Why does a white crust keep coming back on my bathroom sink?
A persistent white crust or efflorescence reforms on dry ceramic surfaces and rims every 48 hours despite regular cleaning. This continuous crystallization process leaves people wondering if water is seeping out from below the tiles and causing underlying damage.
What the numbers show
Counted from the threads quoted below. How we count
- This comes up 15.0× more often in r/HomeMaintenance than across the site as a whole.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Wiping it off every two daysDid this help you?
- 2Using standard limescale removersDid this help you?
- 3Using citric acidDid this help you?
- 4Cleaning with acidDid this help you?
- 5Retiling the floor and showerDid this help you?
- 6Soaking with vinegarDid this help you?
- 7Applying baking soda pasteDid this help you?
- 8Scrubbing manually with a toothbrush on hands and kneesDid this help you?
- 9Considering long-handled electric scrubbersDid this help you?
- 10Using the highest suction setting on a Dyson vacuumDid this help you?
- 11Mopping the floorDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“A white crust keeps coming back every 2 days on the dry sides of my bathroom sink”source ↗
“this white crust (I suspect it's efflorescence) keeps forming about 2 days after l clean it. It wipes off very easily, but it always comes back within 48 hours.”source ↗
“Toilet paper dust. It comes off, it just comes right back again. Pretty much instantly.”source ↗
“The grout seems to be spreading almost like a crystallization process. Any thoughts on what is happening here and whether there is likely damage below the tiles if this is water seeping out?”source ↗
“I had the same loop of cleaning it, thinking I fixed it, then staring at the haze two days later”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 13How to get sticky residue off ceramic without ruining it
- 17How to fix white spots on a shower floor finish
- 2Why are my bathroom walls wet and brown after a shower?
- 15How to clean decades of heavy buildup on bathroom hardware
- 18How to get rid of severe black mold on bathroom grout
- 3Why does tile look dirty after cleaning?