The Best Way To Banish Scratches From Your Toilet Bowl

Some types of scratches are totally, tragically irreversible. Luckily, toilet bowl scratches are not one of them. In most cases, you can make your toilet bowl look new again with a rust remover, Bar Keeper's Friend, or vinegar and a cleaning brush. And even if you've managed to scratch your toilet more deeply, it's not beyond repair.

It's surprisingly easy to accidentally scratch a toilet bowl; it often happens when unclogging the drain or cleaning toilet bowl rings with steel wool. In most cases, these "scratches" aren't true scratches at all because they haven't penetrated the surface of the porcelain. Most toilets are made of vitreous china or porcelain, two very similar ceramics. These are some of the hardest materials available and highly resistant to scratches. What appears to be scratches are actually scuff marks, comprised of residue left behind by the metal in a toilet snake, auger, or steel wool. These marks may then turn into rust stains in your toilet. These marks are harmless and may eventually go away on their own, but they're unsightly and don't take much effort to remove. Here's how to banish them and what to do if you're dealing with a real scratch.

CLR Calcium, Lime & Rust Remover will effectively remove the rust that your toilet bowl "scratches" are made of. To use this product, first turn off the water supply to the toilet bowl so that you can access the marks directly. Pour 1 cup of CLR into the toilet bowl and let it sit for 2 minutes, scrub with a brush, then turn the water back on and flush. You may need to repeat the process if the marks are stubborn. Another benefit of using CLR is that it can also remove the toughest toilet bowl stains caused by mineral deposits, which regular toilet cleaners with bleach won't work on.

Other products may also be effective at removing metal residues from your toilet bowl, including Bar Keepers Friend Soft Cleanser, bath stain erasers, or vinegar. If you use an acidic product, make sure not to leave it sitting in the toilet for too long, as you risk etching the finish, which is a more permanent problem.

If you're dealing with true scratches rather than surface-level scuff marks, don't panic — you can still repair the scratches and save the toilet bowl. You'll need to thoroughly clean the area, lightly sand with fine-grit sandpaper, and use a porcelain touch-up paint or ceramic repair kit (depending on how deep the scratch is). Be prepared to wait up to 48 hours for the repair to cure fully, after which you can buff it to blend it in.