Mold in the home is never a good sign. Whether you’ve not properly dealt with a leak or humidity issues, your home isn’t well insulated, or it’s simply crept up on you and you’re not sure why, whatever the reason for mold in the home, it’s a problem that needs to be addressed quickly.
Typically found in areas of the home that are moist, such as bathroom windows, tubs, showers, and pipes, the best way to stop it from ever becoming a problem, is to reduce the amount of moisture and humidity in your home, and where possible, keep rooms as well-ventilated as possible.
Unsightly and often smelly when in confined spaces or a large area of it is present, mold doesn’t just look and smell bad in the home, but it can be harmful to your health, and may even be a sign of a much bigger problem.
If you don’t have the time to tackle the issue of mold in your home, you can of course research house cleaning services in Naples, and find a great company who will come and tackle it for you. But if you prefer to get down and dirty with the mold yourself, here’s a secret cleaning weapon to rid you of your problem, that you likely already have in your pantry: white vinegar.
With around 5% acidity, white vinegar is best left undiluted when used for cleaning mold, but be warned that it shouldn’t be used on cast iron, natural stone, waxed wood, or aluminium surfaces, as there’s a strong chance it will cause some damage to the finish.
Your step-by-step guide to tackling mold with vinegar
Here’s what you need to do:
- Pop on some gloves, safety glasses and a mask, so that you don’t inhale any mold spores or fumes as you clean.
- For ease of use, pour some undiluted white vinegar into a spray bottle, and spray a generous amount directly onto the areas affected by mold. Then, leave it to penetrate for around an hour.
- Take a scrubbing brush and some water and begin gently wiping the residue away, avoiding the use of too much water so you don’t damage whatever surface or item it is that you’re cleaning. If cleaning a surface that’s vertical, begin wiping from the top towards the bottom. You may find you need to spray more vinegar for particularly stubborn areas, and if you do this, leave it for a few minutes, and then pour a little regular baking soda onto the vinegar. This will create a mild paste that you can use to scrub at the mold.
- Once the mold has been removed, if you see any signs of staining and discoloration, you can apply a solution comprised of ½ a cup of oxygen bleach powder, and around 2 quarts of warm water. Leave this to sit for around half an hour, then scrub it off and rinse with clean water.
- When you’ve finished treating the mold and discoloration, simply leave the area to dry naturally, and if you then spot any patches that haven’t been rid of mold, you can repeat the process.
Depending on how much mold is present in your home, you should be able to effectively eliminate it with these techniques and likely, plenty of elbow grease. Don’t like the smell of vinegar? Why not try using tea tree oil instead?
Tea tree oil and mold
This potent essential oil is fantastic for removing mold, and by mixing a teaspoon of tea tree oil with a cup of water in a spray bottle, you’ve got an environmentally friendly and affordable mold-cleaning solution that you can use in exactly the same way as white vinegar.
Things to remember when dealing with mold in the home
Now that you know how to clean moldy areas in your home, you should be able to deal with it effectively whenever you find it growing somewhere. But here are a few things to keep in mind when doing so:
- As soon as you find mold in your home, be sure to tackle it as soon as possible. Leaving mold and hoping it will go away, or become less of an issue over time, is never a good idea, no matter how busy or unconcerned you may be. Mold can rapidly spread, and if you want to avoid entire walls or ceilings being covered in it, you must deal with it as soon as you see it. If you find that mold keeps coming back, even after you’ve cleaned it, you may have a leak or humidity issues that needs addressing.
If you don’t have the time to clean the mold yourself, or are unable to for any reason, simply hire a Naples maid service, and have them take care of it for you.
- According to both the EPA (environmental protection agency) and the CDC (centre for disease control), small patches or areas of mold in the home can safely be tackled by non-professionals, but for larger areas of mold or patches that come back soon after cleaning, it’s wise to hire a professional maid service if the mold is widespread and has penetrated your air conditioning, heating or ventilation system. It’s also best to do this quickly, for the sake of your health and the cleanliness of your home, particularly if you share it with children or vulnerable adults.
Breathing polluted air can be dangerous, particularly long-term exposure, so act fast and act responsibly when you find mold in your home.
You may be interested to learn that white vinegar is actually a lot more effective than regular bleach at cleaning mold, and the EPA recommend that bleach not be used for cleaning bleach, since it doesn’t penetrate into the mold spores enough to completely destroy the mold. You must also never mix the two substances, since this can create a harmful gas with potentially fatal consequences.
So not only is vinegar highly effective at destroying mold, but it’s good for your health, readily available and friendly to the environment.
