Getting Mold Out of the Shower–Before & After

EDIT:  This post, which started out with about 6 comments from my followers when first posted back in 2012, has now gone viral on Pinterest - as of 2/24/16 it has received well over 5 million views! Insanity.  Clearly I am NOT alone in my quest to get rid of the moldy grout. :)  I simply shared my story of removing my nasty, embarrassing mold from my window-less bathroom.  I am not a contractor, a plumber, or any kind of house expert.  I'm just a stay-at-home-mom with a mold problem in her shower that wanted to get rid of it before her mother-in-law came to visit. :)  I used to respond to comments on this post, but there are simply too many for me to keep up with.  Using bleach is not for everyone, so I encourage you to make your own decision about whether this will work in your house - I simply shared what worked for me.  Thank you for stopping by and I hope you'll poke around This Blessed Life a little while you are here!  Have a great day. :)

{And as a VERY important disclaimer....if you have old caulking, like I did, REPLACE IT! We have since replaced ours since I wrote this post years ago.  Using the bleach is a temporary solution, but I highly recommend replacing it or hiring a professional so that you don't have water come through behind your shower wall!} 

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I’m lowering my pride today and showing you something only because I think it will help others in my predicament. 

Okay, are you with me? :)

When we first moved into our new house last May, the shower was pristine.  The woman who lived here had 5 little boys, was pregnant with the 6th, homeschooled, and the house was always ridiculously clean and uncluttered.  I can’t decide if she was crazy or superwoman – or maybe a touch of both. :)

Anyway, over about 6 months, mold started to creep in on the grout along the shower.  It kept spreading and spreading, and there was really nothing I could do because my husband told me not to scrub too hard or else the grout would disappear and then we’ve have mold inside the walls and then we’d have real problems, not just cosmetic ones. 

Then one day while browsing Pinterest I came across a post that showed how to get rid of shower mold with just two simple items: bleach and cotton beauty coils, used for perms.  (I am SO sorry to the smart person behind this idea but I do not have the original link – I also apologize for how dark these photos are but our bathroom doesn’t have a window.)

So I went to Sally’s Beauty supply and picked up a package. I’m pretty sure it was only $1.99 – and I already had bleach, obviously, so this project only cost $2! Whoo hoo!

Here is the before shot (barf - remember, our bathroom has no window since it's in the interior of our house, so it's pretty dark in there and it's not like sunlight can beam into the shower all day long):

I cut a piece of the cotton coil, soaked it in bleach, and let it sit overnight on the mold.  (Tip: I put a disposable pie pan in the tub, poured the bleach in the pan, then soaked the cotton in there before transferring it to the mold – helps with the dripping!  Then I just used a q-tip to press it into the mold so I wouldn’t get bleach on my fingers):

Look at the difference just on that little bit!  Isn’t that incredible?!

And here’s a picture after I was finished - I ran the fan ALL NIGHT LONG to ventilate:

A-mazing!!  I did this almost two months ago, and the mold has not returned – but it’s so awesome to know that if it does, I know what to do now!

Hopefully this helps someone else out there who just can’t get rid of the mold in their own shower.  Don’t judge me too harshly – I promise I really do keep a clean house otherwise! Although seeing these pictures makes me realize that the walls of my shower could really use a good scrubbing.  This is the trouble with a bathroom that doesn’t have a window in it – you don’t see things very clearly.  Okay, I guess I know what my next project is! lol

Linking up to: Homemaker’s Challenge