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4K views 7 replies 7 participants last post by  Snav 
#1 ·
My husband and I bought a 1970's house 1 year ago and when purchased the bathroom ceiling was very moldy. We bleached and repainted everything in the bathroom and got a new exhaust fan. We noticed that it wasn't doing the job so we installed an additional exhaust fan and still didn't do the trick. There is good air suction with both exhaust fans, but even if we leave it on hours after showers, yellow drips still remain on our ceiling. I don't know what to do? Its a 9x7 bathroom with two entryways and a window. The insulation in the attic needs to be replaced but it is insulated. My husband thinks that because we have two entryways and the doors aren't tightly sealed, that the exhaust fans are pulling air from the hallway and other room? I think its the paint? Any ideas? Please help!!!
 
#2 ·
You want to pull the air from other rooms. It has to come fom somewhere. Glossy paint will dry quicker than a flat paint. Some bathrooms can get away with a flat paint on the ceilings and some cant. Some can even get away without a exhaust fan. It depends on how much you use the shower. Defintely open the doors after you are done with the shower. Also make sure the insulation is tight again the rafters in the attic. Also, a quick check of the exast fan, see if it will hold a piece of toilet paper against the opening. You could have the right fans but poor or clogged duct work.
 
#6 · (Edited)
Getting rid of mold that's been around for a while in a steamy environment is very hard and sometimes it's just not possible by a simple single-time cleaning.

Mold spores that aren't killed when touched with bleach can multiply quickly and spread to other areas - mold spores float through the air and will thrive anywhere that's moist - under the toilet (around the floor area) in nooks and cracks of tile and grout, around bathroom fixtures - anywhere that it can sit long enough to take root without being killed off. So all surrounding areas need to be thoroughly cleaned each time you're ridding yourself of the ungodly vermin.

Also, when you bleach you're likely not killing 100% of every mold spore your cloth comes into contact with. An inadequate cleaning can just spread it around rather than get rid of it. Once the bleach dries off the surface your mold is free to come back as it pleases.

So, to attack mold, you need to kill it first and kill it good - and after all the mold is dead you need to remove it. I suggest you use a water-bottle filled with watered down bleach or vinegar (vinegar is what I prefer, it's non toxic and kills mold just as well) and spritz - let the spritz solution dry - and spritz again - let dry, and then remove the thicker mold with a putty scraper.

Be on the safe side - spray your scraper with your killing solution, spray the inside of your trashcan or other disposal container with the solution as well. You want to kill all of it.

After you've scraped most of it off then use a cloth dipped in your killing solution to remove the residue - dip it frequently in hot water that's been treated with your poison of choice, as well.

After you've removed the worst of it off the upper portion of your bathroom (top of walls and ceiling, fixtures on the ceiling) - then deep clean every inch of your entire bathroom - top to bottom.
If you clean bottom to top you might spread the spores in the drips that come down where you just cleaned. Bleach and Vinegar do nothing after it's been thoroughly dried - it must be wet to be effective.

I would try to just kill off all the mold before you replace or repaint - if you don't get rid of the problem then you'll just have the problem again and again.
Once your mold is dead and gone then you can repaint and so on.

Oh - clean your shower curtain, your window components if you have a window - your door, your cabinet hinges. By 'thoroughly clean' I really mean thoroughly clean.
Mold is wretched but a simple life form. Out think it's nature.
 
#7 ·
We wash the bathroom walls with 1/4 ammonia and 3/4 water. ( I think bleach and vinegar would work also).You must let the walls dry thoroughly before painting. The painting guy at Lowes told us to use a high gloss bathroom paint. We did. It has been 2 years and all seems well.
One thing I am doing differently is: I buy really inexpensive plastic shower curtain($1-00-$2.00 at the dollar stores) liners and throw them away every 2-3 weeks. I am thinking that keeps the mold from becoming a problem. Hope this helps.

Romona,
Publisher,kitchencarts360.com
 
#8 ·
You too, hunh?

I've bought the nice fabric curtains for the outside and always used those cheapy ones for the inside, too - whenever I wash the fabric curtain I toss the junky inside one. I cannot stand cleaning the plastic liners.
 
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