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WE’RE KEEPING IT clean on this week’s Taskmaster by tackling a few of those chores we never seem to have time for. We’re lifting the lid on a few cleaning tasks that you can get to work on while belting out your favourite shower song, we’re firm believers that there’s always room for a quick task to check off the list, even when you’re in the shower!
The last thing anyone wants to do is slave away cleaning the shower or the bath right after you’ve finished relaxing, so with productivity front of mind, we’ve compiled a list of tasks that you can get to work on while in the shower.
Soap scum is a real pain, but a common squeegee is your best friend when it comes to cleaning that shower door or any tiling you may have. If you spray water with a drop of washing up liquid on the door and leave it to soak in while you soak yourself, the final squeegee before you step out will be down-right satisfying.
Importantly, we’d advise to steer clear of any cleaning products that have chemicals in them while in the shower, better safe than sorry! With a nice natural spritz and squeegee while in the shower you’ll see a big reduction in soap scum build up over time. We recommend investing in a good squeegee with a hook that lives in or near your shower, so that it becomes second nature to reach for it and get that tasked ticked off the list.
Nobody wants to look at mouldy grout while having a shower, a great tip to tackle grout is using a combination of two parts bicarbonate soda and one part water to create a natural cleaning paste that beats the band. It’s as easy as using an old toothbrush for application of the paste and the combination mixed with the warm water of the shower makes for an easy clean. The grout will be gleaming by the time your finished, and similar to most tasks we tackle, the more you stay on top of it, the less of a job it becomes in the long run.
Clean out the caddy
This is a really simple and effective task to get done while you’re in the shower, the good old shower caddy (where you store all your shampoos, body washes and loofahs) can be easily passed by when thinking about what needs a good clean in your bathroom. The good news is a simple spray of the shower head can rinse away any unwanted soap scum or lingering grime. Most caddy’s have holes in the bottom of them as they’re expecting that water to hit them, but due to the constant use a build-up of dirt and limescale can happen quickly. A quick rinse and wipe down every few days will see your shower caddy stand the test of time.
Tackle the dreaded drain
We’ve saved the best for last here, and when we say best – we obviously mean the absolute worst. Nobody wants to clean out the drain, it’s gross, and even though it might be your hair that’s clogging it up in the first place that fact doesn’t make the job any more pleasant. The truth is, there’s no way round it and there’s no time like when you’re in the thick of a shower to get it done and out of the way.
With a delightful combination of hair, soap scum and dirt, the shower or bath drain is easily clogged and can quickly develop into a bigger job (with a very unappealing smell) down the line if you don’t tackle it head on.
Regular cleaning of the drain can help avoid this – scooping up the hair and soap scum before it goes down after each use is also a good tip, and there are some gadgets that can help too, a silicone drain protector being one of them. These drain protectors are easy to remove and install, can be used wherever you want to collect debris or hair, and with suction cup silica gel flush filter, you can easily clean the bathtub drain plug with warm water or soap.
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