Mold and Mildew in Bathroom- I'm pretty PO'd

[alexsam]

We have (had!) a terrible issue with mold and mildew in our shower for a few years. For years, I have been scrubbing; I tried hundreds of dollars worth of green/non-toxic cleaners and spent hours working to get it off, only to never really get it. Because I could not ever get all of it in the cracks and corners, I would re-grout every few months. I felt uncomfortable letting my kids enjoy a bath (as opposed to a shower) because of the mold, it was embarassing for me with our house guests, it took so much of my time to try for a sanitary bath/shower... It really just sucked.

Today I totally caved and got this lysol bathroom mold spray and in 10 minutes it got rid of the mold and mildew that I had been struggling with for YEARS. The freakin' shower is now SPARKLING white- no stains, no mold in the little corners...

It's like it "never was". It looks brand new. My husband actually gasped.

I'm pissed. I'm angry at all the work and money over the years of green/non-toxic products but I'm also pissed that I used lousy chemicals that I know are not good for us or the environment. I'm pissed. I feel *let down* by the whole green cleaning thing and kind of dissapointed in myself for using crappy chemicals, even though they worked. *SO* much time, energy and money, not to mention the waste with the cleaners that didn't work, the piles of grout, the replaced faucet and the fact that we needlessly lived with mold for years... Gah. But I guess I'm also happy. The mold is gone. My son is taking a bubble bath for the first time in I-can't-remember-how-long.

I'm not sure what I would expect as a response, but I just wanted to vent. Green cleaning! Why U No Work??? :(

[Annie Mac]

I hear you on the green products not delivering as well as they say. There are a few things I just don't do green. Toilet bowl cleaner, for example. I'm glad you got rid of the mold, however you accomplished it. In order to keep it mold-free though, you need to keep it moisture free. Is it your house? If so, I'd totally recommend investing in a good fan with proper venting to the outside, hooked up to an automatic dehumidifier. Yes, it's more money. But think of all the time and cleaning products you will be saving in the future! 

I've lived in places (two of them!) that literally had fungus (big fluffy fungus) growing out the walls. Nasty!

[alexsam]

It is our house, and as part of our mold battle, my husband cleaned the fan, etc. We live in a very dry climate, so humidity is not generally an issue, but the bathroom has no windows and poor circulation. But I think I will try running the ceiling fans in the adjoining rooms to move some air after showers and make sure the kids leave the door open to the shower. The shower is the *only* place we have ever had this problem and part of it is the design of the bathroom (the shower is in a corner of a windowless room with a sliding door instead of a curtain, so it is hard to get air in there).

But dude. I'm like *still* in awe. I took a shower this morning and it was startling to open the door and see it *perfect* without a speck of mold or mildew in sight- sparling white in every corner and crevice- after SO MUCH we did to try to get rid of it for SO LONG. Gah.

[nd_deadhead]

Congrats! A sparkling clean shower is one of life's little joys.

But I agree with Annie Mac - you've treated the symptom, now you need to treat the cause, which is too much moisture. You may have moisture in your wallboard and not evven know it. Standard bathroom facns are woefully inadequate - you should probably invest in a fan that moves a lot more air, and put it on a timer switch, so it runs for 15-20 minutes after the shower.

We did this in our house a year ago, and I could take a steamy hot shower with the bathroom door closed, and not get any condensation on the mirror! It has made a huge difference for us.

[youngspiritmom]

Maybe clean off the toxic product with green product when you are done? lol

[marimara]

I had this same problem in my old apartment.  My problem was that the shower leaked.  Are you sure you don't have a leak somewhere?  dripping?  other than that, yeah I did too spend $$ on green products, scouring my fingers off with baking soda, salt, and borax,  did it all and it never worked.  So to this day, I use comet with bleach in the toilets, and once a month on the tub.  In between I can get away with baking soda.