How to Make A Dull Acrylic Bathtub Shine?

Has this ever happened to you where you entered a washroom and got mesmerized with its large shiny, luxurious tub instantly and wondered how awesome it would be to take a long hot shower lying on that?

In most cases, that’s an acrylic bathtub. Just the look of it screams elegance, luxury, smoothness and assures that piece is going to last. However, all that comes without paying a ton. Sounds enticing and exciting. Now, nothing will shine and catch attention if you are not taking care of it much. The same applies to the acrylic or porcelain bathtub too.

Dull Acrylic Bathtub

The material, as is known for its versatility, and as it is a well-known shapeshifter and is ultra-smooth, so it will make it dull slowly. However, it will happen sooner than you imagined. So, maintenance is very crucial to keep your acrylic bathtub shiny and smooth. If you fail to keep it clean, get ready for an ugly, dull acrylic bathtub full of grime, which you will prefer to skip using for hot baths.

However, it’s such a unit that you cannot throw it away. Neither can you keep it the way it is and ruin the beauty of the whole bathroom. It’s not only hampering the beauty but also gross and unhygienic.

How to Make A Dull Acrylic Bathtub Shine

Hence, the next best thing you can do is do your best to find out how to make a dull acrylic bathtub shine. And for that, we have some real-good, practical, and easy tips and tricks for you.

Tips #1 – Regular Cleaning

And no, with regular cleaning, we do not mean taking a hot bath with ample soap and hot water in the bathtub. That process cleans you, not the bathtub. To avoid the bathtub getting the grime stuck and sojourn, make sure you clean the whole thing once a week. If you are not using the tub much, we can cut you some slack and suggest once every two-week cleaning of the tub. Otherwise, no skipping of regular and frequent cleaning of the tub if you really want to keep it shiny and beautiful. Why is it so important to keep on cleaning the acrylic tub? Because it gets scratched and stained pretty easily. The acrylic material makes it the most durable and luxurious, looking at a very minimal cost, but the same material is pretty easy to get ravaged, but of course, it is equally easy to clean and maintain. So, nothing to worry about at all.

Tips #2 – No Abrasive Products Please

You know, this reminds us of cleaning the coated fry pans, where it’s asked by the manufacturers not to use stainless steel scrubbers to scrub the oil and stuck food from the pan. Still, we do it with all our might thinking we deserve a clean pan. And turn the entire black-coated fry pan into a regular cooking pan and then wonder why our fry pan didn’t last. The breaking news is there’s always the right way to do something, isn’t it? You cannot, should not, and should never scrub your acrylic bathtub with abrasive tools. Not even the harsh scrub pads, let alone the stainless steel ones. Let the grime stay where it is till you find the right way to clean the tub. Neither any abrasive cleaning solutions are allowed to be used to clean the grime and remove the dullness. Of course, the products will remove the dirt, grime, but, unfortunately, it will draw all the shiny, glossy vibe of the tub too. And that, my friend, will never come back no matter how much you struggle in the maintenance of the bathtub.

Tips #3 – Use Household Products

The heads up of not using abrasive tools and cleaning solutions brings us here. If not those, what must we use to clean a dull acrylic bathtub and bring back its shine? We say any household products like vinegar, baking soda, lemon, salt, dishwashing soap, at best Borax, an acrylic bathtub safe cleaning solution, or castile soap.

Tips #4 – Clean The Tub With Microfiber Cloth

A basic microfiber cloth, pad, or towel is enough to clean a dirty acrylic bathtub. When you are using the right products the right way, only a few slight strokes on the tub with the microfiber pad will take off the grime from the tub and make it shiny and ready for the bath. We will again mention that acrylic bathtubs, by nature, are prone to scratches and stains, so you will have to be very careful with the tools and products you use to clean them. There is nothing softer and more efficient than a microfiber cloth when it comes to effective but gentle cleaning of a delicate surface without leaving scratches.

Tips #5 – Quick Cleaning

If you have a bathtub, we assume you will use it daily to take a shower. Therefore, keep a microfiber pad near you, and after every shower session, grab it and without putting any cleaning solution or soap, just sweep the tub with the wet microfiber pad. Daily cleaning will make the regular cleaning process of once or twice a week even easier. And it will ensure that after every bathing session, there is no scope for the grime to sojourn in the tub as you have cleaned every drop of soap, sweat, dirt, and all nastiness from the tub.

Tips #6 – Vinegar-Water Solution

More than a tip, this is the process of making an effective cleaning solution for your acrylic bathtub. This is not what you use daily. This is what you use when you are attempting once/twice a week acrylic bathtub cleaning. Or when you are trying to bring the shine of an already dull acrylic bathtub. We all know vinegar is an effective cleaning agent and contains acetic acid. Thus it needs to be diluted.

Cleaning A Pretty Much Clean Acrylic Bathtub

So, when your bathtub is pretty much clean, and you are just following the once/twice a week cleaning norm, mix one cup of vinegar, specifically white vinegar, in a gallon of not too hot, not too normal water. You can now pour the gallon of the vinegar-water solution in the bathtub and keep a little for using it later. Wait for a maximum of 10 minutes for the cleaning agent to work on the grime and dirt. Sweep the bathtub with the microfiber pad well. If needed, be a little harsh on the too-dull spots. Dunk it in the vinegar-water solution and again rub the tub. You will notice the grime and dirt are coming off, and the tub is getting its shine back. Keep in mind that we are talking about a pretty clean bathtub. So the difference will be almost unnoticeable. But something that goes unnoticed doesn’t mean it didn’t happen at all. Have a close look, and you will see the clean tub is now ultra-clean and shiny.

Cleaning The Stuck-On Grime And Stubborn Stain

If there is a stain or grime too stubborn to go away, make a solution of 50/50 ratio. Half a mug of vinegar and then fill the rest of it with hot water. Pour it on the grime. This time it’s better to wait a little less, say no more than five minutes, as the vinegar is less diluted in this case and might ruin the nonporous, smooth acrylic. Use the same technique of scrubbing the tub with a microfiber pad and dunk it in the same solution to make the cleaning process stronger. If it’s too dull of a tub, rather than trying to clean it in one day, try doing the same thing for a few days. The tub will take that cleaning process much easier than a harsh one-day, all at once cleaning.

Tips #7 – Baking Soda

When you do not want to use vinegar or don’t have it, then the next thing to use is baking soda. And that’s an automatic choice. Baking soda works as a mild scrubber on your dull acrylic tub and works wonders in bringing back its gleam. And it’s way easier to use than the vinegar solution. You have to sprinkle enough baking soda on the entire tub, both inside and outside, and let it sit for 15 minutes. Make sure the tub is not dry. Make it clammy before you sprinkle the soda on it. Do not let the soda dry. It must be damp enough to get scrubbed and removed easily. Just damp the microfiber pad in lukewarm water and rub the entire tub both inside and outside. The baking soda grabs the grime during its sitting period, and when you rub the tub with a microfiber pad, the grime and dirt come off easily.

Tips #8 – A Lemon A Week Keeps The Dullness Away

Lemon is also great for cleaning your dull acrylic tub. Use a small piece and squeeze it little by little, and continue rubbing it on the tub. The grime will come off. If lemon is not working on its own that efficiently and your tub is too dull to be rejuvenated, sprinkle Borax on the tub just like you did with the baking soda. But do not use too much Borax. Then sprinkle some on the lemon piece and then rub the lemon on the tub by squeezing and releasing the citrus juice. Use the microfiber pad to scrub the tub after 15 minutes to clean the dull acrylic tub and make it shine again.

How to polish acrylic bathtub?

Acrylic tubs have a plastic polymer structure, making them highly durable. However, having a plastic outer layer, the tubs can get dirty with time. Technically speaking, you need to polish your tub every month for a picture-perfect finish. Follow the steps below and polish your acrylic tub in the right way.

• Wear all the protective gear like gloves, washable clothes, and glasses. 
• Take some liquid polish and mix it with water. 
• Keep the ratio of polish to water 2:1.
• With a soft and clean cloth, apply the mix to the tub.
• Rubbing should be in a circular motion.
• Rinse it with clean water and wallah. You are done.

How to remove scratches from acrylic bathtub?

Do you have an acrylic bathtub with too many scratches? Well, you are not the first. Having a plastic built, acrylic bathtubs are highly susceptible to scratches. If you want to remove them altogether, you have to deal with regular scrubbing. Then again, you need to avoid all sorts of abrasive cleaning pads. Chemicals can also be a problem when they have an aggressive label. Only use fine-grit sandpaper and white polishing compound. 

• First, use the fine-grit sandpaper to even out the scratches.
• Wash the bits with water and give it a rub.
• Pour a few drops of white polish, rub it to the scratch with a clean cloth.
• Use a circular motion for the rub.
• Finally, rinse the tub with warm water.

More on LivingProofMag
How to Clean Shower Doors with WD-40
How Do You Make Vinyl Floors Shiny
Alternatives to Caulking Around the Bathtub

There are ample ways to clean a dull acrylic bathtub. However, the easiest way to maintain it and keep it shiny is to follow our Tips #4. Never let it turn dull by cleaning it daily with a microfiber cloth after you are done using the tub. The rest are all for emergency use and a little tedious too. Always try to do the thing in the easiest way possible, and that will be our last tip for you to follow in maintaining an acrylic bathtub.