How To Remove Stains From The Toilet Siphon Jet

Most of the stains and grime in your toilet bowl are readily visible when you open the lid and look inside. However, there could be some stains and buildup that are barely visible in the siphon jet of your toilet — the hole in the base where what goes into the toilet is sucked through to the sewer. Too much debris buildup, which can occur as stains form, can cause your toilet to flush improperly. While you may be trying your best to clean your toilet bowl with that scrub brush and bowl cleaner, you're probably not getting as deep into that hole as you need for getting rid of the stains that can cause issues. 

But there is a trick that can help you remove those stains without using a ton of extra elbow grease, though you will need to do some scrubbing, and it requires one of those kitchen basics that you may already be using to clean all sorts of other areas in your home — white vinegar. Vinegar is a versatile cleaning tool everyone should keep in their homes.

If your siphon jet is stained and clogged, you may notice poor flushing and unpleasant odors around the toilet that are difficult to identify. To really give your toilet a clean that will remove the stains from the siphon jet, you will want to work on this project when you have a gap of time when people won't need to use the toilet for a bit. You'll also need latex gloves and an old toothbrush — this is just one of the brilliant ways to use old toothbrushes around the house.

It's a good idea to start with a fresh cleaning surface, so use your toilet bowl cleaner and toilet brush to give your commode a quick cleaning. Since you'll need to get on your hands and knees to scrub, you may also want to clean the outside of the bowl and the floor around it — including the part of the bathroom everyone forgets to clean: behind the toilet, which could be keeping stinky smells around. 

Once this is done, grab some latex cleaning gloves, insert your fingers into the siphon jet hole, and try to loosen the debris manually — this will help the vinegar get into the yuck and do its job better. Now, empty the toilet as much as possible by turning off the toilet's water supply and then flushing it. You may need to scoop out excess water — get as much as you can, because you want the vinegar to work without being too diluted. Pour in enough vinegar to fully submerge the siphon jet hole.

At a minimum, the vinegar will need at least 10 minutes to start working on the stains and sediment. If you can give it at least half an hour, it will help the vinegar loosen things up for your next step: Put on another pair of cleaning gloves, and get down in there with an old toothbrush to scrub away the loosened debris. Once it looks clean, turn the water to the toilet back on, and flush. If things are going more smoothly and any lingering unpleasant odors are gone, your siphon jet is sufficiently cleaned. If not, you may want to repeat the vinegar soak and let it sit for longer before scrubbing again.