Is bleach the way to tackle mold problems?

The traditional way of killing mold

There is a lot of debate about the wisdom of dealing with mold problems with bleach. For decades now many people have reacted to mold by soaking it with a bleach solution with the belief that this will kill it and make it safe to remove. Nowadays some people are less certain about benefits of bleach for mold problems. In the rest of this article we will examine the evidence for and against this traditional method of dealing with the problem.

Does bleach kill mold?

There does seem to be some doubt about the ability of bleach to kill mold. Bleach is good at killing viruses and bacteria, but may not be so good at killing mold; especially on porous surfaces like wood. It will definitely slow down the growth of mold, but it probably won’t completely eradicate it. This is due to the fact that bleach is made up of 99% water and water is exactly the thing that molds needs to prosper. If you want to kill mold then you need to destroy its roots. It does not seem that bleach is good at destroying roots in porous material.

Despite this negative view of bleach’s ability to kill mold there are still people who swear by it, and have had great success using it against mold problems. It is going to be hard to convince these people differently because if it works, it works.

If not bleach, what should you use?

One suggestion is that you completely soak the area with detergent and that you later use bleach to further disinfect the area. If the mold is on wood then it is advised that you sand down the area. Other people suggest that the best solution is to purchase chemicals that have been especially designed for treating mold; if you are going to use these then make sure read the instructions carefully because some can be quite toxic. Also make sure that you read the ingredients of any mold removal solution because some of these are just made up of bleach and not going to be effective. Make sure you use a reputable brand name and not just bleach with a fancy name.

Conclusion

There does seem to be some doubt about the effectiveness of bleach so if you want to be safe you are probably best to use something that has been especially designed for treating mold.

About the Author:
Charles Boday is a Certified Mold Inspector and Contractor, graduate from Certified Mold Inspector & Contractors Institute. He has worked with some of the countries top scientists seeking alternative poison-free mold remediation techniques. He has testified as an expert foundation witness and is the Author of the books, The Ultra Dry Basement.