I know people don't think this is sufficient to clean a stool, but it does work. I use liquid dish washing soap or shampoo you don't like or liquid laundry soap that you bought and don't like the smell. I clean mine on Sunday and Weds so I don't have a stained stool. If it was stained what I do might not work. I buy the cheapest dish washing soap I can find at Dollar Tree. Every once in awhile I use a reg cleaner and I can't any difference at all.

About the brush I bought one at Target that opens when you pull the brush out and closes when you drop it back in. I like it so well I bought 2 more the other bathrooms. After cleaning I leave the brush between the lid and the stool so it can drain a bit then put it away. I push it all the way back close to the stool and you can't see it unless you are looking for it.

This post was edited by EmmaR on Mon, Nov 3, 14 at 18:12

Thanks, Emma. Your recommendation of shampoo may work. We do not have issues with hard water or any unusual problems. Unfortunately, I don't think my housekeeper is going to leave the brush out until it is dry. She is in a hurry and works well but quickly.

I really like the convenience of the flushable Scrubbing Bubbles...its just the smell that I cannot stand.

Don't you like to use bleach for its disinfecting/germ killing properties?
I don't think I'd feel comfortable using anything other than bleach. Maybe rubbing alcohol too, though I've never tried that. :-) Just diluted bleach water in a spray bottle, and then I squirt some bleach into the bowl and let it sit for a bit before scrubbing. All those fancy cleaners are overpriced and either have bleach in them or don't disinfect as well as bleach anyway.

Sometimes I put a bit of bleach into the canister where the toilet brush goes. I also put the brush away after it dries--in my case, on the bottom of a linen closet that has nothing else in it. I don't like it sitting out and also we have small kids so, yea, I don't want anyone deciding to use it as a sword. I don't get those flushable brushes--doesn't the wand get into the water a bit anyway? So it's still gross, then.

Thanks, LTL. I dislike the smell of bleach except in fresh sheets and towels. . Plus you have to be so careful not to mix it with anything containing ammonia. For my housekeeper, I think a disposable brush is best. Yes, you do have to clean the handle from time to time, but it isn't terrible to do.

Surely there is some pleasant smelling concoction for cleaning toilets!

My mom uses Lysol cling gel and she's pretty picky. She's also 80 years old, so it helps to have something that keeps the stool somewhat clean as well. I also think they have hard water, and I've never seen her bowl stained, so I'm thinking it must work. The scent isn't overpowering, but I don't know what scents they have...those are always changing, but I'm with you. I don't care for flowery...and hers don't but me at all. Hope this helps.

The reason I leave it to dry is because I don't want the brush holder to hold water not even for a day. I could empty it, but I find this easier for me. I hire someone to do my floors, she doesn't do the whole house. It is easy for me to clean the house, but the floors are the worse part for me.

I have always used a brush and holder and my children never bothered it. I just told them it was nasty and would make them sick.

Back to the OP. I think that it is highly unlikely that the cleaning solution is causing the urine smell. Double check the seal.

I too have noticed a not-so-fresh smell after using Scrubbing Bubbles, both the toilet and shower cleaners. We stopped using them both. We clean with bleach and then flush and then use a fragrant multipurpose cleaner, Fantastic brand. The smell of the multipurpose cleaner lingers and there is no smell of bleach.

I use the clorox wand with disposable pads. Like you the scrubbing bubbles but clorox brand. I don't notice any smell. They work well.

One thing to mention is while they say these pads are flushable I never flush them. I just pop them off into the garbage. At a rental property one of those "flushable" pads backed up the toilet.

I also occasionally toss some denture cleaner tablets in the toilet when I know it won't be flushed for awhile. Denture cleaner tabs are easy cleaning!

debrak, I wondered if anyone had used the Clorox wands. I thought they were not flushable, which was why I had avoided them in the past.

rjexit5, I have real issues with the smell of bleach. Even a little bit seems to get to me.

I just read the box. Clorox pads are NOT flushable. My confusion as some brands are. We had a tenant flush a "flushable" brand and it clogged the toilet. DH asked me not to flush any brand whether flushable or not so I never did.

After cleaning the toilet I just press the button and it pops off right into the waste basket. Easy, and your hands never touch anything icky. I then put the wand back into the plastic bag in came in.

My favorite cleaner is Mrs. Meyers Lemon Verbena. I love the smell. She has several different scents and you can smell them in the store to decide if any appeal to you. I buy it concentrated and make up my own cleaner with that and a little Oxiclean laundry detergent added to a spray bottle.

Try dropping a couple of denture cleaner tablets in your toilet bowls and also tanks, and leave it overnight. That won't get under the rim, or remove a rust ring like your brush will, but it gets the rest and nothing could be easier.

Don't use those tablets made for toilet tanks -- they eventually warp your flapper.

I, too, love Mrs. Meyer's Lemon Verbena. They even make a toilet bowl cleaner in that line. However, it doesn't help me avoid the BIG thing I'm trying to avoid - a toilet bowl brush (see original post).

I've tried to find single use toilet bowl brushes which do not contain a cleaner, just so I could use the Mrs. Meyer's product. The closest I got was a patent application for one. Never could find that it had gotten to the marketplace.

In my search, I found an hilarious bulletin board in the UK about toilet cleaning. It was much blunter about some of the ickier aspects of the job than we have been. One suggestion was to buy scrubbie-backed sponges at the dollar store, cut them up and use them with the wand like I have. I may have to give that a try.

I also found where someone had taken a jar from a beauty supply place (the kind used to sanitize combs) and modified it to fit the toilet brush handle through the lid. He kept the brush in it sitting in some sort of disinfectant. Fairly ingenious, but just another thing to clean.

I use Kaboom. No fumes, and it does an excellent job.

I bought the Clorox toilet bowl scrubbers. No vile odor this time when the housekeeper left! Got a tiny whiff of something unpleasant near the shower. I think I need to get rid of all Scrubbing Bubbles products!