Shower Mildew

By onthehouse on April 15, 2014

Mildew in your home is easy to remove. Just mix 1/3 cup of powdered laundry detergent (less if concentrated) and 1 quart of liquid chlorine bleach with 3 quarts of warm water. Add the bleach to the water first and then the detergent. Scrub with a bristle brush and in minutes the mildew disappears. Rinse the area thoroughly and towel dry. Although this reasonably mild solution can be used for most painted surfaces, rubber gloves, eye protection and plenty of ventilation are a must.On the other hand, why spend time removing mildew when you can prevent it? Mildew can’t grow without a food source, and the food source that mildew thrives on is moisture. Mildew spores are in the air everywhere. They look for moist places to settle, feed and grow.

So how do you prevent mildew from growing in the first place? Reduce or eliminate the food source by cutting down on the amount of moisture, usually condensation, which settles on walls, floors and ceilings. This may not be as simple for someone who lives in Florida as for a family in West Texas, but, given varying degrees of attention, eradication is possible even in relatively humid climates.

The fact that you don’t have a window in your bathroom means that ventilation may be poor. Moreover, the lack of natural light provides optimal conditions for mildew growth.

According to Building Code, a bathroom without a window must have an exhaust fan to remove moisture and unpleasant odors. Unfortunately, bath fans are often undersized, broken or simply not used. If you have an exhaust fan, make sure that it is cleaned periodically, that the duct is properly connected and in good shape and that it is always used during showering and allowed to run for 10 to 15 minutes after the shower. Also, check the CFM rating on your fan housing (that’s the amount of air that the fan moves expressed as cubic feet per minute) — anything less than 80 cfms is usually too small for most American bathrooms. Consider upgrading to a larger model is such is the case.

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