Bleach is the cleaning product of choice for many people. Its versatility makes it a common ‘go-to’ cleaning product as it is effective for everything from removing stains from clothes to disinfecting counters or baby bottles. But there are times when using bleach is less than ideal, especially when dealing with molds. Using bleach on walls, floors, or even windowsills to eradicate mold may work in the short run but it requires much more work than you’d think, and can lead to future problems.

For any cleaning method to be a permanent solution, the source of the mold needs to be addressed. We recommend hiring a good Industrial Hygienist and General Contractor to track down and solve the originating issue before any clean up takes place.

For large and small projects, before you can even begin work, proper safety equipment must be used – goggles, gloves, and ventilation masks. As a noxious chemical, bleach is known to cause skin and lung issues, especially when large quantities are used. For bigger projects, the constant presence of bleach in the environment can be a huge liability and safety hazard.

In addition, if you’re working on a carpeted surface, it is absolutely essential to protect the floor with a plastic ground cover, or else you risk bleach dripping, staining, and ruining the carpet.

One of the more difficult aspects of using bleach against mold is that mold grows especially well on wet surfaces, and bleach contains a lot of water. Water must be used to rinse the surface after bleaching. Not enough water and/or bleach, and you risk off gassing into the environment or not removing the entire mold, but too much water and/or bleach and the mold grows back.

Even with all of these risks, bleach is not a guaranteed solution and can cause more problems than it solves. For instance, since wood is a porous substance, it is not recommended for use with bleach. Bleach can alter the color of some woods, and may weaken the integrity of the wood. Mold can also be below the surface of wood or other substances. In these cases, bleach wouldn’t even solve the problem since it can’t penetrate the surface of wood, drywall, or other substances that could be hiding mold.

As an alternative to bleach, we recommend dry ice blasting to get rid of mold. It is environmentally safe, inexpensive, leaves very little mess, and is ideal for cleaning machinery and other metals, in addition to woods. Dry ice is the only product that can reach deep down and eliminate mold even in porous substances.

After the use of dry ice, a mold remediation verification test must be performed in order to ensure that the mold spores are in fact eliminated. And, after two years of using dry ice to eliminate mold, Crystal Soda Blast has seen a 100% success rate. If you have questions about removing mold in your home or office, contact Crystal Soda Blast and we’d be happy to help.

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