May 26, 2021

How To Clean Shower Head At Home

Everyone who has a bathtub or shower stall in their home will sooner or later face the question: how to clean the shower head from limescale? Today we will consider the most effective methods that have proven themselves in practice. Many people have a lot of questions: where to start, what is needed for this, how to disassemble the showerhead, and what chemicals should you use? Some do it easier, changing out-of-order plumbing for a new one. However, in this case, you will have to spend money, and what’s the point of buying a new shower head if you can clean up the old one?

Step one – disassembly

How to disassemble a shower head without damaging it? To do this, you should prepare in advance a tool that will be useful:

• screwdriver
• knife
• wrench

These tools are enough for disassembly. So, first of all, you need to disconnect the shower head from the flexible hose. To do this, you will have to unscrew the special washer that connects the hose to the showerhead. It is unlikely that you will be able to do this with your bare hands because over time, salts and other deposits in the threaded joint collect. A wrench is suitable for this.

Advice: In this matter, it is important not to overdo it, since the metal in these joints is quite thin, it can be easily damaged when pressed hard with a gas wrench. You need to act carefully.

After you have successfully disconnected the hose, you can proceed to the direct analysis of the shower head itself. Armed with a knife, pay attention to the center plug, which is located in the middle of it. It must be lightly picked up with a knife and removed. You will find a special screw under the plug. It serves to hold the mesh. Try to unscrew it with a screwdriver and disconnect the mesh from the general structure. 

Tip: The screw is likely to be covered with deposits and limescale. 

Before you start unscrewing it with a screwdriver, you need to descale the slot. To do this, you can use any sharp and thin object, such as a knife. Once you have removed the screw, you can gently detach the mesh from the rest of the body of the showerhead. You need to be very careful here, as the limescale must have firmly connected the mesh to the gasket. If you apply a sharp force, you can damage the pad or the mesh itself.

Smoothly move the mesh away from the pad, observing any visible damage. If necessary, lightly scrape with a knife in areas of heavy scale.

Now you have in front of you all the components of the showerhead disassembled:

• the foundation
• mesh
• gasket

All these parts need to be descaled, which we will do next.

Read also: Summer Cleaning: Keeping Your House in Order

Clean the shower head from hard limescale

You can do it in two ways – simpler and more complex. You probably have a logical question: why using a more complex method? It’s simple – this option will allow you to better clean the shower head from dirt. We will consider both cleaning options, you can choose the one that you like best.

How to remove limescale deposits from a shower head without using harsh chemicals, because they can simply damage your plumbing. There is, of course, a way out. For this, white vinegar is suitable. It can effectively deal with limescale without damaging the surface of the shower head.

So, the first method is the simplest, in most cases, it will work when your shower head cannot be disassembled. Yes, it happens, because the design of the shower can be non-separable.

For cleaning you will need:

• 9% table vinegar
• a small plastic bag
• scotch tape or electrical tape

Take a bottle of regular vinegar and a plastic bag.

Important! Make sure of the integrity of the package before starting the procedure. To do this, it is enough to draw water into it and hold it in weight for about a minute. If you haven't noticed a leak, then you can use it. 

In the question of how to clean the shower head from limescale, there is one caveat – the amount of vinegar used. If it is too little, then you will not be able to achieve an acceptable result. The amount of vinegar depends on the mesh diameter. The most common diameter is 2.3 inches. 10 oz of liquid will be enough. Place the body of the shower head on the holder that is attached to the wall. Make sure the whole structure is held tight. Then pour vinegar into a plastic bag and place it on the shower head.

Important! Make sure that the entire mesh and more than half of the shower head is completely covered.

The next step is to secure the bag to the holder with electrical tape or tape.

We leave the structure for the whole night. In the morning you will be pleasantly surprised: the mesh will be completely free of limescale.

Read also: How To Prepare Your Home For Summer Time

More efficient way

How to descale your shower head so that it would shine? This is very easy to do. You will need a whole pack of citric acid for 4 tablespoons of water. Prepare a convenient container for cleaning. A small saucepan or jar will work for this. You should unscrew the shower head itself from the hose and disassemble it according to the principle that was described above. Carefully remove the mesh, simultaneously removing scale with a sharp object. Do this very carefully to avoid damaging the gasket. After all, the components of the shower head have been disassembled, it is necessary to bring the water in the kettle to a boil. We place the parts in an empty jar, pour out the contents of a sachet of citric acid and fill it all with boiling water. For a moment you will see the process of the so-called “quenching”, bubbles will stand out. It reacts to hot water with acid. It is at this moment that the scale begins to actively disintegrate. Leave the container for about 20 minutes until the liquid cools down a little. Prepare an unnecessary toothbrush to get on with cleaning your shower.

Read also: How easy it is to keep your home clean and tidy

After softening the plaque, we start cleaning the components of the shower head with a toothbrush. It is not worth putting in the excessive effort, everything is cleaned up with ease. When the cleaning process is over, rinse the parts of the watering can under warm running water and put all the components together. We assure you that after this procedure you will not distinguish your shower from a new one.

So now you know how to clean the limescale from the showerhead with your own hands. As you’ve probably seen, it’s pretty simple to do this. For additional help with your bathroom cleaning in NYC or regular home cleaning, contact White Glove Cleaner.