How to get rid of mold? It can appear in any room, causing various diseases, allergies, unpleasant odors. Unfortunately, none of the modern finishing materials can resist this enemy. Information on methods of dealing with such a problem is useful to every person.
Reasons for appearance
How to get rid of house mold? To begin with, it is worth understanding what are the reasons for its appearance. If you remove them, the problem will disappear. So, what are the favorable conditions for the formation of moldy spots in various parts of the house or apartment? The following options are available:
- high humidity;
- poor ventilation;
- leaking water pipes;
- wall freezing;
- roof leak;
- ground dampness;
- insufficient heating.
How to get rid of mold: procedure
Ways to deal with this enemy are discussed below. Whichever of them is preferred, the work is reducedto a specific list of actions. So, how to get rid of mold at home?
- Cleaning the affected surface.
- Mildew treatment.
- Getting rid of all things that are badly damaged by the fungus.
- Ensuring normal indoor conditions. It is necessary to eliminate sources of high humidity, provide good heating and ventilation.
Tool 1 Antiseptic primer
How to get rid of mold in an apartment or house? An antiseptic primer, which can be purchased at a hardware store, will help solve this problem. Applying this product to the affected surface not only allows you to eliminate the fungus. Using an antiseptic primer will also prevent future mold growth.
- The affected area must be thoroughly cleaned, remove the material affected by the fungus.
- If the mold is deeply ingrained, it is important to clean all layers down to the concrete slab or brick.
- Solutions are offered to customers ready-made. Some of them need to be diluted with water. The required amount of liquid is indicated in the instructions. Then the resulting composition is applied to the damaged surface.
- It is convenient to distribute the primer with an ordinary paint brush. This is done only when the surface dries after cleaning.
- The protective layer must dry. Then you can do the finishing, for examplepaint walls, glue wallpaper.
Tool 2 Bleach
How to get rid of mold with your own hands? Bleach is a tool that can be found in every home. It contains sodium hypochlorite, which has a destructive effect on the spores of the fungus. Bleach can get rid of almost all types of mold.
It is important to remember that it is not always possible to use this tool. Some materials may deteriorate, fade, and so on. It is strongly not recommended to choose this tool if you need to clean wood or drywall from mold, this will only worsen the situation. But it can be used without hesitation to clean tiles, glass and similar non-porous materials.
When working with bleach, it's important to keep safety in mind. The use of this product can lead to poisoning with toxic fumes, damage to the skin of the hands. It is necessary to stock up on protective gloves and ventilate the room well. To prepare the solution, you need to mix bleach with water in a ratio of 1 to 10. A paint brush is used to apply it. Before work, it is important to thoroughly clean the affected surface.
Remedy 3 Vinegar
How to get rid of mold in a house or apartment? Ordinary vinegar can also be used to fight fungal spores. Weak acid is a potent poison for many types of mold. In addition, vinegar does not emit dangerous fumes, which makes its use absolutely safe.
Vinegar must be sprayed onto the damaged surface, and then wiped with a cloth dipped in it. An hour later, the affected area is cleaned with water, after which the room must be ventilated. In difficult cases, you can repeat the procedure several times.
Remedy 4 Hydrogen Peroxide
How to get rid of mold quickly? Hydrogen peroxide can also help with this task. This product is also poisonous to most types of mold, and can be purchased at any pharmacy.
For humans, the smell of hydrogen peroxide is not particularly dangerous, so additional protection is not required. Before applying the product, the damaged area is thoroughly cleaned of mold. It must be remembered that peroxide has a bleaching effect. Therefore, the agent is not suitable when it comes to painted surfaces. It is better to give preference to another tool, otherwise you can hopelessly ruin the materials.
Remedy 5. Ammonia
How to get rid of mold with ammonia? This tool can be compared with bleach in terms of the principle of action. With it, you can easily remove fungus spores from hard surfaces, such as tiles. Unfortunately, ammonia is not suitable for cleaning porous materials.
To prepare the solution, you need to mix this product with water in equal proportions. It is then sprayed onto the damaged surface. You can wash off the solution already an hour later, for this, clean water is used. After finishing workit is important to ventilate the room well.
When interacting with ammonia, care must be taken. We must not forget that the pungent smell of this remedy can cause headaches, dizziness, and so on. It should never be combined with bleach, mixing them will release toxic gases.
Remedy 6 Baking Soda
How to get rid of mold on the walls? Baking soda is another remedy that has been proven effective for generations. This method attracts with its simplicity and security.
To prepare the composition, you need to dissolve a teaspoon of soda in a glass of water. Next, you should spray the surface captured by the mold. If desired, you can treat the affected area with a sponge dipped in a solution. An hour later, the surface is washed with water. However, it is not necessary to completely remove the soda. It does not harm the material and serves as an effective preventive measure.
Remedy 7 Tea Tree Oil
Another effective folk recipe is based on the use of tea tree oil. The natural components included in its composition are absolutely safe for humans. The only drawback of this tool is the high cost. The oil will need quite a bit, it has pronounced antifungal and antibacterial properties.
A teaspoon of the product dissolves in a glass of water. The resulting mixture is applied to the surface,in need of cleaning with a sprayer. You can also treat the damaged area with a sponge dipped in the prepared solution. Washing off the oil is not recommended, as it will protect the surface from the recurrence of mold. It does not pose any harm to finishing materials.
We must not forget that tea tree oil has a pronounced specific smell. The fragrance will linger for a while, then evaporate. The prepared solution can be stored for a long time, it will not lose its beneficial properties.
Removing mold from walls
What other information will be useful in the fight against this enemy? How to get rid of mold on the walls in the apartment? It is advisable to do this as soon as the spores of the fungus make themselves felt. Ten to twelve months will be enough for the mold to deeply eat into, get to the brickwork or concrete. A damaged finish layer must be removed.
At lightning speed, the fungus develops on the wallpaper, so they will have to be removed. Only in the initial stages of mold development can this be avoided. You can try cleaning the wallpaper with ammonia or vinegar, but these products may slightly discolor the wallpaper.
Gypsum plasterboard walls are porous. It is important not to forget that mold can develop deep into the material. To deal with it in this case, it is better to use professional means. If the walls are painted, then the spores of the fungus do not spread as much inward as in the area. You can proceed to the neutralization process after removingpaintwork, moving from simple methods to powerful tools.
Smell
The above is about how to get rid of mold. We must not forget that the smell of rot can persist even after the victory over the spores of the fungus. Ventilation does not always solve this problem, so better solutions are needed.
You can sprinkle a small amount of baking soda on the damaged area, and then vacuum it up a few hours later. This tool is famous for its ability to absorb odors. Charcoal can also be used as an absorber of unpleasant odors. Briquettes are simply distributed around the room for a while. Most likely, there will be no trace of the smell even a few days later. Of course, it is necessary to ventilate the room as often as possible.
