As for the nuts and bolts: Airlines use bleach-filled cleaning products similar to what's used to clean hotel rooms. The blue juice, aka aqua-colored liquid that washes everything down the toilet when you flush, serves as a deodorizer and as a catalyst to separate liquid from solid waste.

Cleaning an airplane bathroom involves a multi-stage process that occurs both during flight and on the ground. During the flight, flight attendants perform "lavatory checks" every 30 to 60 minutes to restock supplies and wipe down surfaces with disinfectant. However, the heavy cleaning happens between flights. Ground crews use industrial-strength, aviation-approved disinfectants to sanitize high-touch areas like the sink, flush button, and door handle. For the toilet itself, a specialized "honey truck" connects a vacuum hose to an external port on the aircraft’s fuselage to drain the waste holding tank. Once emptied, the tank is flushed with a blue disinfecting liquid (often called "Anotec") to neutralize odors and break down remaining waste. Periodically, the bathrooms undergo a deep clean or "fogging" where the entire space is treated with electrostatic sprayers to kill 99.9% of bacteria and viruses. This rigorous maintenance is essential not only for passenger comfort but also to prevent the corrosion of the aircraft's aluminum frame from acidic waste.