8 Tips for Preventing Bathroom Mold

6/11/2018 (Permalink)

How to Prevent Mold in your Bathroom 

Mold thrives in damp areas, so it’s no wonder that bathrooms are a common ground for mold growth. However, there are several ways that you can help prevent it. Listed below are our 8 tips for preventing mold in your bathroom.

1. Keep your shower or bath tub dry. Using a squeegee to rid your shower of excess water after use eliminates at least three-fourths of bathroom moisture. Also, wipe down any standing water in your sink basin or bath tub to keep your bathroom nice and dry.
2. Utilize your fans. You should be running your bathroom fans during baths and showers and keep them running for about half an hour afterwards. Fans keep your bathroom dry by moving air around and reducing steam. Make sure your fan is a large enough model for the size of your bathroom. The fan volume is usually marked under the grill in CFM (cubic feet per minute).
   
   
3. Dust your bathroom weekly. Since dust is an organic material, and since mold feeds on organic materials, dusting your bathroom weekly can help prevent mold. Dusting your bathroom is also important because mold spores settle on the same surfaces dust do, so make sure to wipe down all surfaces with a lightly dampened microfiber cloth.
   
   
4. Wash shower curtain liners and bathroom rugs often. Since these items get wet every time they’re used, it’s important to wash them every few weeks. Plastic shower liners can be thrown in the washing machine with your whites, detergent and some baking soda and then air dried. Bathroom rugs can also be washed in the washing machine on a cold cycle with gentle laundry soap and then dried on the coolest heat cycle in your dryer.
   
   
5. Keep towels and bathroom robes hung up. Make sure that you hang up wet towels, robes (or even bathing suits!) right away so that they can properly dry. Even if you were planning on throwing them into the wash later, wet piles of clothing contribute to a moist humid environment- and as we learned from Tip #1, a dry bathroom is the best way to prevent mold growth.
   
   
6. Regularly check for and fix leaks. Always check for leaks in your bathroom, and if any leaks are found call your plumber. Feel around your pipes and seals for moisture. Some telltale signs of bathroom leaks are blistering paint/wallpaper, warped or stained walls, or a buckling bathroom floor.
   
   
7. Try not to keep shower products or bath toys in the shower. Although keeping your shampoos and loofahs in the shower after use is convenient, leaving these wet items in your bathroom will just keep adding to places for mold to hide. Make sure that you squeeze all of the water out of wash cloths and loofahs, and wipe bath toys dry between uses.
   
   
8. Seal your bathroom floor. If you have tiles in your bathroom, waterproof them by adding a few layers of a silicon-based grout sealer to your dry grout. It will lessen the rate at which moisture penetrates your grout, giving you a result that gets less wet and dries much faster.

The best solution to preventing mold is to kill any existing mold, and then take preventative measures like the ones listed above. If you already have mold in your bathroom (or anywhere else in your home) call us at (508) 746-9500. Our technicians have the necessary equipment and expertise to return your home back to it’s pre-mold condition.