The Easiest Way To Remove Hard Water Stains From Glass

Whether it's on your glass shower door, windows, or even bathroom mirror, every now and then, you may notice that your once shiny glass is looking a little worse for wear. Even if you thought you were cleaning your bathroom shower doors correctly by regularly wiping and drying the surface, you might find that pesky hard water stains still rear their ugly head. If you don't take care of them immediately, it could soon take over, and that crystal clear glass could quickly become an opaque mess. But what could be creating this foggy-looking disaster?

These stains are caused by the hard water from your taps. As water flows from your municipality's system and passes through your pipes, it picks up minerals such as magnesium, lime, and calcium, according to The Water Geeks. As this water sits on glass and is allowed to evaporate, the minerals are left behind, resulting in a thin film of crusty residue.  

However, hard water isn't the only culprit to blame. Shampoo, conditioner, and soaps play their part as well, which could lead to harder-to-remove hard water stains, which can be an eyesore on your sparkling surfaces. Although this is a common problem around the home, that doesn't mean you have to live with foggy glass forever. But before you cause any damage by using the wrong type of cleaner or scrubbing haphazardly with steel wool, we have a few suggestions on how to make these unsightly stains disappear.

One of the best methods to remove those hard-to-clean water stains from your glass is to use natural ingredients found around the home. In order to break down the hard minerals without scratching the surface of your glass, first try to saturate the area with a mixture of half vinegar and half distilled water, according to Glass Doctor. Once it's sprayed on, make sure to leave it on the area for a few minutes so that the acidity of the vinegar can slowly dissolve the minerals. Then wipe clean with a soft cloth or sponge.

If you are fresh out of vinegar but are rich in lemons, then you can take half of a lemon and rub it vigorously on the stains. The acidity of the lemon will act much like the vinegar and work towards removing the mess. Once it has had time to rest on the glass, you can clean it off with a soft cloth or paper towel. Alternatively, baking soda can be a useful and easy ingredient to gently remove hard water stains. You can pair baking soda with vinegar or lemon to create a fizzy solution that can be put on the exterior to slowly eat away at the minerals. Or you can make a paste using baking soda and water and gently work it onto the glass to clean it.