I can tell you how to keep from ever having to scrub your shower again…for real. At Darling Dusters in Colorado Springs we come across some very interesting showers. Some of them are so big I cannot imagine if it actually had to be scrubbed from top (ceiling) to bottom (floor). I would need a step ladder for those that are tiled from floor to ceiling…and a training regimen to prepare. I know it seems a pipe dream to be able to maintain a clean shower without scrubbing but honestly, these are the easiest steps to take and if you can manage to get everyone who uses your showers on a regular basis to adopt these habits you will never again have to scrub a shower to get it clean.
1. Circulate the air. 
A dry shower is a shower without mold or mildew. If there isn’t a fan in your shower/bathroom, then make one. I lived in a rental without a fan in the master bathroom (who does that?) and I bought a small fan and turned it on when I showered-or after I showered at least! Sometimes when it is cold the last thing I wanted to do was get out of the shower to have a fan blowing on me…so I would turn it on as I left the room after showering. Sometimes I used a small desk heater instead of a fan. It has to blow air, though, a ‘dish’ or ambient heater will not be effective in drying the room nearly as quickly as something with a fan.
2. Get a squeegee. 
I have two methods of keeping the shower clean and most of the time I am employing a combination of the two. I keep a squeegee in the shower and like to squeegee it out after the shower…but I have recently discovered that a couple of the ‘spray after the shower and leave’ products are effective also and they ask that you apply the product to wet shower walls and doors so I rotate. Depending on how much time I have I may squeegee at the beginning of the shower…after the walls are wet but with plenty of time left while I wash my hair so they can get wet again. My thoughts on this are that if I am spraying products on the tile and letting it dry, then I might want to ‘rinse’ the walls every few days so nothing can build up and surprise me later…but I tend to be a little OCD, so you do not have to do this to keep your shower clean. You can choose one method and just do it all the time. I have had great success keeping a squeegee in the shower so we can get rid of as much moisture from the walls possible with a quick run down after each shower. Be sure to get one with thick but pliable rubber. You want the squeegee to run over and into the tiles and curves. A stiff squeegee will be more difficult to use and usually doesn’t work as well. Remember-a dry shower is one without mold or mildew. It also keeps the soap and water deposits from building up!
3. Spray something. 
I have tried several products and really I have not had one that didn’t work. The scrubbing bubbles automatic shower sprayer is awesome…it works. I broke mine, though, and I really didn’t love having to move my sponges out of the way so they didn’t get the cleaner in them. I also felt the smell/chemicals were quite strong so when mine fell and broke into a bunch of small pieces I picked up the Method brand of daily shower spray. It is clear and Method does a good job of keeping their cleaners safe for people and pets. I am enjoying this one almost as much. (I do have to actually spray the product myself instead of pushing a button and imagining those little bubbles doing their work!) These products are to be used on a wet shower and are designed to keep mold and mildew from growing. They do not leave spots on the doors or on the tile so I am happy!
4. Don’t let it set in. 
If you notice a dirty floor or corner of the shower…clean it. Sometimes after a long day of outside time in flip-flops my feet get pretty dirty. When I first step into the shower I leave dirty footprints on the floor of the shower and I always make sure it is no longer dirty before I leave it. Some drop-in or pan style shower floors and/or walls are hard to clean. They are sometimes textured to keep users from slipping and those are particularly likely to stain if dirt is left behind. The best thing to do is to clean it when you see it! I keep some disposable cleaning wipes under the sink so if I need to wipe it down quickly I have what I need close by. (My absolute favorite are the above pictured I get at Costco. They are amazing!) If I had to actually go downstairs to get something to clean it with I would be much less likely to actually follow through (there are a lot of distractions between the bathroom and where I keep cleaning products ;)).
I think if I had to choose one step which is the most effective at keeping me from having to scrub the showers at my house and enabling me to clean a shower each week in less than 10 minutes it would be the squeegee. Really. Get one. Even if you aren’t 100% compliant at your house…you will see a difference and at the very least you won’t have to scrub as much!
