How Often Should You Change Your Toilet Brush?

Importance of Clean Brushes

Toilet brushes have the obvious job of cleaning toilets, so they must be as clean as possible to get the job done. It's almost inevitable for toilet brushes to harbor bacteria after repeated use, which in turn limits its ability to efficiently clean a toilet. Aside from this, a dirty toilet brush can potentially spread germs to other items in the bathroom when moving it from one place to another. A clean brush is vital to both toilet and bathroom cleanliness.

The bristle tips of toilet brushes begin to fray and soften over time, which ultimately takes away from the ability to scrub away bacteria. Toilet brushes with white bristles will also turn yellow or orange with repeated use. Replace the toilet brush when either of these problems become apparent.

Put on a pair of rubber or latex gloves and rub a finger over the bristles. The bristles of an old, overused brush often stick to one another and may even have a noticeable sticky or slimy residue on them. Replace the brush at the first sign of this.

It's possible to extend the brush life by disinfecting it after every use. After scrubbing the toilet, hold the brush in the water. Flush the water once to wash away the cleaning detergent, let the bowl fill up and flush it again to rinse the brush. After rinsing, soak the brush in a bucket filled with a solution of 1 part bleach to 10 parts water for 20 minutes, then rinse it again. While this won't slow down the rate at which the bristles wear down, it greatly reduces the chance of bacterial growth on the bristles.