There are many ways to remove cigarette burns from a bathroom sink, but the ones that work the best are cleaning the splotches with a nonabrasive cleaner, or with a mixture of baking soda and water.
Cigarette burns can seem hard to eliminate, especially if you let them stay for a long while. To avoid the unnecessary hassle of scrubbing your sink, clean the spots as soon as they appear.
Cigarette Burns and Sinks
As much as we would like our sinks to remain spick and span, they become dirty easily in no time.
The stains on a bathroom sink can come from many sources, such as toothpaste or soap suds. However, those can be removed with mild detergent/soap and water.
Although sometimes a cigarette stain may also be eliminated with soap and water, you must not let the burn sit for long; otherwise, this remedy might not work.
Depending on the duration for which a stain has been on your sink, you will have to choose the appropriate course of action to get rid of the discoloration.
Furthermore, it must be noted that the material of your sink is also a factor to consider when cleaning cigarette burns, as some solutions may work better on certain sinks than others.
What may be effective on a laminate sink might not be the best solution for a porcelain sink.
That’s not to say that a formulation used for removing burn marks could damage the sink material; it might just not do the job well.
Therefore, choosing the right solution to remove burn marks from your bathroom sink is essential.
A general rule of thumb to remember when cleaning a cigarette spot from your sink is to first opt for homemade organic formulations to avoid any damage to the basin material.
Although not all synthetic chemicals are harmful to sinks, some might lead to scratches or discoloration.
If you decide to stick to store-bought cleaners to wipe your bathroom sink, you must pick a suitably mild product initially. If it doesn’t work, then look for something more potent.
Moreover, always choose something that has lemons or limes in its composition as those ingredients make cleaning solutions more effective.
With all the essential tips on bathroom sink cleaning out of the way, let’s go over some of the most effective remedies to remove cigarette burn marks from your sink.
Mild Soap and Water
The first technique on our list of cleaning methods is using a solution made with mild soap and water. For this method, you can use any type of soap, i.e., dish or liquid soap, to create lather.
Combine the two ingredients together and pour the mixture on top of the cigarette marks. Let it sit in your sink for a while before you get to scrubbing.
After a good 10 to 15 minutes have passed, take a scrubbing pad or sponge to wipe the sludge.
If the burns lighten on your first attempt, know that this remedy is working for you, and then repeat it till your sink is spot-free.
Also, try to put substantial pressure into scrubbing the burns off because these spots can be quite stubborn.
If the soap you add to the cleaning mixture is too mild, it may not do the job right. In that case, add a more potent product infused with lemons, and repeat the same process.
When you do that, you should be able to clean your bathroom sink noticeably. Once you see even the slightest difference, keep at it, and soon all the stains will disappear.
Detergent and Water
Another remedy to get cigarette burns off a bathroom basin is scrubbing them off with a mixture of water and detergent.
Detergents can be pretty effective when it comes to removing stains from a sink, but how quickly or slowly you see results will depend on the type of product you use.
That is, if you choose a super mild detergent, it may take a while to work, provided that it works all!
In simple words, like soap, detergents can also be ineffective, which is why you need to pick the right option when shopping for supplies.
Consider buying two brands with different potencies so that if one doesn’t lighten the marks on your bathroom sink, the other one does.
Mix the detergent with water and spray the mixture on the burns you wish to remove. Wait for a bit, perhaps 15 minutes or so, then scrub the patches as hard as possible.
However, it is worth noting that you don’t need to scrub too hard if the solution itself is powerful.
That is, if the product (detergent) you use has super strong ingredients such as lemons and limes, you will not have to put too much effort into wiping the stains. A little pressure should work fine.
If you don’t see any difference after scrubbing a while, then the odds are that this remedy is not working for your sink, so you must try a different one.
Bathroom or Sink Cleaner
Buy a nonabrasive cleaner from the market and douse your sink in it. Leave it on for some time before scrubbing it with a pad or kitchen sponge.
Repeat the process if necessary.
One variation you can try with a store-bought stain cleaner is adding baking soda to enhance potency. You can do so in two ways.
Take out a decent amount of cleaner in a bowl and add a heaping spoon of baking soda to it. Mix the constituents well until you get a paste-like consistency.
Apply the batter to the marks you want to eliminate and wipe them rigorously with a scrubbing pad or sponge.
You can also opt for a piece of microfiber fabric, but with that, you might have to add significant force to your scrubbing.
Apart from the technique mentioned above, the other way of using baking soda and synthetic cleaner is
- Sprinkle a generous amount of baking soda on the cigarette burns
- Spray the store-bought solution on top and let the mixture stay in your sink
- After some time has passed, wipe it off with a pad or sponge. You can also use an old toothbrush for scrubbing, especially if the stain is in a hard-to-reach place, such as the corners around the drain.
Bear in mind that you have to keep the mixture on the discoloration only and not let it get to other areas in your basin. Using a circular motion, clean the stains without spreading out any cleaning mixture.
Nail Polish Remover
It’s a rather unconventional method to clean cigarette marks from a bathroom sink, but it works most of the time!
Squirt nail polish remover on the cigarette burns in your sink and rub it with a mesh sponge.
A Mesh sponge is an excellent cleaning tool choice as it is neither too soft like a regular kitchen sponge nor too abrasive like a stainless steel scrubber.
You can use them with other cleaning solutions as well. They should work fine with other formulations that can be applied to cigarette burn marks in a bathroom sink.
Bleach
It’s a well-established reality that bleach is an all-rounder when it comes to cleaning fittings in a bathroom.
Whether you want to clean the toilet or scour the tub, a little amount of bleach can go a long way. Likewise, when you wish to wipe the burn marks from your bathroom sink, douse them in bleach.
Let some time pass by, then clean the stains plus the bleach with fine-grit sandpaper.
However, be sure to control your hand movements and don’t get too harsh with the scrubbing because that may result in scratches.
If you don’t want to risk scratching your basin, you can stick to nylon mesh sponges to help you clean the fitting.
Vinegar and Baking Soda
As already mentioned, baking soda and water form an effective cleaning solution for bathroom sinks.
However, if you want to take the efficacy up a notch, you can swap water with vinegar and have a powerful cleaning solution ready at home.
You can also sprinkle the bicarbonate of soda on the stains and pour vinegar on top. Then rub the concoction around with an old toothbrush.
Cleaning with a toothbrush is a good idea when using a powdered ingredient on burns in a sink. If you use a wide sponge, all of the powder will get stuck on it.
However, that will not happen if you go with an old toothbrush.
Special Cleaning Solutions Made For Specific Materials
If you have a solid surface sink such as marble or granite, you should buy a specialty cleaner from the market to clean cigarette splotches.
Those products are specifically created to leave solid surfaces of marble or granite sparkling. That holds for removing cigarette burns as well.
So, keep such a product under your sink to clean stains as they appear. Doing so will make cleaning much easier and faster for you.
Ending Note
Although we suggest you keep cigarettes out of the bathroom, we understand that doing so may be difficult for some people.
If you like to have a smoke in the bathroom and get your sink stained in the process, be sure to try the remedies mentioned in this article.
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