This article contains affiliate links, which means we may receive commission at no cost to the consumer on sales of those products or services featured.

__________

Simple Ways To Stop Mold And Mildew Growing In The Bathroom

You can stop mold and mildew growing in your bathroom or shower by doing a few simple things everyday.

Keep it dry – use the right materials
Keep it ventilated – allow circulation
Keep it uncluttered – let in the light

Mold and mildew can make any bathroom look old and dirty. No one wants to shower among the funky, smelly stuff clinging to the grout, the shower curtain or the bath mat. Mold and mildew feed on moisture, warmth, and darkness. Here are a few suggestions to stop mold and mildew from growing.

Start With a Clean Room

Prepare Ceiling and Walls

If mold and mildew are already growing in your bathroom or shower, you will want to get rid of it asap! Open the windows, turn on the ventilation fan and scrub the walls, the ceiling and anywhere else you see it taking hold. It’s not necessary to use bleach. There are an abundance of products on the market that will kill the nasties. But you can’t just spray on bleach or other chemicals and call it clean. You need to apply a quality mold killing product and then scrub infested surfaces to be most effective. Rinse and repeat if necessary.

When you are sure you have eliminated all the mold on walls or ceilings, let that room dry with an abundance of ventilation. Get the air moving all through the room.
Once the walls and ceiling are very, very dry, apply a coat of mold resistant primer. Allow the primer to dry thoroughly with plenty of air still circulating through the room.
Finally, apply two coats of mold resistant paint or enamel.

Now your ceiling and walls have the ability to resist the growth of mold and mildew, but you’re not done yet.

Fresh Grout and Caulking

No one likes it but it’s got to be done! Scrape away all the dirty, crumbling grout or caulking around the base of the tiles in the shower or tub. It there is existing mold or mildew on the walls of the shower or tub area, treat it with the mold and mildew product that successfully eliminated the funky stuff from the walls and ceiling. Scrape, treat and get rid of all the crud. If you don’t get rid of it, it will just keep creeping back into your shower.

Just spraying with bleach is not enough! That’s just bleaching the mold, not removing it. Scrub, scrub, rinse, rinse.

When you’re sure you’ve washed away all the slime and grunge, let it all dry with a lot of ventilation. Tub, shower and tiles need to dry out for about 48 hours. Now you can apply a solid bead of caulking around the base of the tiles. If you don’t let it dry completely before caulking, you are just going to trap moisture behind the caulking giving mold and mildew a new home.

Keep It Dry To Stop Mold and Mildew

Use Airy Shelving – Ventilation Is Essential to Stop Mold and Mildew

Whether you have a stall shower or a standard bath tub, keep it open, airy and easy to drain. Shelves can be essential for easy storage of shampoo bottles, soap and other products. But in order to keep a clean and tidy bath, every surface must be designed to allow water and moisture to drain. Otherwise, it becomes a breeding ground for funky stuff. Soap should be able to dry in between use. Cloths, sponges and brushes must be allowed to drain and dry.

Use Cloth Shower Curtain and Liner to Stop Mold and Mildew

Your shower curtain does not have to be made out of plastic! A cloth shower curtain can be just as effective at enclosing the tub. And a cloth shower curtain liner makes it even more effective. Both a fabric shower curtain and a cloth liner will dry quickly, not allowing the growth of mold and mildew. They are easily laundered in the washing machine and re-hung on a regular basis. Most plastic curtains will not withstand the vigorous motion in a standard washing machine.

And you won’t have that cold, plastic curtain reaching out to grab you while you shower.

Use The Right Bath Mat to Stop Mold and Mildew

The best way to keep your bath mat clean is to hang it up to dry after every use. Have you ever fought to hang the standard mat somewhere to dry? It’s like hanging out an octopus with all those suction cups! Look for a mat with a hole at one end. The hole is made for hanging. Use a large size suction cup hook and hang the mat on the hook so that the suction cups face away from the tiles and all the water drains easily into the tub or shower.

Your mat will never be moldy again.

Don’t Clutter the Corners

Use the shelves that allow total drainage. Don’t leave bottles, wash cloths, sponges or other wet items laying in corners. It’s just a breeding ground for mold and mildew. Just don’t do it.

Ventilate

Turn on the exhaust fan, open the window. Let the air move, don’t let the moisture settle. Keep it moving!

Make It A Habit

Step out of the tub, hang up the mat
Everything on a draining angle
Nothing piled in the corners
Fan on, window open

You’ll never need the bleach again!