Cleaning black mould from shower grout and sealant

purple45

Hi,

Please can you all share your tips for cleaning black mould off the shower? The grout and sealant are in a real state.

The bathroom is not well ventilated and the design of the shower tray is such that the water ends up gathered around where the sealant is.

Last year I re-did all the sealant and grout which is an awful job and it only looked good for a couple of months. If I re-did it again, the only way I can think of making it last longer would be to completely dry all moisture off the shower every day which I'm not prepared to do. The room is too cold for loitering!

So I'm just looking for cleaning tips so that I can just keep it as clean as possible and not let it get worse. I've read about using lemon juice but would be interested to know what works for you!

Tucker

This works for cleaning the sealant really well:

pour neat bleach on the areas affected and then lay some tissue over the area to keep the bleach in contact so it doesn't run away or dry up. Leave it over night.

Removed the follwing day and rinse.

No hard graft needed.

keystone

As the post above.

Sorry to be brutal but If you can't be [STRIKE]arsed[/STRIKE] bothered to clean the shower after you've used it and there is no way of improving the ventilation what you are attempting is to treat the symptom not the cause. The cause is damp and lack of ventilation both of which need addressing if you are not going to get this problem..

Cheers

purple45

Thanks Tucker. I use that method on the kitchen sink sometimes and it works a treat I agree. I have done that with the shower in the past but don't think that the shower tray surface has ever been the same since so think it would be a last resort. Also would prefer to avoid bleach cos of environmental reasons. I did consider that if I had to do it I could brush it on the effected areas carefully with a toothbrush to avoid it coming into contact with the shower tray! I have a collection of old toothbrushes as they're great for cleaning grout!

I like the idea of no hard graft, but if I have to hard graft I just think of it as a good way to keep warm without putting the heating on hahaha!

purple45

keystone wrote: »

As the post above.

Sorry to be brutal but If you can't be [STRIKE]arsed[/STRIKE] bothered to clean the shower after you've used it and there is no way of improving the ventilation what you are attempting is to treat the symptom not the cause. The cause is damp and lack of ventilation both of which need addressing if you are not going to get this problem..

Cheers

I do clean the shower after use, I just don't take the towel to it and dry it all off completely. I don't know that anyone could be ars*d to do that ;-)

purple45

and I do accept that I am just treating the symptom not the cause.

WestonDave

The only other long term solution (and its probably after the sealant has been replaced as the mould gets into it and feeds of the acetic acid in it) is to find some kind of anti bacterial agent - either bleach or something more environmentally friendly if you prefer and spray the shower with a dilute solution of it every day when you get out to make it harder for the mould to get a hold on the sealant again.

14Westfield

You can give the grout a couple of coats of clear nail varnish to leave a much smoother surface that the mould cant get into.
this should seal it off for a couple of years worth of use and the wee bush makes it easy to apply. Just make sure the grout is clean and dry before you start.
Ive used this in flats where we were often fighting the shower mould and this reduces the effort considerably.

purple45

14Westfield wrote: »

You can give the grout a couple of coats of clear nail varnish to leave a much smoother surface that the mould cant get into.
.

Hmmm now that sounds interesting, definitely up for consideration! Thankyou!

pollypenny

Good timing. I've been doing the shower today.

Anyone got tips for cleaning the curved tracks of the shower screen?

I have a set of little brushes from Lakeland, but there is a section that they will not reach.

grizzly1911

I'm with the bleach/tissue paper idea, helped with a toothbrush first idea.

If the shower tray is grimy with a layer of soap/scum Cilit Bang, purple one sprayed on and left a while does the job. May need a couple of goes if bad. (Expensive but convenient -I am sure there are cheaper DIY options)

Ventilation is key, even if you just open a window wide for 5 mins to get the worst away.

They do different versions of the sealant and choosing a bathroom anti mold specific one helps. Remove the old, replace with new and make sure you smooth it out into a "smooth finsh" (maybe use some cling film, wrapped around your finger to help) to help the water run off.