet.
Step 3: Place the Toilet Plunger in the Toilet
Place the toilet plunger in the toilet and pour the boiling water over the plunger.
Step 4: Flush the Plunger in Clean Toilet Water
While the plunger is still in the toilet water, flush the toilet to help rinse the plunger clean.
Step 5: Tap the Plunger to Dry & Return to Storage
Tap the plunger inside the toilet bowl rim, allow it to dry, and return to storage.
How to Clean a Toilet Plunger with Dish Soap:
Dish soap is an effective cleaner as it lifts germs off surfaces for them to be washed away by water (source).
It’s great to use for routine cleaning as it’s accessible and gets the job done, but I recommend using a stronger option for deep cleaning.
Step 1: Add Dish Soap to the Toilet Bowl
Step 2: Swirl and Sit for 5 Minutes
Swirl for about 30 seconds and allow the toilet plunger to sit in the soapy toilet bowl water for 5 minutes.
Step 3: Flush the Plunger in Clean Toilet Water
While the plunger is still in the toilet water, flush the toilet to help rinse the plunger clean.
Step 4: Tap the Plunger to Dry
Tap the plunger inside the toilet bowl rim, allow it to dry, and return to storage.
How to Clean a Toilet Plunger with Vinegar:
Distilled white vinegar is 5% acetic acid. It destroys some bacteria and viruses, acts as a deodorizer, and is eco-friendly and affordable. For these reasons, it’s a reliable and common household ingredient you likely have on hand (source).
However, like all kinds of vinegar, distilled white vinegar does not destroy all bacteria and viruses (source). Using distilled white vinegar is great for routine cleaning, but it is not recommended for deep cleaning.
When using vinegar to clean items that will come in touch with white porcelain, such as toilets or sinks, opt for distilled white vinegar instead of a darker-colored vinegar to avoid staining your toilet bowl.
Step 1: Mix White Distilled Vinegar and Water in a Bucket
Create a 1:1 solution of vinegar and water in a bucket.
Tip: Using hot or boiling water may kill additional bacteria and viruses.
Step 2: Insert Plunger into Bucket
Add the plunger to the bucket of vinegar and swirl the plunger for about 2 minutes and allow it to sit in the mixture for at least 15 minutes.
Remove the plunger and dispose of the vinegar/water mixture by pouring it into the toilet bowl.
Step 3: Insert Plunger into Clean Toilet Water
Insert the plunger into clean toilet water.
Step 4: Flush the Plunger in Clean Toilet Water
While the plunger is still in the toilet water, flush the toilet to help rinse the plunger clean.
Step 5: Tap the Plunger to Dry
Tap the plunger inside the toilet bowl rim, allow it to dry, and return to storage.
How to Clean a Toilet Plunger with Hydrogen Peroxide:
3% hydrogen peroxide is a staple in many households and is effective for cleaning bathroom items like a toilet plunger. 3% hydrogen peroxide kills most viruses and bacteria and is an effective disinfectant (source).
As with other stronger disinfectants, you’ll need to avoid ingesting 3% hydrogen peroxide via airways, skin, or eyes (source).
Step 1: Pour ½ Cup Hydrogen Peroxide into the Toilet Bowl
Pour ½ cup of hydrogen peroxide into the toilet bowl.
Step 2: Place the Plunger in the Bowl
Place the plunger in the bowl and let it sit in the hydrogen peroxide/toilet bowl water mixture for 30 minutes.
Step 3: Flush the Toilet with Clean Water
After the 30 minutes is up, flush the toilet with clean water to remove any excess hydrogen peroxide.
Step 4: Tap Plunger and Dry
Tap the plunger on the side of the bowl to remove excess water. Allow it to dry.
Step 5: Return to Storage
Once the plunger is dry, return it to storage.
How to Clean a Toilet Plunger with Aerosol Disinfectant:
Aerosol disinfectants are popular as they are considered convenient and fast-acting. They contain antimicrobial agents that destroy microorganisms living on surfaces (source).
Take care not to inhale the spray, as it could irritate your airways (source). Wear a mask, open all of the windows, and don’t breathe in the disinfectant fumes.
Step 1: Spray Plunger with Aerosol Disinfectant
Spray the toilet plunger with aerosol disinfectant. Read your aerosol disinfectant’s label to learn how long it should sit for, likely 30 seconds to 10 minutes.
Step 2: Flush the Toilet
After the disinfecting time is up, place the plunger in clean toilet water and flush to rinse off all the disinfectant spray.
Step 3: Tap Plunger & Dry
Tap the plunger on the side of the toilet bowl to remove excess water and allow it to dry.
Step 4: Return to Storage
Once the plunger is dry, return it to storage.
How to Clean a Toilet Plunger with Chlorine Bleach:
Whether you love it or hate it, bleach is a popular cleaning ingredient. It’s popular because it is strong and effective in killing bacteria, fungi, and viruses (source).
However, it irritates skin and airways and easily reacts with other chemicals, so it should be used with caution (source).
Precautions as per the CDC (source):
- Never mix bleach with ammonia or any other cleaner
- Wear rubber gloves and eye protection
- Try not to breathe in product fumes. Open windows and doors to allow fresh air in.
I’d recommend saving chlorine bleach for deep cleaning or after an illness outbreak in your home.
Step 1: Add Bleach to the Toilet Bowl
A standard amount is to add about one tablespoon of bleach to your toilet bowl.
If you’d like a more precise measurement, consider the below steps.
- Confirm how many gallons of water your toilet holds (source).
- Pre-1982 toilets hold 5 – 7 gallons
- 1983 – 1993 toilets hold 3.5 gallons
- 1994 – present toilets hold 1.5 gallons
- Add one tablespoon per gallon of water, so you’ll likely add one tablespoon of bleach (source).
Step 2: Place the Toilet Plunger in the Toilet Bowl
Swirl the toilet plunger in the toilet bowl for about 2-5 minutes.
Step 3: Flush the Toilet
Flush the toilet with the plunger still in the toilet bowl to allow the bleach to rinse off and clean water to submerge the toilet plunger.
Step 4: Tap and Dry
Tap the plunger on the side of the toilet bowl to remove excess water and allow it to dry.
Step 5: Return to Storage
Once the plunger is dry, return it to storage.
Additional Tips for Cleaning a Toilet Plunger
Watch the Clock
42% of Americans aren’t using disinfectant spray properly, including not letting disinfectant spray sit long enough (source).
Be sure to follow the time to sit instructions on the bottle or as per our directions above.
For the disinfectant to work, it needs contact time with the surface before it gets wiped away.
Check Expiration Dates
Disinfectants expire, even bleach (source). The chemicals lose potency over time, so it’s important to check expiration dates to ensure your disinfectant has not yet expired.
You’d hate to do the work of disinfecting only to find that your product has expired!
FAQs
Yes! Clean your toilet plunger weekly for routine care, and do a deep cleaning after an illness outbreak in your house or as part of monthly or quarterly deep cleaning.
Cleaning your toilet plunger will remove grime, bacteria, and viruses.
The good news is that the cleaning methods are the same for each plunger type, so you do not need to adjust your method for a different plunger type.
You should clean it after every use. You don’t want to leave an item out with fecal matter on it (source).
It depends on how frequently you use it. If you regularly use your plunger, change it every six months. If you occasionally use your plunger, you can change it every year or even longer.
Final Thoughts on How to Clean a Toilet Plunger
You’re now a toilet plunger cleaning expert!
Depending on your on-hand cleaning supplies, or lack thereof, and how deeply you’d like to clean your toilet plunger, you now have six options.
You might even like to test a few of the methods to see which you like best.
Cheers for clean bathrooms, down to the toilet plungers!
