Is It Safe To Clean Your Toilet Without Gloves? (FOUR REASONS THEY’RE NEEDED)

Bathrooms are the ultimate bacteria host, and even the cleanest toilets have pathogens sticking around.

When it comes to cleaning toilets, some folks always wear gloves while others consider it not a necessity.

The mixed views on wearing gloves when cleaning toilets have resulted in many questions and concerns, especially among apartment inhabitants.

In this regard, Is It Safe To Clean Your Toilet Without Gloves?

Well, when it comes to cleaning toilets, the two major concerns are your health and the products you use to clean the bathroom. Common toilet cleaning products contain harmful chemicals that can irritate and burn your skin or harm you internally, especially if you inadvertently touch your eyes or mouth. Even if you use organic cleaning products, toilets harbor E. coli and other bacteria, so cleaning your toilet without gloves risks directly infecting yourself with nasty pathogens.  

If you are contemplating whether or not to wear gloves when cleaning your toilet, it is a no-brainer — YOU NEED TO WEAR GLOVES WHEN CLEANING A TOILET.

Four Reasons Why You Should Wear Gloves When Cleaning Your Toilet

Cleaning a toilet can be a very unappealing chore despite being absolutely necessary.

And while our hands have seen worse than imaginable, no one would consent to put their health at risk when there is an alternative.

That said, while it may sound okay to clean your very own toilet without gloves and wash your hands after, there is still the risk of infecting yourself with bacteria.

This is true even when the toilet doesn’t look nasty.

Here’s why gloves are needed:

1. Gloves Protect Against Chemical Burns

Cleaning your toilet is something you do at least once every week.

But did you know that the cleaning products you use contain chemicals that can take a toll on your skin?

Well, your skin needs to remain sensitive, soft, and gentle.

Washing your toilet without gloves exposes your hands to chemicals and solvents contained in the cleaners.

With repeated exposure, these chemicals will strip away the skin’s oil barrier — think of the same way your favorite cleaner wipes away grime.

In the long term, this can cause dermatitis and chemical burns.

Wearing a pair of cleaning gloves can shield your hands against all these.

You don’t want to expose your skin to bleach, chlorine, ammonia, vinegar, as well as contaminants in all-purpose cleaners.

Even if you use homemade cleaners, there are other risks that come with cleaning a toilet with bare hands, so wear gloves.

2. Wearing Gloves Prevents Diseases And Infections

If you use organic and homemade toilet cleaners, you might think it is safe to clean your toilet without gloves because you use products safe for your health.

But what about the pathogens on the toilet’s surface?

Your toilet doesn’t need to be nasty for it to have bacteria. In other words, even the cleanest toilets are swarmed with harmful bacteria.

This is especially true considering that flushing your toilet, even when the lid is shut, doesn’t kill bacteria.

Grime and gunk are sorts of gross, and handling them with bare hands can lead to diseases and infections.

On the other hand, wearing gloves protects your hands, ensuring you remain safe from germs, even when cleaning the nastiest and smelliest toilet.

3. Gloves Increase Your Grip

While you don’t need a lot of effort to clean your toilet, gloves that increase your grip can greatly benefit you.

Whether you are washing the toilet or the entire bathroom and constituent elements, a pair of rubber cleaning gloves can make your job easier by giving a much stronger grip.

What’s more, a firm grip can go a long way to ensuring that you get done with cleaning in the shortest time possible.

4. Easy And Comfortable Cleaning

While brushing and scrubbing are easy and harmless cleaning tasks, cleaning a toilet can be very disturbing, especially when it is nasty and grime has accumulated in the drain.

Wearing gloves not only masks your hands, protecting you against chemical burns, but also ensures you comfortably clean every section of your toilet without trembling.

Weaning a pair of gloves creates a sense of safety when cleaning even the dirtiest toilet. Feeling safe when cleaning your toilet will ensure thoroughness.

Seven Step Toilet Cleaning Process

Cleaning our toilets at least once a week is very important, and most of us do that. But do you clean your toilet in the right way?

Using a proper approach when cleaning your toilet can help eliminate any bacteria or viruses thriving in the bowl and spreading out to the rest of your bathroom.

If you have had a challenge keeping your porcelain sparkling, here are steps and tips to help you clean your toilet and keep it sparkling:

1. Gather All Cleaning Supplies

To clean a toilet, you need a clean toilet brush, a pair of rubber gloves, toilet cleaners, disinfectant, and disinfectant wipes or paper towels.

You can wear extra gloves for your protection.

When choosing a brush, remember to pick one that can reach all areas of the bowl and has bristles firm enough to scrub without freaking the toilet water everywhere.

2. Flush It

Before you start cleaning, put the lid down and flush.

Putting the lid down when flushing prevents germs from flying above the toilet seat, thus, preventing spreading and minimizing the risk of exposure.

Proceed to reduce the water level in the bowl.

This will ensure the toilet bowl cleaners work perfectly to sanitize the porcelain — it needs to be undiluted to work best.

One of the easy ways to achieve this is by filling a bucket with about a half gallon of water and quickly pouring it at the back of the bowl, where water settles.

3. Apply Toilet Cleaner

Thankfully, many toilet cleaners come with a bottle with an angled sprout to make applying super easy (around bowl, under the rim); you just need to squeeze the bottle.

After applying the cleaner, let it stay for about 5–10 minutes.

4. Scrub Thoroughly And Rinse

Grab your toilet brush and scrub the inside of the bowl firmly enough to lift all stuck bits of gunk and remove all the grime.

While scrubbing, beware of splashes.

Next, close the lid and flush the toilet. This will rinse it.

5. Wipe Down The Exterior

Using disinfecting wipes or a disinfecting spray and paper towels (a sponge or reusable rag can work), wipe down the exterior surface of your toilet.

Pay special attention to surfaces you often touch, like the seat and the flushing button or handle.

6. Clean The Floor

Damp and dirty floors provide ideal breeding conditions for bacteria, so proceed to clean your bathroom floor using a disinfectant and bleach.

7. Disinfect Your Brush

Once you are done with cleaning, spritz your brush with disinfecting spray and allow it to sit for a minute.

Conclusion

Hopefully, this post gives you a compelling reason to wear gloves every time you are cleaning your toilet.

No matter what products you use, cleaning a toilet without gloves is a bad idea.

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