How to Prevent Bathroom Mold?

If the proper measures aren’t in place, your bathroom could quickly turn from a comforting, inviting space into a mold-infested nightmare. This is largely because bathrooms often regularly harbor the right ingredients for mold growth – moisture, humidity and heat. You know that fog on the mirror after you finish with a nice hot shower? Yeah, if that moisture and humidity isn’t properly managed, it could wind up in mold growth.

While this post might sound dire, don’t fret – mold growth is entirely preventable in the bathroom. And for some even better news – it’s also fairly easy to prevent. Here’s a look at some things that you need to be absolutely sure of in your bathroom when it comes to preventing mold growth:

• An adequate fan: In order to make mold growth difficult, you have to eliminate the moisture and humidity from the bathroom. For this, you’ll need a working, adequate bath fan that vents dampness out of the home. But it’s important to have the right kind of bath fan. For instance, bath vent fans are measured in cfm, or cubic feet per minute. As a general rule of thumb, you want the cfm of the bath fan to be about equal to the bath’s square footage. So for a 70 square foot bathroom, make sure you have at least a 70 cfm fan. Be sure to run the fan while you bathe and for 20-30 minutes afterwards.
• Seal grout lines annually: Have tile in your bathroom? Make sure you waterproof the grout lines at least once a year with a good sealer.
• Remove water from shower walls: While most of the water finds its way down the bath drain, it’s common for some residue to remain on the bath walls. Simply take a moment to squeegee it off the walls to eliminate the moisture that may harbor mold growth.
• Caulk: Make sure you caulk around toilets and the bathtub to prevent any water from getting where it’s not supposed to go. Not only might you end up with mold growth if you fail to do so, but potentially extensive water damage as well.