Mom Shares Her 'Toilet Brush In Dishwasher' Hack And The Internet Is Seriously Disgusted

The internet is great for many things, and one of them is for giving us the opportunity to discover hacks we never would have considered had it not been for the thousands of people who like, comment and share the hack - thereby giving it mainstream attention.

But not all hacks are created equal. Indeed, some receive widespread attention, not because they are considered a genius idea, but because they're actually pretty ridiculous.

Well, one such hack was shared by a British mother earlier this year, and the response she ultimately received was one of horror and pure disgust.

It all started with a question she posed to her fellow Mumsnet users on the UK-based forum site.

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Under the handle 'Meladeso', she asked: "Would it be absolutely disgusting to put [toilet] brushes in the dishwasher on their own, on hot setting, followed by a hot wash on empty?"

Needless to say, the 'hack' that she put forward to the other mums didn't sit well with them. In fact, many of them went on to say that the mere suggestion of cleaning your toilet brush in a dishwasher was "disgusting".

"I’d have to discard the dishwasher afterwards," one horrified user responded.

The other mothers suggested to Meladeso that simply buying a new toilet brush would be preferable to placing it anywhere near the appliance responsible for getting our dishes clean.

In response, the mum said she wasn't completely convinced by the dishwasher 'hack' but was seeking a more environmentally-friendly option than buying a new plastic toilet brush every few months.

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"I know the thought of it makes me sick too, but I’m sick to death of how easily we just discard plastic," she explained.

"I am NOT buying new ones every six months or whatever. I don’t care how cheap they are. Any alternative suggestions? Did someone say bucket of hot water and bleach?"

And, of course, this being the internet, there were some people who went against the overriding opinion expressed in the thread.

"Of course it’s fine! Dishwashers temperature is set to kill all bugs," one user wrote.

In fact, another user even admitted to having used this method in the past.

"My dishwasher is eco-friendly so uses less water than hand washing," the user wrote. "I do my 4 loo brushes, pots they go in, pots they stand on (it’s a whole contraption) every month in the dishwasher. It’s a full load, wouldn’t put anything else in with them."

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Some users believed the dishwasher idea was, indeed, gross and came up with their own alternative suggestions.

"Putting loo brushes in the dishwasher is gross and not very efficient as you would be using a huge amount of water," one user added. "Bucket of hot water is a good idea!"

"I don’t think I would do that," added another. "Just wondering how much all that hot water/electricity/detergent would compare financially and environmentally to getting some cheap new loo brushes?"

"It shouldn’t be necessary," one mother suggested. "Every morning when I clean the bathroom, I put bleach down the loo and scrub round it, then leave the brush in the loo soaking while I clean the rest of the bathroom. I’m sure the bleach leaves the brush fresh and clean."

So, where do you stand on the 'toilet brush in dishwasher' debate? Should it be avoided at all costs or is it actually a pretty good idea?