Learning How to Remove Hard Water Stains from Glass Shower Doors is possible! A few simple steps, tools and a whole lot of elbow grease is all it takes to get your glass shower doors looking like new in no time!
It’s no secret that I live in an area flowing with hard water. A couple years ago I shared How to Remove Hard Water Stains from Toilets, but I was still stuck with hard water stains on my glass shower doors.
What is the difference between hard and soft water?
- Hard Water is water which contains an appreciable amount of dissolved minerals such as calcium and magnesium.
- Soft Water, on the other hand, contains less dissolved minerals. Or, when treated, the only ion it may contain is sodium (causing this treated water to taste badly due to the leftover sodium ions). Naturally falling rainwater is soft water, for example.
How then does water become “hard water”?
Great question! I’m so glad you asked.
Water becomes hard as it makes its way through the ground and into our waterways. Along the way, this water picks up minerals like chalk, lime, calcium, and magnesium.
Pros and Cons of hard versus soft water
Wait. There’s a pro to hard water?
Oh yes! read on…
Given that hard water contains all these essential (and super important) minerals (remember the calcium and magnesium?) and tastes significantly better, one may wonder why we even think of softening our water. I mean, if hard water is better for you and it tastes better, why mess it up?
Well, aside from these obvious benefits, hard water is hard on appliances (dishwashers and washing machines) and is hard to clean. Clothing feels unclean even after washing and since soap reacts negatively with magnesium and calcium, even your hair may feel dirty and sticky after washing.
In short, hard water is less effective and uses more energy due to the mineral buildup that is left behind.
Ok, wonderful….so what about soft water?
Hard water, when treated, removes the magnesium and calcium that was picked up to, once again, create soft water. Unfortunately, while most of the ions are removed from soft water, the negatively charged sodium ion remains. And, well, we all know what sodium is, right? As a result, treated soft water not just tastes salty, but actually increases your sodium intake each day.
And this, my friends, brings me to my next point…
What is causing those ugly spots on my glass shower doors?
Hard Water. Period. The end.
Yes, each time you take a shower and allow the water to dry on the glass, those spots and stains are the minerals left behind.
Depending on how bad your hard water is, or how long your buildup has been building up, will likely determine how bad your shower doors look and how difficult they will be to clean.
Now, let’s fix this problem. Kay?
Methods that did not clean the hard water from my glass showers
- Lemon
- Vinegar
- Baking soda
- Lemon, vinegar, baking soda in combination
- Razor blade
- Tilex, Scrubbing Bubbles, etc.
None of these things worked.
So, for a long time I gave up and, as a result, the stains continued to get worse and worse until one day I just COULD NOT ANYMORE.
So, I started thinking along the same lines as my toilet solution which uses fine-grit drywall screens to clean the hard water buildup. Maybe, just maybe, there was something out there that I could use on glass?
Lucky for us, there is!
What you need to remove hard water from glass
- 0000 Super Fine Steel Wool
- White vinegar
- Spray bottle or bed sheet
- Gloves
- Medium-sized mixing bowl or measuring cup (I used a 2-cup Pyrex measuring cup)
- Barkeepers Friend (not the spray. I used the stuff for pots and pans, but any of the powdered kind will work)
- Face-mask
How to Clean Glass Shower Doors
Guys, there is no way around it. In order to remove those ingrained mineral deposits stuck to your shower doors, you will have to use some serious elbow grease. This is not a gentle once over and done type fix. My advice is to work in sections and ask your husband or stronger significant other to help if you get tired. Please, do not be discouraged if you still have some hard water spots after the first round of scrubbing. For those really tough spots, you may need to go over it a couple times.
- Gather supplies.
- The vinegar soak. Depending on how bad your buildup is, you may or may not need to do this step. Mine was looking pretty miserable, so I decided to soak a sheet in white vinegar and drape it over my shower door. I then pressed as much of the sheet against the glass as possible so that the glass could “soak” in vinegar. If the sheet started to dry out, I would spray with additional vinegar. Please note- this step alone will do nothing to remove or eliminate the hard water stains on your glass shower doors.
- Rinse. After approximately 30 minutes (just enough time to clean the rest of the bathroom!), remove the sheet (or relocate to a different part of the shower), and rinse with water.
- Prepare the Barkeepers Friend paste. Put on the mask (if you have one) and gloves (if you don’t have some, buy some). To a bowl or cup add approximately 1/4 cup of powdered Barkeepers Friend. There is no need to measure an exact amount, this is just to give you an idea of where to start. Slowly add water until a paste forms, mixing well.
- Scrub. Use your hand to rub the paste over a section of the glass shower door, and, using a 0000 Super Fine Steel Wool pad, start scrubbing. Small circular motion, large circular motion, up and down, just scrub. Once you feel you’ve been scrubbing for far too long and surely you must have shiny clean spotless doors, rinse. For some, this may be the case after one application. For others, you may need to scrub one more time.
- Rinse well. And remember to use a glass cleaner to clean the other side of the glass.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Is Barkeepers Friend Septic-safe? Yes. Oxalic acid cleansers are acidic instead of alkaline, which makes them more effective against rust, tarnish, oxidation, mineral scale, hard water, and lime deposits than most other cleaning products. Unlike other acidic cleaners, Bar Keepers Friend doesn’t use fillers or bleaches, making them biodegradable and safe for septic systems.
- Can I use any steel wool? Does it have to be 0000 Super Fine Steel Wool? No, I would not recommend using any other steel wool except super fine 0000. Of course, feel free to use any brand you prefer, but less fine steel wool may scratch the glass.
Yay! Sparkling Glass Shower Doors!
How to Clean Glass Shower Doors
Equipment
- Medium-sized mixing bowl or measuring cup (I used a 2-cup Pyrex measuring cup)
Instructions
- Gather supplies.
- The vinegar soak. Depending on how bad your buildup is, you may or may not need to do this step. Mine was looking pretty miserable, so I decided to soak a sheet in white vinegar and drape it over my shower door. I then pressed as much of the sheet against the glass as possible so that the glass could “soak” in vinegar. If the sheet started to dry out, I would spray with additional vinegar.
- Rinse. After approximately 30 minutes (just enough time to clean the rest of the bathroom!), remove the sheet (or relocate to a different part of the shower), and rinse with water.
- Prepare the Bar Keepers Friend paste. Put on the mask (if you have one) and gloves (if you don’t have some, buy some). To a bowl or cup add approximately 1/4 cup of powdered Bar Keepers Friend. There is no need to measure an exact amount, this is just to give you an idea of where to start. Slowly add water until a paste forms, mixing well.
- Scrub. Use your hand to rub the paste over a section of the glass shower door, and, using a 0000 Super Fine Steel Wool pad, start scrubbing. Small circular motion, large circular motion, up and down, just scrub. Once you feel you’ve been scrubbing for far too long and surely you must have shiny clean spotless doors, rinse. For some, this may be the case after one application. For others, you may need to scrub one more time.
- Rinse well. And remember to use a glass cleaner to clean the other side of the glass shower door.
Marsha Tarr says
What do you recommend to keep the water sports from returning. I wipe my shower doors down with a micro fiber cloth most days after showering, but still have spotting. I remember reading awhile ago that putting car wax or Rainx on the doors once clean would help keep spots away.
Jessica Randhawa says
Hi Marsha,
Alas, I have not found a good easy solution to keep them clean if you have hard water like mine. I try to squeegee every time, but the stains come back 🙁
Kris says
I wanted to leave you a note to thank you and to tell you that your method worked very well on some old shower glass in a house I just bought. It was hard work doing 5 panels but they came out very well.
But for future reference, before I could start on the 6th panel, my painter said “hey let’s spray that with some ‘Spray Nine’ and see if it works.”
FYI, lest anyone think this is an advert, I am just a random guy, certainly not associated with Spray Nine or Mist Eleven or any other cleaner, but that stuff worked perfectly, almost instantly, with zero scrubbing or effort.
Again thanks for your suggestion, it works brilliantly, but you might want to check out spray cleaner too.
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Spray-Nine-32-oz-Multi-Purpose-Cleaner-and-Disinfectant-26832/204766608
Marsha Tarr says
I was hesitant to use Spray Nine because the label says not to use on glass. Bummer! I was encouraged until I saw that. Not sure what the consequences would be. 😬
Jessica Randhawa says
Yikes – good catch Marsha 😬
Barkeepers Freind used as outlined above will not damage glass 🙂
Christine Blumenthal says
YES ! Great tip, and I use nylon scrub pads. Or recycled plastic scrub pads. The fine steel works but I try to use recycled plastic pads because I try to use products that are better for the environment.
Malcolm says
worked as advertised where nothing else would, but dang that i am sore now…
Heather says
My arm is tired but it definitely works!
Al says
I use coconut oil and the hard part of a sponge. It works. Wiped off with a bit more wipes. You can try using any other oils if you don’t have coconut oil. Rinse hot water.
Mich says
worked as advertised!
Neil says
#2 at the end ” Please note- this step alone will do nothing to remove or eliminate the hard water stains on your glass shower doors” Then why am I doing this?
Jessica Randhawa says
Hi Neil,
If your hard water stains are as bad as mine, then you would be doing step #2 to make the following steps a little bit easier with a lot less effort 🙂
Sherry says
I’m struggling because my glass shower door is on a travertine stone shower, which was m told should never touch acid like vinegar—that it will ruin the sealant. Help! I just spent an hour with a Dawn/Vinegar mix, with towels below to catch spillage. It didn’t work and I did have a few splashes on t try he stone. This is a housekeeper job so I can’t risk damage.
Jessica Randhawa says
Hi Sherry,
If you are worried about acid on your travertine, I would try using just the 0000 Steel Wool with Dawn. If it works, it will take quite a bit longer without the acid.
Jeff says
EXCELLENT method of cleaning. Didn’t use the vinegar towel as I had already tried the baking soda, dawn, and vinegar solutions to avail. Something to consider is using the ready to use bottle of Barkeeper’s secret. Not as strong smelling and no mixing. Thanks for this tip.
Ms K says
Can someone tell me what “Barkeepers Friend” is ( powered cleanser ?? ) or is it BiCarb Soda ?? that is also used for cleaning.
We don’t have Barkeepers Friend in Australia, so that’s why I ask as too what it really is. If it’s a simple compound like those mentioned above, then I could mix the recipe up too clean my terribly scummy and scaled up shower.
P.S. I hope someone can help me. Thanks so much.
Jessica Randhawa says
Hi Ms. K
Per Wikipedia , Barkeepers Freind’s active ingredients include: “feldspar, linear sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (DDBSA) and oxalic acid.” Thus why I highly recommend wearing gloves.
I hope that helps with your stains 🙂
Kamika says
Can this be used on tiles as well?
Jessica Randhawa says
Hi Kamika,
I have not tried this on tiles before, so I cannot say for certain. Moreso, there are many different types of tiles to complicate matters further.
AMY says
STAINS ARE GONE!
Mindy says
I have had hard water stains for years and nothing worked. This actually worked, and it was done in minutes!
katy says
Hi,
Bath Works is a miracle product. You can find it at Safeway or online and, for less money, at Dollar Tree and Big Lots. Comes in a white squeeze bottle. There is one for toilets and one for showers.
Directions: Squirt it on the door starting from the top. When there are no dry spots left, wipe off with a scrubbing sponge, scrub side to glass.
Rinse with shower.
Time: About 6 minutes.