Limescale is a significant challenge in many homes. You probably recognize it in your own home, where the sink, bathtub, tiles, grout, shower cabin, toilet bowl, and all faucets develop those unsightly white limescale marks that accumulate if you don't remove them.
How severe the limescale deposits are in your home depends, among other things, on the calcium content of the water in your municipality – meaning whether you have hard or soft water in your faucets. Hard water contains more limescale than soft water.
Check the hardness of your drinking water in your municipality.
Back to limescale removal… here’s everything you need to know about limescale removers. Happy reading.
Where can I use limescale remover?
Limescale remover cannot be used on everything. Therefore, we first need to clarify where you can use your limescale remover.
Fortunately, you likely have many acid-resistant surfaces in your house or apartment where you can safely use acid-based limescale removal products.
You can confidently use your limescale remover here:
- Sinks and toilets made of porcelain
- Tiles on floors and walls without grout in between
- Many faucets and fixtures, but be careful; not all can withstand it
- Polystyrene surfaces, e.g., in shower cabins
- Grates
- Acrylic and composite surfaces (e.g., bathtubs and sinks)
- Glass (e.g., tables, doors, and shower screens).
Where you should NEVER use limescale remover
Do not skip this section. As you can see, limescale remover can be used in many places. But – and there’s a big ‘but’ – there are some areas in your home where it is crucial that you NEVER use limescale remover.
For example, you should not use limescale remover on natural stone such as a granite sink or a marble coffee table. Up to 15% of such furniture consists of pure calcium. If you use limescale remover on natural stone, you will cause irreversible acid damage to the beautiful surfaces.
So, your tiles can be damaged by limescale remover if they are made of natural stone.
Among other things, you should not use limescale remover on:
- marble
- slate
- saltstone
- granite
- terrazzo
- enameled surfaces
- grout between tiles.
Instead, you can use alkaline all-purpose cleaner here. If you absolutely want to, you can test whether your surface is acid-resistant. Do it on a small, inconspicuous area of the furniture. Here’s how:
- Apply limescale remover. Only a very small amount.
Does the limescale remover foam? Then the surface is not acid-resistant, and you should remove the limescale cleaner immediately.
Does it not foam? Proceed to step 2. - Let the limescale remover work for about 10 minutes, then wipe it off.
The surface is only acid-resistant if no changes are visible on the tested area.
What you need for effective limescale removal
You need to have the right equipment in place to effectively remove limescale.
You will need:
- a sprayer/spray bottle with water (find one here)
- an effective limescale remover. Try typing ‘kalkfjerner’ (limescale remover) in our search bar. You’ll have a few options to choose from
- the classic yellow and green nylon scouring pads (we have those too)
- microfiber cloths.
We can also highly recommend a Sanimaid Stain Remover. It is one of the best limescale removers and does not require harsh and acidic cleaning agents. A grout cleaner can also be practical for narrow spots around a faucet and in gaps near floor grates, etc.
How do you remove limescale?
Now you are ready to tackle the limescale in your home. Limescale remover is extremely effective.
Essentially, you just need to:
- moisten the surface with your water sprayer
- spray limescale cleaner on the surfaces where you want to remove limescale (and rust)
- let it work according to the time stated on the bottle
- scrub with the scouring pad
- rinse with clean water
- wipe the surface with a microfiber cloth.
It's that easy!
It is important that you do not skip step 6, and that you wipe off the clean water. The more water your surfaces are exposed to, the faster they will get limescale spots, and the more visible these spots will be.
Naturally, some places and areas require more elbow grease and ingenuity than others. For example, if you need to use limescale remover for the bathroom to descale your faucet, it requires extra remedies – such as a waterproof garden glove to put the limescale remover in and place it around the faucet to remove limescale internally.
Keep new limescale deposits at bay for longer
Maintain the beautiful and limescale-free result by keeping surfaces dry.
If you want to prevent new limescale deposits, it is very effective to wipe surfaces dry after use. It might feel a bit laborious and time-consuming to wipe down the entire shower cabin, sink, and faucet every time you've splashed water. But it is also the most effective way to keep limescale to a minimum and save time on descaling.
You can wipe the surface with a cloth (for example, in a sink or on a faucet) or use a squeegee to scrape off excess water, which is most practical on vertical surfaces such as doors and glass screens.
Need help?
We are ready to answer your questions regarding cleaning. Whether you are in doubt about product selection, or if you have a specific cleaning problem or questions about particular products, we are happy to guide you.