When you mix the two ingredients, the reaction that you see is the baking soda releasing carbon dioxide. In other words, neutralising the vinegar. It creates a milder acid called carbonic acid, which has limited cleaning properties. So do not expect the mixture to do a good job, it is not the all-natural power cleaner you have read about.
However, you can effectively clean your toilet with just one pantry ingredient. It is gentler and safer to use than commercial chemical cleaners. Plus, it works just as well!
So, how do you remove limescale and hardwater stains? The following steps are my proven way of removing those hard water stains from a toilet.
Step Two:
Pour vinegar in its place (we used about 2 litres 0.5 gallons). Fill up to just past the line where the hard water stain is.
Step Three:
Get your toilet paper and wet it with vinegar. Then, place it along the rim so that the hard water stain and vinegar come into contact.
Step Four:
Leave it to soak for at least two and a half hours. Leave it longer for stubborn stains.
Step Five:
Remove the toilet paper from the rim. The stain should have transferred to the toilet paper. Leaving the toilet rim stain-free.
If you still have some stubborn stains in your toilet, give it a bit of a scrub and repeat the process as necessary.