How do you stop mold and mildew in the bathroom?
We have a small bathroom with just the tub and toilet. There is no window and the vent fan doesn’t help much. I don’t want to use a lot of chemicals because of the poor ventilation. We’ve tried keeping the light on, because I know it grows faster in the dark. We put some plants in there on top of the towel cabinet to absorb some humidity, and the mold started growing on them (yuk!). It’s on my shower curtain, my walls, my tub, my floor, my ceiling, my toilet, it’s everywhere and it’s gross! I don’t even want to touch anything!
February 9th, 2011 at 8:23 am
spray clorox bleach every night!
February 9th, 2011 at 8:57 am
clean it everyday
February 9th, 2011 at 9:31 am
You have to install a better fan. Mold lives on moisture.
Clean it off with bleach and then put a dehumidifier in there in the meantime.
February 9th, 2011 at 10:16 am
Clean with bleach. Use a product called Damp-Rid (Bed Bath & Beyond, $5). It comes in tubs and collects moisture really well. You could also buy a small dehumidifier. Repaint with KILZ.
Run the fan anyway.
February 9th, 2011 at 10:31 am
You need a through ventilation if you can fit a vent in the bottom of the door or cut 3 inches off the bottom of the door this will help the fan work and vent the room better.
February 9th, 2011 at 11:06 am
My cleaning lady tells me every single week – “after shower you stretch out shower curtain and turn fan on in bathroom to move air around and mold no grow”. Our fan, like yours doesn’t work well so we use a small portable fan. It’s like not even 10 bucks at target – its about 6 inches tall and after we’ve showered I plug it in and point it toward the shower. No mold has grown since.
February 9th, 2011 at 11:12 am
The first thing is to find the source of the water problem. There is no eay fix. You can try using bleach and use a fan so the area dries out. The other thing what type of drywall is on the walls and ceiling. Regular drywall will hold mositure which mold will grow. The mold more than likely has progress behind the walls and ceiling.
February 9th, 2011 at 11:58 am
All of the previous tips are both tried and true. I want to add that if bleach leaves to strong of a smell, or if the fumes bother you, try using 1 fifth bleach to 4/5s of water. It works just as well and cuts down on the danger of bleach fumes.
Good luck.
February 9th, 2011 at 11:59 am
Plants create a certain amount of humidity themselves through transpiration through their leaves, from the soil, and even the pots if they are porous. The more plants you have in a room, the higher the humidity will be.
February 9th, 2011 at 12:28 pm
you could install a timer for the fan you have leave on for 15 minuts after a shower . install a new bath fan and a off delay timer i found panasonic brand the best its enegry star rated.
February 9th, 2011 at 12:45 pm
Replace the cieling vent fan with a higher capacity (>100 c.f.m.) fan, and use it. You can put a switch on to replace the toggle that will leave the fan on for a pre- determined amount of time, then it shuts off automatically.
February 9th, 2011 at 1:36 pm
This is a very good soulition for mold mildew works many times for me :
Since it is such a tiny bathroom get a onegallon spray or small spray bottle,but mix a gallon of bleach
gallon of simple green cleaning stuff from lowe’s home depot
and gallon of water
it has to be of equal parts
pour into a smaller bottle and spray, rmove anything that will fade from the bleach, it will fade them
spray and clean with it , works great
February 24th, 2011 at 2:13 pm
After shower,leave shower on running COLD water.This will stop mold from growing as it is the hot steam humidity that it grows in.
February 24th, 2011 at 2:16 pm
Also,clean walls with a bleach (javel water)mixture,rinse and dry,then apply liquid car wax on walls and ceiling with sponge.let dry.mold will not come back for a long time