Here is a simple and chemical free method to clean, descale and unclog your shower head.
All shower heads can get a bit, or a lot blocked up around the nozzles and this can really spoil a good shower. The outdoor shower in the picture is from our trip to Bali earlier in the year, where I had the best showers ever....and on returning, realised how lousy ours really was.
If you have hard water, like we do in Adelaide, it can result in a build-up of mineral deposits over time, that are difficult to shift. It's not a great start to the day to have to run around under the shower to get wet, or deal with those errant, misdirected nozzles that always seem to spray water straight in your eye no matter where you stand!
Most shower heads can be removed, by unscrewing the attachment for cleaning, however ours was impossible to get off, and given that it is pretty old I was worried we were about to break it!
Here's what we are dealing with:
If you have a more modern showerhead, it can usually be easily removed, by unscrewing the attachment. All you need is a sink or container large enough for all the parts to be immersed. The more you can dismantle it, the better the results will be.
Add around 1/2 a cup of bicarb soda directly onto the nozzles, then pour a cup of plain white vinegar on top. This will fizz up (if you have kids, they might want to do this part). Let it soak for a few hours, or overnight, and then scrub the area roughly to remove any remaining build-up.
If the head cannot be removed, you need to improvise. We used a plastic bag, but you may also be able to use a container with a handle depending on the shape you have. I know, #plasticsucks but I couldn't think of a better way, this was a bag that had ended up at our house and I'm pretty sure the person didn't want it returned to them.
I added the vinegar first, and got everything ready to attach, then added bicarb at the last minute, securing it in place as fast as possible with a Velcro cable tie. You can see the bubbles in the bag, and this mixture fizzed into the showerhead to help the process. The Velcro worked really well, but you can also use a rubberband.
Left overnight, it was simple to remove the bag, give it a quick scrub with a brush, and then enjoy a much improved shower!
As the ingredients aren't dangerous, and are pretty much the same as my shower cleaning spray, I didn't have to worry about getting it on my skin, or having to waste a lot of time rinsing everything before using.
Got a better idea how I can do this without a bag? I'm sure there is a way that just hasn't occurred to me yet. Let me know in the comments, as I'll have to do this again in a year or two.
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