How To Clean Shower Glass
Cloudy screens and spotty doors clear up quickly once you know which method suits the mess.
The short answer
The simplest way to clean shower glass is to spray it with white vinegar diluted in water, leave it for a few minutes and buff it dry with a soft cloth or a window vac. Heavy limescale and soap scum need a dedicated shower cleaner that's safe on glass, and cleaning from top to bottom straight after a hot shower makes every method work faster.
A shower screen, door or enclosure panel looks crystal clear on the day it goes in, then turns cloudy surprisingly quickly if it's left alone. The haze is mostly soap scum from shower gels and shampoos drying onto the glass, and in hard water areas limescale adds a chalky layer on top that's harder to shift.
We look after bathrooms in our own homes and the rentals and Airbnbs we manage, and between them the three methods below cover the weekly wipe-down and the deeper clean, without any specialist products.
Preparing The Glass Before You Clean
Take off anything stuck or hung on the glass first. Stick-on shelves, suction caddies and over-door hooks trap dirt behind them, and you'll want to give them a wash before they go back up on clean glass.
Then give the whole screen a once-over with an ordinary bathroom cleaner and a sponge. Lifting the loose grime first lets the vinegar or shower cleaner get straight to work on the soap scum and limescale underneath.
Check whether your glass has an easy-clean coating before reaching for anything abrasive. Some modern bath and shower screens have one, and scouring pads or gritty cream cleaners will wear it away. A soft cloth or sponge is all any shower glass needs.
How To Clean Shower Glass
1. White Vinegar And Water
White vinegar is the method we come back to most, because it dissolves limescale and cuts through soap scum for very little money. Mix it with water in a spray bottle, mist the glass all over and give it a few minutes to soften the deposits.
Buff it off with a soft microfibre cloth and the glass comes up clear. On a full glass shower enclosure, work one panel at a time so the vinegar doesn't dry on before you reach it. Bicarbonate of soda mixed with water into a paste is another option for spots that need a gentle scrub.
2. A Glass-Safe Shower Cleaner
For thick limescale or streaks that vinegar won't lift, a shop-bought shower cleaner does the heavy work. Read the label before you buy, as some descalers are meant for ceramic and chrome and can mark coated glass or damage the seals along the bottom of a screen.
Spray it on, leave it for the time the label gives and wipe it off with a damp cloth before drying the glass properly.
3. A Window Vac
A window vac is our pick for keeping shower glass clean week to week. The photo at the top of this guide shows one in use on a curved glass screen, with a cloth in the other hand for wetting the glass.
Spray on the brand's own cleaning solution or your vinegar mix, wipe it over and then draw the window vac down the glass. Because it sucks the dirty water away before it can dry into marks, you're left with streak-free glass. Our guide on using a window vac properly covers the technique, and the same tool works on the tiles around the shower.
Tips That Make Shower Glass Easier To Clean
Clean straight after a hot shower if you can. The warmth and steam loosen soap scum and limescale so they come away with less scrubbing.
Always start at the top and work down. Dirty water runs down the screen as you go, and cleaning the bottom first means doing it twice.
Look at the seals and sealant while the glass is clean. Black spots along the bottom seal or the wall channel are mould, and if they won't wipe off, cutting out the old bathroom sealant and running a fresh bead is the proper fix.
Stopping Shower Glass Going Cloudy Again
The best habit to get into is a quick pass with a small squeegee after every shower. Most of the cloudiness comes from water drying on the glass, and the squeegee gets rid of it first.
Give the glass a proper clean at least once a month with vinegar or a window vac, and save the dedicated shower cleaner for the occasional deep clean. While you've got the vinegar out, it's worth descaling the shower head at the same time and giving the bathroom tiles a clean, since they collect the same deposits.
Watch Us Do It
Window Vacs: The Easiest Way To Achieve Streak-Free Windows! We've Tested Multiple To Find The Best!
More Questions Answered
What is the best homemade shower glass cleaner?
White vinegar diluted with water in a spray bottle is the best homemade cleaner for shower glass. It dissolves limescale and soap scum, costs very little and won't scratch the glass. Spray it on, leave it for a few minutes, then buff it off with a microfibre cloth or clear it with a window vac for a streak-free finish.
How do you remove hard water stains from shower glass?
Hard water stains are limescale, so they need something acidic to dissolve them. Soak the marks with white vinegar or a glass-safe descaling shower cleaner, leave it to work, then wipe and dry the glass. Repeat the soak on any marks that are still there. Avoid scouring pads, as they scratch the glass and wear away any protective coating.
How do you stop shower glass going cloudy?
Shower glass goes cloudy when water and soap dry onto it, so the fix is to stop that water drying. Squeegee or wipe the glass after every shower, keep the bathroom well ventilated and clean the glass properly every few weeks. In a hard water area, a water softener cuts down on limescale across the whole bathroom.
Can you use a window vac on shower glass?
Yes, a window vac works well on shower screens, doors and enclosure panels. Spray on a cleaning solution, wipe it over the glass and pull the window vac down from top to bottom to suck the water away. It leaves the glass streak-free and is quick enough to use every week, which keeps limescale from building up.
Which of the three shower glass methods do you actually use most?
Vinegar and water does most of the work for us, as it's cheap and shifts both limescale and soap scum. The window vac comes out for the weekly clean, since pulling the water off the glass is what stops it drying into streaks.
What should I avoid using if my shower screen has an easy-clean coating?
Keep scouring pads and gritty cream cleaners well away, as they'll wear the coating off, and stick to a soft cloth or sponge. With shop-bought descalers, check the label says they're safe on glass. Some are made for ceramic and chrome and can mark the coating or damage the seals at the bottom of the screen.
Should I clean shower glass from the top or the bottom?
Always the top. Dirty water runs down the glass as you clean, so starting at the bottom just means doing it twice. The best time is straight after a hot shower, while the steam has the soap scum and limescale softened.
What are the black spots along the bottom of my shower screen?
That's mould in the bottom seal or the wall channel. Try wiping it off once the glass is clean. If it's soaked into the sealant, cut the old bead out and run a fresh one, because scrubbing a failed seal every week only treats the symptom.
Richard has spent years renovating properties and turning them into rentals and Airbnbs. Like a lot of people he started out as a beginner, and these days there isn't much DIY he won't take on.