How to Restore Oil-Rubbed Bronze Bathtub Fixtures

Happy Monday, Friends! I recently completed a bathroom DIY that I just had to share with you! While restoring bathtub fixtures may not be the most glamorous project, this DIY fix didn't cost me a penny and I couldn't be more pleased with the results

Although oil-rubbed bronze hardware is understandably popular, hard water stains can result in thick mineral deposits that seem almost impossible to remove. I thought I had tried everything from vinegar to lime cleaners and nothing seemed to work! I was literally pricing new fixtures when I decided to browse YouTube and came across an idea that caught my eye. 

This time instead of spraying or spot cleaning with vinegar, I followed only the first step of the tutorial which was to liberally soak cotton kitchen towels with vinegar and wrap them around the fixtures. The idea is that leaving the vinegar-soaked towels loosens up the mineral deposits so they can be more easily cleaned...and it works! This is obviously not a strenuous project but it was more time consuming than suggested in the tutorial. I repeated the 1 1/2 hour soak-and-wait process 3 times, rearranging the towels, and scrubbing off the loosened debris with a toothbrush each time. That may sound monotonous, but I started late on Saturday afternoon during a Dateline marathon, finished up before I went to bed, and woke up to freshly restored fixtures. Tackling the project in an evening using only vinegar and a little elbow grease was extremely rewarding!