Along with drain products [0], acid-based toilet bowl cleaners [1] are in the top three of the most toxic household products available because they contain caustic ingredients that burn eyes, skin and internal tissues. They can also contain chlorine or ammonia and even pesticides. So here’s another cleaning task where going green can make a serious difference in the safety and health of your household and the environment.

The problem is that cleaning the toilet is, um… gross. Brightly colored solutions that clean automatically or with just a quick brush from you make a lot of sense when you’d rather not hang around too long or get too close to the bowl with your cleaning. Obviously bacteria lurks here though, so what choice do we have anyway?

The truth is if you clean your toilet regularly, those chemicals and pesticides are overkill — even the EPA [2] says regular old soap and water is as or more effective than antibacterial products. But some toilets really do call for the big guns — but make sure those “guns” are green instead of toxic blue or pink.

A good rule of thumb to help green your cleaning is to start as mild as possible and go from there. Here’s the strategy for the toilet.

Regular toilet cleaning:
1. Brush bowl and flush.
2. Pour a tablespoon of liquid vegetable-based soap [3] (for bacteria fighting and cleaning) and ½ cup baking soda [4] (for scrubbing power and deodorizing).
3. Brush the whole bowl. It may take a little more elbow grease than the neon products require, but at least you can still breathe after you’re done. Think of it as arm toning exercises!
4. Keep the brush in the bowl as you flush for an easy rinsing.

When regular cleaning just isn’t enough…
Stains, bacteria and... let's just leave it at that. Think back to the science fair volcano [5] project and sprinkle ½ cup baking soda and follow with 1 cup vinegar [6] (to kill bacteria). Let it fizz. Then brush thoroughly. The fizzing helps start the scrubbing process for you. There’s a psychological aspect here as well: With all that fizzing, it just has to be clean.

For the rest of the toilet, use a nontoxic all-purpose cleaner [7]to wipe down the tank, seat, handle and base.

One last thing: Putting a wet brush back in its holder can create a bacteria breeding ground, so make sure to clean the brush once a month or so. Soak it in hot water, castile soap, and a dash of vinegar. If it doesn’t come clean, it’s time to replace the brush.

There you have it — a clean toilet bowl without risking your windpipe or the environment. And another perk you get when you switch to nontoxic cleaning is that you don’t have to feel guilty when you delegate certain less-than-desirable jobs to your kids. If only my 3-month-old could stop tipping over into the bowl when she scrubs! (Just kidding, of course!)