How to Get Rid of Bathroom Mould and Keep It Away

Mould in a bathroom is a symptom, not a cause. It appears where a surface stays wet for more than a few hours at a time, and however many products you use it will be back on the same spot within a month or two until the moisture is gone. So the order of work is the reverse of the usual: ventilation first, cleaning second.

What you need

• A chlorine-based product or hydrogen peroxide 3 %
• Baking soda — 2 tablespoons
• White vinegar 9 % — for prevention
• An antifungal primer, if there are patches on the wall

• A stiff brush
• Spray bottle
• Rubber gloves and a mask
• A craft knife for replacing silicone

Time: 60 minutes plus a day of drying.

Step by step

1. Ventilate and protect yourself. Open the door and window, put on gloves and a mask: mould spores are harmful to breathe and chlorine is caustic.
2. Treat the area. Apply the product to a dry surface — on a wet one it is diluted and works weakly.
3. Leave fifteen minutes. Dwell time kills the mycelium; scrubbing only spreads the spores.
4. Brush it away. Along the joint, then rinse with water.
5. Dry completely. A hairdryer or an open door for several hours — this is a required step, not a suggestion.
6. Check a week later. If the black is showing again, the source of moisture is still there and repeating the treatment is pointless.

Method 2 — silicone joints

Mould grows into silicone and no product will reach it there: the surface bleaches and turns black again within a month. The only working answer is to cut the old silicone out with a craft knife, dry the joint for a day and apply new sanitary silicone with a fungicide additive. An hour of work that lasts several years.

Method 3 — without chlorine

If the smell of chlorine is unacceptable, neat 3 % hydrogen peroxide works: apply, leave twenty minutes, brush away. It is weaker than chlorine on old patches but safer on coloured surfaces and gives off no caustic fumes. Vinegar in this role is prevention rather than cure: it slows growth but does not kill the mycelium.

What to avoid

• Mixing chlorine with acid or ammonia. It releases a toxic gas. The most dangerous mistake in household cleaning.
• Painting over mould. It grows on beneath the paint and lifts the coating from within.
• Brushing dry mould without treating it. Spores scatter through the flat and settle in other damp places.
• Assuming the extractor works. Test it: hold a sheet of paper to the grille. If it does not stick, there is no draw, and the mould will return.

Where the moisture comes from

Three typical sources, all checkable in ten minutes. First, a dead extract: the duct is blocked or was sealed off during a neighbour's refurbishment. Second, no gap under the bathroom door: without incoming air the extractor cannot work even with a clear duct. Third, a cold external wall: steam condenses on it, and on a ground or top floor this happens more often.

Until the source is dealt with, any cleaning postpones the problem by a few weeks, and it is fairer to say so than to sell repeat treatments.

When to call a cleaner

Cleaning removes mould from surfaces, and as part of a bathroom that is routine work: bathroom cleaning costs from UAH 450 and is included in a flat clean from UAH 1,550. But the limit matters: we treat what is on the surface and do not deal with ventilation, silicone replacement or wall repairs. If mould returns every month you need a damp specialist rather than a cleaner, and we will say that plainly instead of coming a third time for the same result.

Frequently asked questions

What kills bathroom mould?

A chlorine-based product or 3 % peroxide with fifteen to twenty minutes on a dry surface, followed by thorough drying.

Why does mould come back on silicone?

It grows inside the joint. Surface treatment cannot reach it — the silicone is cut out and replaced.

Is ventilation enough on its own?

For prevention yes, for existing mould no. Treatment first, then dryness — otherwise the mycelium survives.