Barkeepers Friend cleaner for scale

Forums › Home Workshop DIY › Barkeepers Friend cleaner for scale

JayADee

1695 posts

Uber Geek

# 257111 16-Sep-2019 07:01

Hiya, tried Barkeepers Friend while visiting sis in Canada and it's the only really effective thing I found to work on my toilet scale after trying the usual round of CLR, vinegar. In Canada it costs $3 so of course it's six times that here. Available at Plumbing World. I was using the pour on at her place, tried the powder at mine. Google says it has Feldspar* Oxalic Acid. Citric Acid. Polymeric Dispersant*

Also, CLR over there worked great on scale (took a ton off my sister's bathtub, tiles, faucets and toilets and got them as-new) but over here what should be the same product is a different colour and ineffective at least for me. I emailed the CLR people asking if it was different and got no response.

1 | 2

1177 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

# 2318343 16-Sep-2019 07:36

One person supports this post

You can buy BKF direct for $13 so it's only about twice the price once you take the exchange rate into account. It's great stuff, perfect for cleaning stainless steel sinks and the like.

eracode

Overarching undertones
3829 posts

Uber Geek

Subscriber

# 2318350 16-Sep-2019 08:08

One person supports this post

Is the powder a scouring-type abrasive like Ajax and Vim powders back in the old days? i.e. is it OK to use on polished stainless and gloss surfaces?

chevrolux

4202 posts

Uber Geek

# 2318353 16-Sep-2019 08:11

One person supports this post

Does it scratch glass?

Dulouz

653 posts

Ultimate Geek

# 2318354 16-Sep-2019 08:20

Funny - I did this job yesterday with my bathroom window. A paste of vinegar and baking soda worked wonders.

Amanon

JayADee

1695 posts

Uber Geek

# 2318563 16-Sep-2019 14:50

https://www.bkf.co.nz/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIuKOjrKrU5AIVEiUrCh2x7QYnEAAYASAAEgLb2_D_BwE
Answers. :)

At sister's I had no issues with scratching using the liquid on her taps. Didn’t try glass. I'm going to try the powder on an old tap I need to replace anyway, I haven’t gotten around to it yet. They use it on glass in the video (the powder). I'm leery.

neb

1177 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

# 2318862 17-Sep-2019 03:58

eracode:
Is the powder a scouring-type abrasive like Ajax and Vim powders back in the old days? i.e. is it OK to use on polished stainless and gloss surfaces?

I don't think it's a scouring abrasive, but would definitely test it on a non-visible area first. OTOH BKF claim it "will not scratch glass or porcelain when properly used", since it's non-abrasive based.

insane

2393 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Subscriber

# 2318908 17-Sep-2019 08:41

If you use that stuff you HAVE to wear gloves. I didn't and got to watch my skin peel off my hands for weeks!

It's nasty stuff! VIM never did that to me.

JayADee

1695 posts

Uber Geek

# 2319116 17-Sep-2019 12:15

Yeah I wear gloves for sure! Don’t breathe in the powder either!

Dulouz

653 posts

Ultimate Geek

# 2319151 17-Sep-2019 13:07

One person supports this post

JayADee: Yeah I wear gloves for sure! Don’t breathe in the powder either!

Can you use it as an eyewash?

Amanon

jonathan18

4118 posts

Uber Geek

Subscriber

# 2319153 17-Sep-2019 13:09

Interesting to read of a product that seemingly deals to toilet scale; I've had no luck with vinegar etc, and haven't yet tried CLR due to also hearing of really mixed results.

The worst build-up of scale in our toilet is under the usual water level - I assume I'd need to reduce the level before using the product, given it'll otherwise dilute it to the point of being totally ineffective?

@JayADee - when you used it on toilets, did you find one type (pour-on or powder) more effective?

allio

606 posts

Ultimate Geek

# 2319219 17-Sep-2019 14:54

insane: If you use that stuff you HAVE to wear gloves. I didn't and got to watch my skin peel off my hands for weeks!

It's nasty stuff! VIM never did that to me.

Can definitely second this, and can also second not breathing the fumes if you can help it. I did my whole shower years ago and not only lost a full layer of skin from my hands, I got a pretty alarming case of the spins for a couple of hours. Looking it up afterwards, both are well-known consequences of exposure to oxalic acid.

Still absolutely swear by the stuff though, it just works amazingly.

I bought a bottle of the liquid (much prefer it to the powder) for about $9 at Martha's Backyard, but that was a few years back.

Oblivian

3350 posts

Uber Geek

# 2319231 17-Sep-2019 15:04

Commonly used in the US for car window/windshield hard waterspot buildup removal.

But like the CRC glass doctor stuff off the shelf (that I doubt anyone reads the label of) likely warns it may not be so good on new windscreens as they are apparently a lot more porous?

Use to be a powdered Oxalic acid here called dirt hound or something. Use to do a good job of glass and cleaning headlights.

JayADee

1695 posts

Uber Geek

# 2319292 17-Sep-2019 16:22

One person supports this post

jonathan18:
Interesting to read of a product that seemingly deals to toilet scale; I've had no luck with vinegar etc, and haven't yet tried CLR due to also hearing of really mixed results.

The worst build-up of scale in our toilet is under the usual water level - I assume I'd need to reduce the level before using the product, given it'll otherwise dilute it to the point of being totally ineffective?

@JayADee - when you used it on toilets, did you find one type (pour-on or powder) more effective?

I should have taken before/after photos at sister's house, you wouldn’t believe me just by typing it how bad it was- she has super hard water and the mineralization had turned black, but it was the CLR that did the heavy lifting then I used the barkeepers friend once a week on toilets and taps. I used the liquid bkf throughout while at her place. She was actually going to replace the downstairs toilet, that's how bad it was. Looked shocking. Like mine, hers is about twenty years old but my water is a lot softer. Toilet looks brand new now.

Whereas in my own toilet I used the powder by making a thick slurry with water applied to the stained and mineralised areas, let it sit (but not dry out, re-moisten as required, I dribbled toilet water on it from the toilet brush, if I had a water spray bottle I'd have used that), scrub hard with toilet brush, repeat. The longer you let it sit the better in my experience. This is in the toilet, since it's an acid I'd be careful what you get it on. It can’t hurt a glazed toilet I don’t think. More work than I had to do with the CLR at Sis's house, especially her bathtub where straight CLR swished around melted the stuff right off the bath and tiles! But my toilet was developing mineralization areas and some stains from same mostly where the water trickles down from and nothing else I have tried worked. All white now!

And yes I recommend reducing the water level to below areas you are working on, it's not effective too diluted.

I think their web site recommends the powder for toilets but the liquid is more convenient for pour on purposes. The liquid should do for taps I would think, just let it sit, scrub with a non scratch scrubby.

Bkf also removes metal scratches perfectly from porcelain as I can attest from the same sister's toilet but again, needs to be applied above the water level.

Can’t understand why the CLR worked so well there but not here. Can’t be the same even though the name, instructions etc all were...

JayADee

1695 posts

Uber Geek

# 2319316 17-Sep-2019 17:32

My toilet after. Click to enlarge. :)

Minor scale/discolouration on my tub (which needs re-enameled, it's an old claw foot). This is where the water drips down from the tap.

JayADee

1695 posts

Uber Geek

# 2319487 17-Sep-2019 21:05

Sorry, meant for all those to be thumbnails! Moderator could fix maybe please?

1 | 2