The process of removing stains caused by a bath mat is simple. However, the time and effort involved varies, as those ugly little black circles can be very stubborn. If you have a bath mat stain in your tub or on the floor outside of your tub, there are several options on how to attack it.
Things You'll Need
Plastic scrubbers
Hot water
Video of the Day
Step 1
Start out by killing any mold that may be contributing to the stain. Often, these stains are caused by mold that grew under the suction cups in the bath mat. Use a mixture of 1 cup of white vinegar and 2 cups of hot water in the spray bottle to wet down the mold. Scrub the mold away using a plastic scrubber. Do not use metal scrubbers; they can ruin your tub and tiles. If the stains are caused by mold, they should begin to lift as you scrub. They may even start to disappear. If this is the case, continue your attack using more vinegar and hot water. Rinse out the tub periodically to keep your work space clear and change to a new scrubber if the old one gets too black.
Video of the Day
Step 2
Fill the tub with hot water to fully cover the stains. If they are all on the bottom of the tub, you need about three inches of water. However, if the stains climb the sides or if your tub is grimy, fill the tub so that there won't be a visible line where the cleaning liquids stopped working because the water was not high enough.
Warning
If you have a colored tub, test the bleach on an unnoticeable area of the tub before filling it with bleach since it may lighten the color.
Step 3
Add 3 cups of bleach. If you have a garden tub or other oversized tub, add 5 cups. Let the bleach and hot water sit in the tub for an hour before you drain the tub.
Step 4
After bleaching, scrub the tub with baking soda and a lemon-and-hot-water mixture. Sprinkle the inside of the tub heavily with baking soda. Combine 1 cup of lemon juice and 2 cups of hot water in the spray bottle. Wet the baking soda and scrub the tub with a plastic scrubber. When you are done, the stains should be lighter or gone.
Step 5
Depending on the severity of the stains, you may have to do the entire cleaning, bleaching and scrubbing process several times to remove them completely. It may help to make this part of your weekly cleaning routine so that you can spread out the effort.