Cleaning rust stain in toilet

Quote from thearteest : These work great to remove the stone, but many times they actually scratch the surface of the porcelain coating and the rust stains come back sooner. I really still recommend trying The Works. If you have a Dollar Tree close by, you can get it there for $1. It's much easier to squirt some around the bowl than to stick your hand in and scrub with a stone.

You can lead a horse...aw hell, let's just give op a swirly!

I would have started with a magic eraser.

Quote from Thrifteh : You can lead a horse...aw hell, let's just give op a swirly! I would have started with a magic eraser.

Haha! Should we wait for the rust stains to build back up?

Quote from thearteest : Haha! Should we wait for the rust stains to build back up?

Without a doubt.

I went to the Dollar Tree store today, and there was no "The Works" toilet cleaner, at all.

But, they did have it at Home Depot today. And it worked really well on the calcium deposits in my toilet. It ought to, it's 20% hydrochloric acid.

For the price of all the products you have bought to try, I am willing to bet, you could have gotten a new toilet?

Quote from Thrifteh : You can lead a horse...aw hell, let's just give op a swirly! I would have started with a magic eraser.

Tried that first, didn't work

Quote from VorlonFrog : But, they did have it at Home Depot today. And it worked really well on the calcium deposits in my toilet. It ought to, it's 20% hydrochloric acid.

I tried straight muriatic acid on the stains, which is 30+% HCl and it didn't do anything to the stain.

Quote from Frogstar : If none of the above works, try a pumice stone.

Quote from teenbean : Yep. I use a wet pumice stone for removing the calcium & lime ring around the the toilet.

Very hard water here, the pumice stone works great and so it is what we use. Bought a few at the dollar store the last time I was there. It will not scratch porcelain as it is softer.

Quote from Dr. J : That's the rub - I have septic - I'm not so concerned about the chemicals per se, but that even muriatic acid didn't touch it, so I'm skeptical that any other chemicals would either.

I have a septic tank and haven't had any problems, but I only have to use cleaner about once every two weeks. Before you get attached to the stones or sanding sponges, take a ceramic dish and scrub it with either product. Do this several times and see how it can scratch the surface. That allows the stains to build up more quickly. Make sure what you're using doesn't make the problem worse.

Quote from tennisplayer123 : For the price of all the products you have bought to try, I am willing to bet, you could have gotten a new toilet?

Nope, I never buy high-priced crap for such simple jobs. Until now, I scrubbed with Comet cleanser, and even scraped the calcium (lime) off. The Works was $1.87 at Home Depot, and it's a large container, too.

Fine steel wool works great, as well as very fine grit wet sandpaper.

I have pretty good city water at my apt, but there is still some buildup after a month or so. I use some 800 grit sandpaper i have, only takes a few swipes and the toilet is like new.

Fine-grit sandpaper also works wonders for sinks, faucets, and any other places where minerals build up, but be sure to only use the fine grit stuff, like 400-800 and up, and wet it down while using. And always test on a more hidden spot first, but usually anything porcelain is tough enough to hold up to a lot of abrasives.

OP...besides the water softener, do you have any other whole house water filtration? They are VERY inexpensive. The cannisters/housings are only about $15-20 a piece, or $30 if you want the clear ones, and I generally pay around $10 for a 2-pack of filters. The only other cost was about $20 worth of PVC and fittings to attach to my water main.
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb...ter+filter

I'm on city water and the TDS is generally about 200-250 in my area. I opted to use two housings, one for sediment filtration and the other for carbon. It dropped my TDS to around 120-130 (and ~80 out of the fridge water dispenser which has it's own filter). I only used a 10 micron filter last time around though, and ended up trying a 5 micron this time.

If you have very hard water, it's generally recommended to use a step-down approach...ie having 2 or 3 sediment filters in-line, starting with a 20 micron, then a 10, then a 5 or 2, and then through to your carbon filter. This should eliminate future problems with hard water, as well as many other benefits too (drinking water is cleaner, clothes are cleaner and uses less detergent, dishes cleaner and no hard water stains, water pipes, appliances and hoses last longer, etc. etc.)

If you have any questions, feel free to PM me and I'll answer as best I can.

Quote from AngryPirate : OP...besides the water softener, do you have any other whole house water filtration? They are VERY inexpensive. The cannisters/housings are only about $15-20 a piece, or $30 if you want the clear ones, and I generally pay around $10 for a 2-pack of filters. The only other cost was about $20 worth of PVC and fittings to attach to my water main. http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb...ter+filter I'm on city water and the TDS is generally about 200-250 in my area. I opted to use two housings, one for sediment filtration and the other for carbon. It dropped my TDS to around 120-130 (and ~80 out of the fridge water dispenser which has it's own filter). I only used a 10 micron filter last time around though, and ended up trying a 5 micron this time. If you have very hard water, it's generally recommended to use a step-down approach...ie having 2 or 3 sediment filters in-line, starting with a 20 micron, then a 10, then a 5 or 2, and then through to your carbon filter. This should eliminate future problems with hard water, as well as many other benefits too (drinking water is cleaner, clothes are cleaner and uses less detergent, dishes cleaner and no hard water stains, water pipes, appliances and hoses last longer, etc. etc.) If you have any questions, feel free to PM me and I'll answer as best I can.

This idea intrigues me.