Now that autumn has arrived more people will be drinking a toasty beverage throughout the day to keep warm, but it can be annoying when your mugs begin to develop stubborn stains.

Mug stains can be tricky to clean as drinks such as tea or coffee contain tannin, a natural compound that sticks to warm surfaces and will not budge no matter how hard you scrub at it.

However, Courtenay Hartford, a cleaning expert and founder of Creekline House has shared a natural solution to clean mugs to get rid of frustrating stains “easily without using harsh chemicals.”

Courtenay said: “There have been several occasions in recent years where I’ve heard people talking about needing to bleach their coffee mugs.

“Let me just say, the fact that this is a ‘normal’ way of taking care of this problem totally freaks me out.”

Instead, the easiest and most effective way to clean mugs is simply white vinegar, as it contains acetic acid that can break down the alkaline tannin stains

Courtney said: “All you’ll need is some hot water, some white vinegar and some scrubbies.”

Not only does vinegar weaken the stains but it is also a natural disinfectant so you can get your mugs “sparkly clean” again without too much effort.

How to naturally remove stains from tea or coffee mugs 

All you need to do is fill your mugs halfway full of boiling water or warm water from the tap. Next, pour in the white vinegar until the mug is completely full.

Leave the mugs to sit for 10 minutes with the solution inside them to give the vinegar time to break down the stains.

Once the time is up, pour out the vinegary water and give each mug a quick scrub.

Rinse the mug out, dry it like normal, and it should be completely stain-free without having to use harsh chemicals.

Courtney said: “Why would you waste your time and potentially your health messing with bleach or other harsh cleaners when vinegar works so well so quickly?

“I so appreciate having nice, shiny clean mugs when I go to make my tea in the morning, but I appreciate not being slightly paranoid about drinking bleach even more!”