How to Prevent Mold and Mildew in the Bathroom

This article was written for a home remodeling company. Please note all mentions of and links to their website have been removed.

Unfortunately, mold and mildew are some of the most common problems when it comes to bathrooms. While even black mold is not terribly dangerous, it can still affect your health. Luckily, with some simple steps, you can prevent mold and mildew from getting a foothold in your bathroom.

Let’s take a look at how to remove mold and mildew and prevent it from becoming a problem in the first place.

Signs of Mold or Mildew

Keeping an eye out for signs of mold and mildew in your shower and bathroom can help you catch a small problem before it gets out of hand. You may see visible mold, clearly indicating a problem. But there are also other secondary signs that you can look out for.

If your floor feels spongy or soft when you walk on it, it may indicate a mold problem. This is because your subfloor may begin to rot from moisture caused by a hidden leak or another water issue. 

In addition, your bathroom may develop a musty smell. This sometimes even happens before you can see any other signs of mold or mildew. This is because mold spores emit a stale or earthy smell when they decompose.

A lack of circulation is also quite common if you have shower mildew or mold. This may help contribute to the problem. If your bathroom has little to no circulation, it can indicate that you have a mold or mildew problem.

Unfortunately, mold and mildew can also lead to cold or allergy-like symptoms. If you are experiencing these kinds of symptoms, you may want to examine your bathroom for other signs of mold and mildew.

Potential Hazards of Mold and Mildew in Shower

Mold and mildew in the bathroom can lead to some unfortunate health hazards. This is especially true for people with asthma or respiratory illnesses. Mold and mildew can cause inflammation that can lead to respiratory attacks and irritations.

Even if you don’t have respiratory problems, mold and mildew can still lead to unpleasant symptoms. Some people face allergic reactions or cold-like symptoms. It’s quite common to deal with a runny nose, cough, or sore throat due to exposure.

If you suspect shower mold as the cause of your symptoms, you may want to get an allergy test from your doctor to confirm the cause. Over-the-counter allergy medications can help relieve symptoms. However, it’s best to work toward preventing and removing any bathroom mold and mildew that you can.

How to Prevent Shower Mold

Mold likes to grow in damp and dark places. Because of this, showers are particularly susceptible to mold. Each day, they are sprayed with water that ends up sitting around for longer than you would think. 

This problem then extends to the rest of the bathroom. The moisture generated from the shower will spread across the entire room, which gives it the potential to grow mold. So, staying on top of shower mold means protecting your entire bathroom. 

If you want to prevent mold and mildew in the shower, it’s important to be as vigilant as possible. Staying on top of the issue before it becomes a problem will save you hassle in the long run. In this case, the best offense is a good defense. 

One of the best ways to do so is to remove moisture from the room. You should keep your bathroom ventilated by leaving the door open when possible. In addition, run the exhaust fan during and a bit after each shower or bath. 

You should also wash your towels, bathmats, and other bath linens frequently. These are places that hold onto water and, thus, give mold a place to grow. 

You should also frequently and thoroughly clean your bathtub, shower, and sink. If you are particularly concerned about mold, squeegee tile, and glass surfaces whenever they are wet.

How to Remove Shower Mold and Mildew

If there’s one good thing about bathroom mildew, it’s that it’s usually somewhat easy to remove.

A common way to do so is to spray an antifungal cleaner on the surface. Let it sit according to the instructions, then scrub. Many cleaners do recommend rinsing the surface with clean water afterward.

You can even treat mildew using household items you probably already have. You can spray the surface that has mildew with distilled vinegar and let it sit for a couple of hours. Then, use a moist cloth or toothbrush to scrub off the mildew.

Rinse the entire surface with water. If you see any remaining mildew, you can make a paste with three parts of baking soda and one part of water. Put the paste onto the mildewy area and spray more vinegar. 

Then, scrub the area with a brush and rinse afterward. If you still see mildew, continue to repeat until it is gone.

If you need a stronger solution, you can use a bleach and water mixture. For this solution, use 75% water and 25% bleach to scrub the area. Just make sure to use gloves and avoid combing bleach with any other cleaning products.

When removing mold and mildew, it’s very important that you thoroughly ventilate the area. Breathing in mold particles and cleaning product fumes can be very dangerous to your health. Open any windows and doors you can and leave the exhaust fan on even after you are done cleaning.

Call [Redacted]

If you want to make it easier to prevent mold and mildew in your bathroom, consider installing an antimicrobial shower or tub from [redacted]. Our easy-to-clean bathroom fixtures will make it much easier to stop dangerous mold or mildew before it can get a hold of your shower.

Call us today to schedule a design consult and get the bathroom of your dreams with [redacted].