Cancel the Mold Show in Your Bathroom

According to the Minnesota Department of Health, mold needs two things to survive, moisture and nutrients (food.) Which, naturally, makes our bathrooms a haven for this yikky, pesky problem that plagues every household.

There are ways to help keep mold at bay, though, and severely limit mold’s ability to invade bathroom space.

With two Rural Boys and Rural Hubby to contend with, goodness knows that I have had to develop an action plan to combat mold in the bathrooms. Though they shower off the grime and wash the grub, plenty gets left behind on the surfaces.

In order to keep our bathroom free of mold, I follow some very simple, yet effective steps:

Install Plenty of Hanging Space.

Mold thrives on moisture and my family seems to love to keep moisture hanging around by leaving wet towels and rags crumpled up. To encourage them to dry the towels properly, we installed towel racks in convenient spots that are easily within reach when exiting the shower.

I also put up additional suction cup hooks in the bath area to capture wet rags for faster drying time. By making things easily accessible, it helps keep the towels in place where I want them, rather than having them in crumpled heaps on the floor.

Keep Cleaners at Hand.

Disposable wipe cleaners are a mom’s best friend in the bathroom. It makes it very easy for my Rural Boys to quickly wipe up the muck from the sink or any surface of the bathroom, taking care of any nutrient-fuel on the spot, rather than letting it sit and fester its way to mold.

Clean Weekly.

It may sound like a hassle, but it’s far easier to clean the bathroom each week, than it is to let mold and mildew build up and have to deal with it later. I set aside a little time each week to wash every surface, rather than having to struggle with hard scrubbing and hours of time spent later if I let it go too long. I find product with bleach help keep the bathroom fresher and help make weekly cleanup a breeze.

Open The Door.

Our bathrooms are set up in a way that offers privacy easily when asked for, so it’s easy enough to keep the bathroom door open when showering, as long as we announce to each other prior that the bathroom vicinity is off limits. Or, often, I’ll plan to take my shower after the kids have left for school or an outing, so there’s no fear of an “uncomfortable” moment. Leaving the door open helps keeps moisture from crowding the room, allowing more air flow.

If you are not comfortable leaving the door open, leaving a window open or turning on the bathroom fan can help reduce moisture accumulation, too.