Material
Shower tray
An acrylic or gelcoated stone resin surface that behaves like acrylic, with a silicone joint and a waste that hold the residue.
- SurfaceNon porous
- WashingSpot only
- Colour run riskLow
- Reviewed7 September 2026
What shower tray can and cannot take
- Heat Avoid
- Water and soaking Tolerates it
- Acids, including vinegar Use with care
- Strong alkalis Use with care
- Solvents Avoid
- Chlorine bleach Avoid
- Abrasives Avoid
General rules for shower tray
The tray itself is easy. Warm soapy water and a soft cloth, no abrasives, no solvents.
The difficulty is the edges. A shower tray meets the wall and the enclosure in a silicone joint, and that joint is exactly where liquid runs and where a smell develops. Work along it with a soft brush.
The waste is the other place. Lift the grille out, clean underneath it and flush the trap through, because milk residue in a shower waste sours very quickly in a warm wet room.
Check the label
Most shower trays are acrylic or stone resin with a gelcoat surface, and both behave like acrylic: soft, scratched by abrasives and damaged by solvents and strong bleach. The silicone joint at the edge and the waste are where the residue actually collects.
Stains on shower tray
- Baby sick Lift the solids out with paper, then wash the tray with warm soapy water and a soft cloth, treating the surfa...
- Blood Blot first, then use cold water and a tiny amount of compatible detergent. Work from the edge, rinse or blot...
- Body oil Lift free oil from shower tray, then clean a small area with a maker-approved mild detergent solution and a s...
- Breast milk Blot the spill, identify the finish and use a controlled cold clean only where permitted. Where the maker per...
- Bronzer Lift loose bronzer from shower tray before it is rubbed in. Blot cream bronzer, follow the material or care l...
- Coffee Wipe coffee off shower tray promptly with a soft cloth. Check the finish and maker care rules first. Do not t...
- Concealer Lift thick concealer from Shower Tray, blot without rubbing, then use a very small amount of diluted washing-...
- Cooking grease Lift and blot cooking grease from Shower Tray, then use a small amount of diluted washing-up liquid only if t...
- Deodorant Lift loose deodorant from shower tray with a dry white cloth, then wipe the remaining film with cool water an...
- Hair dye Blot hair dye from Shower Tray, test the mildest compatible cool detergent route, clean inwards, remove resid...
- Lipstick Lift lipstick from Shower Tray with a blunt edge, blot without rubbing, then use a very small amount of dilut...
- Motor oil Blot motor oil from Shower Tray, absorb as much as possible, then use a small amount of diluted washing-up li...
- Nail polish Lift free polish gently if the face permits contact. A maker-approved mild damp wipe can clear loose residue,...
- Period blood Lift any tissue with a spoon edge, then blot. Use cold water and a tiny amount of compatible detergent for th...
- Pet urine Blot until nearly dry, then use only the cool-water quantity shower tray can tolerate. Use a labelled pet uri...
- Tomato sauce Lift tomato sauce from Shower Tray, then wipe or blot inwards with a tested cool detergent solution. Remove r...
A shower tray is a moulded acrylic or stone resin pan with a gelcoat finish, sealed to the wall with silicone.
The surface is soft
Like an acrylic bath, it scratches with abrasives and crazes with solvents, and a scratched or textured tray holds soap and dirt in the scratches.
The joint is the weak line
Silicone at the perimeter is where liquid runs to. It is porous enough at the surface to hold organic residue, which is what mould feeds on, and it is where a smell in a shower usually comes from.
The waste is warm and wet
Which is the ideal environment for milk residue to sour. Most shower wastes have a lift out grille and a trap that unscrews.
It cannot be treated like tile
Despite being surrounded by it. The tile takes bleach and abrasives that the tray does not.
Sources
What we checked and when. Where a manufacturer instruction disagrees with anything here, follow the manufacturer.
-
Bathroom care guide, Carryduff Designs
manufacturer
UK bathroom supplier guidance that acrylic is softer than china and scratches, that scouring products are not recommended, that chemicals including nail varnish remover, household bleach, perfume and strong disinfectant must never be used on acrylic, that warm soapy water or a mild cream cleaner is the correct clean, that mild limescale removers are acceptable occasionally, that bleach must not go in a cistern, and that cleaners must never be mixed because they give off poisonous gas.
Checked 7 September 2026
-
Cleaning grout, Tile Council of North America
trade body
Tile trade body guidance that grout manufacturers do not advocate the use of acids because acids attack the cement in the grout, that grout is alkaline based and is dissolved by acids, that mildly alkaline cleaners are preferred over acidic ones, that oil and wax based cleaners leave a film that attracts dirt, that alkaline cleaner not properly rinsed leaves a sticky residue, and that cementitious grout should be sealed to prevent staining.
Checked 7 September 2026
-
Norovirus: what to do and how to stop the spread, UK Health Security Agency
authority
UK public health guidance establishing that illness related vomit can carry norovirus, that contaminated laundry should be washed with normal powder at 60 C where the care label permits, and that compatible hard surfaces should be disinfected with a bleach based product.
Checked 7 September 2026