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Toilet cleaning!
An exciting topic, I know. Hold your excitement.
In all seriousness, properly cleaning your toilet is important. Not only to your RVing experience in terms of enjoyment (see: smell) but also your health and the long-term health of your RV.
Put the wrong cleaner down your toilet and you could wash away the white shine of the bowl, or even remove too many of the useful bacteria in your tank that help keep things clean.
With that said, it’s not hard to keep your toilet clean and in good working order.
The truth is that most modern RV toilets use the same plumbing materials as residential toilets, though it depends on how old your RV is.
Regardless, we’ve put together a list of our most recommended toilet bowl cleaners to help you find a quick and easy solution to all your flushing woes.
Read on to find out our top picks for best RV toilet bowl cleaner.
Warning: Don’t Use Harsh Cleaning Chemicals on Your RV Toilet
Before we get to our list, it’s important to know something.
RV toilets aren’t made exactly like residential toilets. Some are plastic and some are porcelain, which can mean that stronger cleaners like Lysol bleach can damage the white shine on the inside of the bowl:
However, much more importantly, such antibacterial chemicals are harmful to your black tank as they– as the name implies– remove even the beneficial bacteria that sits in your water and septic system and helps keep it clean.
Instead, it’s best to use a cleaner that is designed specifically for RVs or an all-natural cleaner.
We’ll go over options for both below. For now, just note that you shouldn’t use bleach, Lysol, or any other heavy or antibacterial chemical in your RV toilet.
3 Best RV Toilet Bowl Cleaner
Below, we’ve put together a diversity of toilet bowl cleaning options.
From tried-and-true RV-specific solutions to more general cleaning options that RV owners say work like a charm for them, you should be able to find something that fits your needs and preferences below:
1. Classic Pine-Sol
While most traditional home cleaners are a no-go for the reasons we discussed, some RV owners swear by Pine-Sol.
Well, maybe not the modern Pine-Sol brand but the original Pine-Sol. You know… with actual pine oil.
Modern Pine Sol doesn’t include any pine oil, but rather an assortment of typical cleaning chemicals. That means it may not be safe for your black tank to use long-term.
There are tutorials online for making your own “pine sol” like the one below. Their effectiveness will likely differ, but you can count on it being all-natural:
2. Happy Campers Toilet Treatment
The go-to choice for possibly the largest portion of RVers, Happy Campers is depended upon for millions of travelers for cleaning your holding tank and toilet.
It’s not just great for your toilet bowl but your grey and black water tank as well, making it an all-purpose solution.
Check out our complete Happy Campers tank treatment review here.
3. Scrub-It RV Toilet Bowl Cleaner
Scrub-It RV toilet bowl cleaner came to popularity recently and is now arguably the most popular toilet bowl cleaner specifically made for RVs on the market.
If you’re looking for a cleaner without harmful caustic chemicals like bleach that still does a great job of cleaning your toilet bowl of stubborn stains, Scrub-It is a great option.
It also includes helpful probiotics that are designed to safely clean your tanks, making it a 2-in-1 option similar to Happy Campers.
What Is the Absolute Best Toilet Solution for an RV?
There is no best toilet bowl cleaner, or best way to clean your RV toilet, but many RVers say the best product on the market is Happy Campers toilet treatment.
Technically, it is a holding tank treatment. However, it works wonders on toilet bowls as well if you fill it up and let it sit for 10-20 minutes.
A modern RV toilet has the same durability as a home toilet, at least in terms of the plumbing. That makes most typical cleaners fine to use.
However, you’ll want to watch out for using stronger cleaners like bleach as RVs usually have a plastic toilet of some kind (or porcelain toilets). Bleach or other strong chemical cleaners not designed for RVs can wear away the white shine inside the toilet bowl, usually leaving a not-so-great-looking gray splotch.
Using something like Happy Campers ensures you’re good to go as it’s specifically designed for RV toilets.
In addition to this, using a regular toilet brush is a bad idea. Regular toilet brushes can similarly be harsh on an RV toilet bowl, so you’re better off getting something like this for not only a clean RV toilet but one that remains in good condition.
How Often Should You Use Toilet Bowl Cleaner?
There is no agreed-upon frequency for RVers to clean their restroom, but weekly is a good idea.
The more accurate answer depends on what kind of RV toilet you have. If you have some sort of older valve system, you may want to clean your restroom after every #2 (pre-filling the bowl with water alleviates most of the issue, however).
If you have a newer RV toilet, you can treat it mostly like a regular residential toilet and do it about every week or so depending on use.
Keep That Toilet Clean!
Toilet cleaning isn’t the most exciting RV topic, but it’s an important one.
Knowing how to properly tend to your toilet and what cleaning products to use can improve your RVing experience, keep everything working properly longer, and avoid issues.
Remember: for the best results, stay away from traditional toilet bowl cleaners like bleach and other strong chemicals as well as standard toilet brushes. Go with something made for RVers so you know you’re safe using it on your (likely) plastic RV toilet.
We hope this list of the best RV toilet bowl cleaners helps you find a quick and easy solution so you can keep enjoying life on the road.
To level up your RV bathroom even further, check out our guide on the best RV bathroom storage ideas here.
This post may contain affiliate links. Check out our disclosure for more information.