Todays post is all about mould - I figure that for south east Queensland where I feel it's a very topical subject! We've had 2 floods in one month and it's still raining!
So I'll share what I know with you about mould prevention and removal.
Annoyingly the first thing I learnt is that number onerous prevention is cleanliness and lack of dust. A wise friend informed me, and of course it makes sense when you think about it, that mould will form on any dirt or dust ANY! Which is a real bugger if you are like me and not the perfect housekeeper! But I'll come back to this because there is something eke I nee to say about mould prevention - you might think it obvious, but of you do, perhaps you're not quite on the same page of the cleaning journey as me!
So the second thing I have to say about mould prevention is this: do not leave things in areas where they might go mouldy. This list includes wet towels in the laundry basket, sponges in a damp area like in the sink, or in my case, ANYTHING on the back verandah of the house, where mould will spring fromm nowhere and invade anything in its path! It might mean don't leave bath toys in a container on the bathroom floor or even don't leave you dirty clothes in the bathroom. You know if there's a spot in your house prone to moulding up.
Go now and fix these problem areas!!! Save and rescue your items from mould!!! If its too late however, and the demon black gunk has set it, then here are the mould removing strategies that I know of, I'm sure there are more on google. Rather than go through the types of items, I'm going to list my knowledge of mould fighting super stuff - all of which require the use of gloves when applying, in no particular order (but with numbers because I like them):
1. Clove Oil.
Obtained: from the local health food store, or chemist. I have no idea why these people stock it! Uses: I've put it in soaks to remove mould with varying success, also between 2 and several drops in the wash to prevent or remove stains, I wash in hot water, but this could be wrong! Anyway here are 3 more mould and clove tip links. ABC North Queensland have this article. A Sydney blogger suggests clove oil to clean hard surfaces and gives more information of the properties of clove oil here. The Australian Whirlpool forums have some terrific answers about mould and clove oil here.
2. Bicarbonate of Soda and Vinegar
Obtained: from the grocery store.
Uses: I have used them in the following way to keep a shower clean and also to clean off a significant outdoor verandah area. It lasted about 18 months to 2 years. Step 1, wipe away excess mould. Step 2: make a paste with warm water and bicarb, scrub mouldy area. Step 3: using hot water and vinegar wash down area. This seemed to work a treat to clean it right up.
The sites above also encourage use of bicarb / vinegar with clove oil, which makes sense.
You can also make a scrubbing paste with bicarb to scrub clothes or textiles that have gone mouldy. It may bleach the area though.
3. Bleach
Obtain: a good quality straightforward bleach without added chemicals from whereever you can.
Uses: I give my husband the job of scrubbing fabric with a weakened bleach solution to remove stubborn spores after washing or soaking in oil of cloves.
Also bleach is not as effective in my experience as the good old bicarb and vinegar trick in the shower.
These three items are pretty much all that stand between you and a mess of mould, so thats why I focus more on prevention than cure.
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