Putting Ice Cubes In The Toilet: What It Does And Why People Are Doing It

You might have seen the videos going around social media of people putting ice cubes in their toilets. Some on TikTok even have hundreds of thousands of views! The creators often mix in lots of cleaning products on top of the ice. What most of these viral videos are missing, however, is much context. What does putting ice cubes in the toilet do? And no, it's not to keep the champagne cold. Instead, it's supposed to help toilet bowl cleaner stay in contact with the sides of the commode for longer, making cleaning more thorough. In addition, the abrasion created from the ice cubes against the porcelain is also meant to help in the cleaning process.  

When you pour regular toilet cleaner into the bowl, it doesn't stay in contact with the sides for long. Typically, most of it just slides right down into the water below. When you use your toilet brush to scrub, a lot of the substance is already gone. By filling the bowl of the commode with ice cubes, you give the cleaner something to cling to, as it settles amongst the cubes, instead of way under the water. So when you clean with your toilet brush as usual, you are scrubbing more cleaner (and abrasive ice!) onto the bowl to dislodge grime. 

There is a lot of false or incomplete information around putting ice in the toilet to clean. "Ice lowers the temperature of the water, which makes the detergents work longer," cleanwithnaan posted on TikTok. We couldn't find reliable evidence that toilet bowl cleaners work better in colder water (and no, the ice doesn't freeze the germs in place, either, as others claim). What might work as a cleaner, however, is the abrasiveness of the ice. Keep in mind that this trick isn't likely to treat years of toilet stains or remove hard water buildup without some major elbow grease. 

@cleanwithnaan

Thank you for 3k 🥳 Great trick for a clean toilet, throw in ice cubes! ice lowers the temperature of the water which makes the detergents work longer. Plus those sounds are music to my ears 🎧😮‍💨 #cleaning#clean#cleantok#icecleaning#ice#toiletscrubbingasmr#asmr#asmrsound#pinkcleaning

♬ dźwięk oryginalny – N A T A L I A

Piling ice in the toilet is a low clogging risk. Plumbers advise that most ice cubes aren't much bigger than other things that typically go down the toilet, and they will eventually melt anyway. If, however, your toilet is absolutely brimming with ice, you can wait for it to melt a little or help it along with a little warm water before flushing.  

Many of the videos show creators dumping cleaner after cleaner on top of the pile, before swishing everything around. If you try this toilet cleaning trick, remember not to mix cleaners like this, as it is unsafe. For example, never mix bleach (or cleaners containing bleach) with anything containing ammonia or acid, as it can create extremely toxic fumes.