The brush is the one tool in the bathroom that touches the dirtiest surface and then sits in its own water. That is why a clean bowl can still smell, and why the answer is less about scrubbing the brush than about what you do with it after use.
Rinse, drain, dry
After each use, flush the brush in clean water, shake it out, and put it back so it drains rather than sits in water. Once a week, soak the head in a diluted disinfectant, rinse and dry. A brush left wet in a closed holder is a bacterial reservoir.
Prices are Freshway catalogue prices as at 16 September 2026 and are subject to change. Confirm the current price, and whether GST applies, before quoting.
The weekly soak
- Fill the holder or a small bucket with warm water and a disinfectant at label dilution.
- Leave the head submerged for 10–20 minutes. Long enough to disinfect; not long enough to soften the bristles into a mat.
- Agitate to release what is caught between the bristles, then flush the head under running water.
- Shake out the excess and stand the brush to drain — not in the holder full of water.
Which disinfectant, and what to avoid
| Product | Use | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Agar Bowl Clean | Antibacterial bowl and brush cleaning | A$38.13 |
| Freshway Bleach 6% sanitiser | Sanitising the brush and the holder | A$19.00 |
| Edco plastic toilet brush | Replacement brush, budget option | A$4.75 |
| Oates radial toilet brush | Radial head for the rim and under the rim | A$16.00 |
| Oates industrial toilet brush | Synthetic head for commercial use | A$39.40 |
Bleach is fine for this job, because the brush is a tool rather than a surface people touch — and the caveat is ventilation and gloves. Do not mix it with an acid bowl cleaner in the same container.
Replacing rather than cleaning
Replace the brush when the bristles splay, when the head will not come clean after a soak, or when the plastic has discoloured permanently. In a domestic bathroom that is usually every six to twelve months; in a commercial washroom on a service round, treat it as a consumable and replace on a schedule.
Cheap brushes are false economy in a commercial setting: a $5 brush that sheds bristles into the bowl creates a plumbing job. The industrial synthetic-head brush costs A$39.40 and is the one most facilities buy.
Where to keep it
The holder matters as much as the brush. A closed canister holds moisture and creates the smell; a draining holder that keeps the head off the floor is the better design. Where the washroom has no ventilation and the holder sits in a corner, the brush will smell regardless of how well you clean it.
Leaving the brush standing in the bowl between uses is common and not a solution: it transfers bowl water to the handle and the handle then carries it to the next surface.
In a commercial washroom
On a service round, the brush is part of the daily toilet clean rather than a separate task: rinse it after use, soak it weekly, and record the replacement interval. Where a building has multiple washrooms, colour-code the brushes so the one from a heavy-use toilet does not travel. The compounding factor is chemical handling, which SafeWork NSW covers in chemicals and other substances: gloves and ventilation for any soak, and never mixing products.
The holder, the smell and what actually causes it
If a washroom smells, the brush holder is one of four places people check last, along with the cistern, the floor-to-wall junction behind the toilet and the waste pipe. The test is simple: lift the brush out and smell the holder. A holder that smells is a holder that never dries, and no amount of cleaning the brush will fix that.
The fix is either a draining design or a different storage position. A wall-mounted holder that lets the head hang free, or simply standing the brush in a ventilated corner rather than a closed canister, solves what a weekly soak cannot. Where the washroom has no ventilation at all, the brush should be the last thing on the cleaner’s list, not the first thing that gets blamed.
Questions we get asked most
- Are you supposed to wash toilet brushes?
- Yes, and it is the step most households skip. Rinse after use, drain rather than store wet, and soak the head in a disinfectant weekly.
- How do I clean my toilet brush after using it?
- Flush the head in clean water while the toilet fills, shake it out, and return it to a draining holder. The weekly soak handles the rest.
- How to get dried waste off a toilet brush?
- Soak the head in warm water with a disinfectant for 10–20 minutes, agitate, then rinse under running water. Do not pick at it dry.
- What is the best brush to clean a toilet?
- A brush with a radial or angled head reaches under the rim, where the staining forms. For commercial use, a brush with a synthetic head and a stiff handle lasts far longer.
- How often should toilet brushes be replaced?
- Domestically every six to twelve months, or sooner if the bristles splay. In commercial washrooms, treat them as a consumable and replace them on the service schedule.
References
- SafeWork NSW — chemicals and other substances.
- NSW Environment Protection Authority — chemical handling and disposal.
Washrooms on a service round?
Tell us how many fixtures you service and how often, and we will set up the brush replacement interval and the chemistry so the smell stops coming back. Browse bins, urinals and mats or ask our team.