BY DANIELLA CHACE, MSC, CN

Bathrooms are meant to be places of renewal—where we wash away the day and prepare to start again. Yet they are also one of the rooms most heavily exposed to moisture, microbes, and harsh cleaning chemicals.

A seasonal reset offers the perfect opportunity to remove unnecessary products, eliminate lingering odors at their source, and replace conventional cleaners with simple, effective alternatives. With just a few natural ingredients and a thoughtful approach, you can turn your bathroom into a truly clean, healthy space for everyone in your household.

Now that you’ve uncluttered and removed all toxic items from your bathroom, you’re ready to clean away any residual chemicals and microbes left behind. A quick reminder: Odors are usually caused by organic matter—such as bacteria or residue from everyday use. Air fresheners may mask odors, but they rarely address the underlying cause. Only by removing the source of the odor can you truly eliminate bathroom smells.

To save time, energy, and environmental resources, I recommend taking a few minutes each evening to tidy up and wipe down counters, faucets, and other surfaces. Pick up dirty clothes and wet towels and place them in a laundry basket. Do a deep cleaning once a week, beginning with the walls, light fixtures, and shelves, and working your way down to the lowest and grubbiest areas, including the tub, toilet, and floors.

Air

Make sure your bathroom has a ventilation fan, and turn it on when you shower to help vent moisture and airborne contaminants. If you have a window, open it for further ventilation. What if you don’t have a vent or window? Place a small bowl of baking soda on a shelf or the back of the toilet, where it can absorb moisture and odors. Replace it weekly.

Bathtub

Use Tub Scrub to remove soap scum and disinfect surfaces. Use a cloth, scrub sponges, or a brush to help remove soap buildup. Rinse well.

Drains

Prevent clogs with a wire mesh, stainless steel, or silicone drain catcher. If your drain is already blocked, avoid commercial drain cleaners, as they are highly reactive and contain caustic chemicals that damage pipes and harm people, aquatic life, and the environment. A safer alternative is to thread a drain snake into the drain to remove hair, buildup, and other debris.

Bathroom Medicine Cabinet

Pare down your medicine cabinet by eliminating any items past their expiration date and any products or medications you no longer use.

If you’re getting rid of medications, take them to your pharmacy for proper disposal rather than flushing or tossing them because they can contribute to pollution in our water supply.

Remove all items from the cabinet shelves and mist all surfaces with Tea Tree Wash, then dry thoroughly with a clean cloth. As you put everything back into the cabinet, consider how much you use each item and whether it contains ingredients you prefer to avoid. Replace any products with questionable ingredients, such as antiperspirants containing aluminum.

Shower

Use Tub Scrub to polish and disinfect the shower, including the shower door, if you have one, and its tracks. An old toothbrush is handy for tackling tough spots like tile grout and corners. A natural scrub brush is an excellent tool for making quick work of the entire shower enclosure.

Be on the lookout for dark spots, as they’re a sign of mold and mildew growth. To remove, coat the spot with a small amount of Tub Scrub and let it seep in, so it penetrates below the surface and reaches even the deepest mildew spores. Scrub off with a brush or sponge. Rinse thoroughly.

Showerhead

A showerhead can harbor microbes, including organisms that share our homes with us, such as mycobacteria that grow readily in the biofilm inside showerheads. To clean and remove the biofilm that inevitably builds up inside, remove the showerhead and soak it in vinegar to break down any limescale, then scrub with a brush and Tub Scrub. The tea tree essential oil in the scrub helps eliminate the biofilm and its microbes.

If you can, add a charcoal filter to your existing showerhead to remove microbes from the water, and be sure to change the filter annually

Sink

Use Tub Scrub and a clean cloth to polish and disinfect the sink, faucets, backsplash, and other surfaces.

Surfaces

Spritz all surfaces with Tea Tree Wash to disinfect them, including walls, counters, floors, baseboards, shelves, cabinets, and the insides of all drawers, then wipe them dry with a clean cloth.

Microscopic droplets from toilets, sinks, and showers can settle on surrounding surfaces, which is why it’s important to thoroughly clean bathroom surfaces with Tea Tree Wash, an effective pathogen cleanser.

Tiles

Scrub tiles with Tub Scrub and a brush, then rinse. If you see any mold, spray Tea Tree Wash on the area, let it sit for about 10 minutes, and then scrub and rinse.

White vinegar is effective for removing mold and mildew on glass tub enclosures and bathtubs, but it may be too acidic for use on grout, stone tile, slate, granite, quartz, natural marble, or cultured marble made from stone and resin.

Toilet

Use Tub Scrub to polish and disinfect the toilet bowl. Mist Tea Tree Wash on all the outside surfaces and the floor immediately around the toilet, then wipe them dry with rags. Brushes work best for cleaning areas with bolts and latches. After use, disinfect brushes by rinsing them in the tub, then misting the bristles with Tea Tree Wash.

If you see lime or mineral deposits in the toilet, pour about 2 cups of white vinegar into the toilet water and let it sit for an hour. This will help break down the mineral deposits to be scrubbed away.

Toilet Paper

Conventional toilet paper relies heavily on tree pulp. And recycled toilet paper has its own issues, as it can contain BPA from contamination during the recycling process. It also may contain numerous phthalates, chlorine, parabens, phenols, inks, dyes, perfume, and triclocarban. Use 100% biodegradable toilet paper made entirely from bamboo, a fast-growing, renewable, and nontoxic resource. The other option is a bidet; there are inexpensive add-on components for your toilet, which can reduce the need for toilet paper.

Windows and Mirrors

Clean windows and mirrors with Glass Spray. If there’s visible mildew on or around the windows, remove it by spraying Tea Tree Wash, then wiping dry with a clean cloth. This removes the mildew and helps inhibit future growth.

Good Work!

Now that you have removed the sources of odors, disinfected all surfaces, and cleaned everything from spills to splatters, your bathroom is a truly clean and safe sanctuary.

You can add a fresh scent to the Tea Tree Antibacterial Spritzer using your choice of essential oils, such as lavender, bergamot, peppermint, or rose. Feel a sense of peace knowing that the space you are in, the products you use, and the air you breathe support your health and well-being.

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Daniella Chace, MSc, CN, is a nutritionist, clinical practitioner, and environmental health advocate. She holds a master’s degree in nutrition from Bastyr University and has written numerous books on nutrition and environmental health, including Turning Off Breast Cancer. She also hosts the radio program Nutrition Matters.

Well Being Journal adapted the above excerpt from Home Detox: Make Your Home a Healthier Place for Everyone Who Lives There by Daniella Chace, MSc, MC. Copyright © 2023 by Daniella Chace. Reprinted with permission from Storey Publishing, a division of Hachette Book Group.