Bathroom cleaning guide on how to clean plastic strip of a shower door easily.

The following sheds some much needed light on how to clean the plastic strip at the bottom of your shower door. First of all, we must realise that, if left uncared for, the purpose of the plastic strip is defeated. How so? Because the plastic strip is literally put in place to ‘catch’ all drips and can in fact be removed for cleaning. It needs to be cleaned consistently in order to prevent the build up of mould.

This is where most people go wrong but you can be excused since you’re likely oblivious to the feature as a removable one. Indeed, the portable plastic strip would’ve been mentioned in the manual, but we all hate reading manuals so would never have known. This article therefore ought to serve in its place and also detail exactly how to clean the strip. An integral but little known part of domestic cleaning that mustn’t be put off any longer.

Here’s what to do: What you will need is a pair of gloves, disposable ones are best, a butter knife, a teaspoon, a cake fork, an old toothbrush, ample baking soda, a lemon, white wine vinegar, a double-sided sponge.

Steps:

Remove the plastic strip

Put your gloves on first of all. Then, simply push the shower door over the bath momentarily as you bend down and slide the strip out from beneath. Simply pull it out. Do this slowly in order to prevent disgusting green mould splattering all over the place.

Rest the strip in the bath momentarily

Now you’ve taken the strip off, it’s an ideal time to wipe away the mould that clings to the bottom of the shower door even after removal. Simply rest the strip in the empty bath for the time being.

Wipe the mould off the shower door bottom

Proceed to dip the teaspoon into the baking soda. Don’t do this vice-versa through pouring as you will spill the powder. With the teaspoon, apply the baking soda onto the coarse side of the double-sided sponge, spreading it across the whole of the abrasive side.

Slice your lemon and proceed to squeeze one half onto the teaspoon before spreading the liquid over the sponge. Now simply wipe the door, relying on the standard ‘wrapping’ technique to push your sponge’s solution into the mould before wiping it off assertively. Should mould remain, apply a cap-full of vinegar onto the sponge and wipe again.

Pre-soak the strip

It’s handy that the strip can sit in the bath since it’s an ideal spot for this home cleaning ritual involving a lot of liquid.

Proceed to press the same sponge you’ve just used into the strip, combing it from left to right once or twice. It’s likely this won’t remove much mould, though it does suffice in pre-wiping the strip and therefore allowing the solution to begin work on the mould. Since the strip is a vessel itself, make the most of its capacity to hold liquid. First of all however, simply use two clumps of lemon peel to hem in liquid at either side of the strip, transforming into a completely cordoned off container.

Let the strip sit

Add further teaspoons of baking soda, lemon juice and a cap-full of vinegar before carefully lining the solution into the now closed off strip. Let is sit in the bath for 4 hours.

Chip away at mould residue

Once you’ve returned, understand first of all that the solution has been eating away at the mould in your absence. Now take your cake fork and manually chip away at the mould. Introduce a butter knife to proceedings if need be since the smooth flat shape can be useful in scraping the sides of the strip from left to right. Use the old toothbrush after the utensils. The bristles are versatile in reaching all over and loosening stubborn mould.

Rinse, dry, return strip to shower door

Before you put the strip back on the door, grab your same sponge and comb over the whole strip until all remaining mould is gone. Use the hot tap in the bath to apply boiling water to the sponge before combing again until all the mould is gone entirely. Remove the lemon peel from either side and rinse once more.
Turn the strip upside down and place it to dry for 4 hours in a well ventilated space, like outside pegged to a clothesline, before placing the strip back on the shower door.