How To Clean A Shower Door With A Dishwasher Tablet

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How To Clean A Shower Door With A Dishwasher Tablet

When I wrote my post about how hotels keep their glass shower doors clean, I discovered that the secret is simple. If you want to keep your shower door, and indeed your whole shower spotless, the key to that is very regular cleaning, not some special cleaning chemical.

Since then, I have got into the habit of wiping over my shower after every use with a microfiber cloth. It takes only a minute, but it means my shower cubicle is always pristine.

Before you start on that kind of regime, you really need to get your shower clean to start with. A reset so to speak.

Dishwasher tablets have lots of uses other than cleaning dishes, and I wondered if I could put one to use on my shower door.

Dishwasher tablets do a great job of cleaning your shower. Pop one inside a sponge scourer and start wiping down your shower door and tiles. Soap scum and grime should melt away.

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How to clean a glass shower door with a dishwasher tablet

Using a dishwasher tablet to clean shower glass was something I never thought to do until I read about the multitude of uses a dishwasher tablet has. Some of the advice I read suggested taking the tablet and literally wiping it over the shower door. This seemed a bit onerous to me, and I could see that it would crumble up in no time at all.

So I thought, why not use a scourer and somehow make a hole for the tablet so you can clean and scrub at the same time and get the job done much quicker?

It turns out this little trick had already been thought of! But never mind. I’m not the first to have this idea, but I’m going to try it anyway just to see if it works (I always prefer to try things out myself).

So here goes. Here’s what happened when I attempted to clean my glass shower door with a dishwasher tablet.

Things you will need

sponge scourer and dishwasher tablet
Sponge scourer and dishwasher tablet
  • Sponge scourer. Any sort will do, but the bigger the better because it will get the job done quicker. Here I used an ordinary washing-up sponge.
  • Dishwasher tablet. Again it doesn’t matter which brand you use, but you don’t need the ball. So if you are buying tablets especially for this task, cheaper makes should be just as good. I used a dishwasher tablet I bought at Lidl.
  • Household cleaning gloves. You will definitely want to protect your hands from the chemicals.

Step 1 Cut a rectangular hole in the middle of the scourer

  1. Take your sponge scourer and cut a hole in the middle of the scourer side about the same size as the dishwasher tablet. I used a pair of scissors to do it, and it wasn’t all that easy! If you have a sharp blade to hand that would be a better option.
  2. If your dishwasher has a ball in the middle, remove it as we don’t need that bit.
  3. Insert your dishwasher tablet into the hole you made in the scourer. It’s easy to break the tablet when you do this. I found it’s best to stretch the sponge so you can easily pop the dishwasher tablet in.

Pro tip: Cut the hole smaller than you think you need, so you have to stretch the sponge a bit to get the tablet in.

That way it should stay in place as you scrub.

scourer with dishwasher tablet inside

Step 2 Get the scourer wet and scrub the shower door

  1. Wet the sponge with cold water. Don’t use warm water because the tablet will dissolve too quickly.
  2. Start scrubbing the shower door.

Soap scum and grime should melt away quite easily.

scrubbing the shower door with the scourer and dishwasher tablet
Scrubbing the shower door with the scourer and dishwasher tablet

Step 3 Rinse

When you have finished scrubbing the whole door, rinse it with the shower spray or take a wet cloth or sponge and wipe down the door with clean water.

The result and verdict

how to clean a shower door with a dishwasher tablet
Shower door before and after cleaning with a dishwasher tablet

The dishwasher tablet did a great job of removing soap scum from the door. However, I found it doesn’t have much effect on hard water marks. It’s difficult to see in the photo, but if you look carefully you can see the marks. The watermarks were lessened but I think that was a result of me scrubbing rather than from the dishwasher tablet.

Dishwasher tablets do a great job of cleaning a shower door but are not so good at cleaning off watermarks. For that, you are best off using some distilled white vinegar or a cleaning spray designed for removing limescale.

Related reading:

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How to clean the shower with a dishwasher tablet

Now you know how to clean a shower door with a dishwasher tablet why not clean the whole shower?

Grime and soap scum aren’t so visible on ceramic tiles as they are on glass shower doors, but they are there!

You will probably find (as I did) that the tablet is still intact after cleaning the door, so you have plenty more left to clean the rest of the shower.

If not, here’s a reminder on how to make your scourer/dishwasher tablet combo:

  1. Make a hole in your sponge scourer the same size as your dishwasher tablet.
  2. Remove the ball from the dishwasher tablet if it has one.
  3. Insert the dishwasher tablet into the hole.
  4. Wet the sponge.
  5. Begin scrubbing the inside of your shower.

You should find the soap scum is removed, and your shower will be gleaming again.

Do you have black mold in your shower that just won’t budge?

I recommend using a cleaning spray that contains bleach. My favorite is Cillit Bang Power Cleaner Bleach & Hygiene. Or any cleaning spray that contains bleach should work too. It’s brilliant for cleaning the grout without damaging it.

My shower looked new again after I used it.

All you need to do is spray the area and leave it to work for a few minutes. I found I didn’t need to rinse, but you can if you want to.

Lysol Multi-Purpose Cleaner Sanitizing and Disinfecting Spray with Bleach, All Purpose Cleaning Spray for Bathrooms and Kitchens, 32oz
Lysol Multi-Purpose Cleaner Sanitizing and Disinfecting Spray with Bleach, All Purpose Cleaning Spray for Bathrooms and Kitchens, 32oz

Other dishwasher tablet cleaning hacks

Here are my favorite uses for dishwasher tablets:

Clean your spa bath

My mum has a spa bath. I told her about this trick when I heard about it from Kim and Aggie on How Clean Is Your House?

All you need to do is fill the bath and turn on the bubbles and then add your dishwasher tablet. The tablet will dissolve and then get to work cleaning the bath and the pipes without producing too many suds. Leave it to work as long as you need to and then drain and rinse.

Clean your bathtub with a dishwasher tablet

If your bathtub is really grubby, fill it with warm water and then add a dishwasher tablet. You will probably want to agitate the water a bit. Then leave it to work for at least half an hour. When you drain the water you should find that the dirt is gone or will easily rub off with a microfiber cloth.

Clean your toilet with a dishwasher tablet overnight

I always use bleach to clean the bottom of the toilet because I find it is the quickest and most effective method. But if you don’t have any bleach or you prefer not to use it, you can use a dishwasher tablet instead. A dishwasher tablet will need time to work, so it’s best done at night. Add a tablet before you go to bed and by the morning your toilet should be lovely and clean, no scrubbing required.

Mop your floors with a dishwasher tablet

To clean your floor with a dishwasher tablet, dissolve one in some warm water and then use the solution to mop the floor.

Make sure it is safe for your floor before you mop it with a dishwasher tablet. You may damage the surface. Plain water and a microfiber cloth are best for cleaning wooden floors.

Clean your oven with a dishwasher tablet

Make a hole in a sponge scourer and insert your dishwasher tablet. Wet the sponge and then use it to clean the inside of your oven. The enzymes in the dishwasher tablet will help to dissolve the grease and burnt-on food. Then wipe over with a clean damp microfiber cloth.

Sparkling Penny

Penny | Sparkling Penny

Penny’s expert cleaning advice has been featured repeatedly by Homes and Gardens Magazine, and also at wikiHow, The Daily Express Newspaper, and Glam Magazine to name a few! SparklingPenny.com was founded in 2019 and has since helped millions of people achieve a cleaner living space.


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This is the easy way to achieve a spotless shower door with just a dishwasher tablet. Find out the trick!This is the easy way to achieve a spotless shower door with just a dishwasher tablet. Find out the trick!This is the easy way to achieve a spotless shower door with just a dishwasher tablet. Find out the trick!