How To Prevent and Eliminate Mildew In Your Home Using Vinegar

As home owners we sometimes encounter problems with mold and mildew and if not taken care of this can become a big dangerous problem as the mold and mildew will only continue to grow.  There are also times when certain circumstances make our homes more susceptible to mold.  But there are ways to treat mold and mildew before it gets out of hand, and ways to prevent it from even coming in to your home.  Vinegar is a nice natural way to treat and prevent mold and mildew.  Here I will provide you with some ways to use vinegar in your home to treat and prevent mildew and I will explain how to do it properly. 

Getting Rid of Mildew on Diseased Plants

You have plants but something odd is happening to them.  It looks like they have some sort of disease.  Perhaps there has been too much rain recently, and not enough time for plant to dry out sufficiently so they are beginning to grow mildew or fungus on them.  All is not lost you may be able to save your plants.  In a large spray bottle enough to hold at least a gallon.  Fill it with 1 ½ tablespoons baking soda, 1 tablespoon white vinegar, and 1 teaspoon o f vegetable oil, and fill the remainder of the bottle with water and shake really well. 

Spray the tops, bottoms, and stems of your plants.  Continue to do this every three days until the disease gone.  If it rains make sure to treat the plant after it stops raining. 

Prevent Mold and Mildew in your tub, shower, shower curtain, and Shower Door

Get a large spray bottle and fill it with 1 teaspoon of borax, 2 tablespoon of vinegar, and 2 cups hot water.  Spray in and around the bath tub, and on any tiles or bath fitter around the tub.  Also spray the shower curtain, or your entire shower stall, and the shower stall doors.  Leave it there, don’t wash it off, it will eventually evaporate.

Prevent a wet carpet and Area Rugs from Getting Mildew

If you forgot to shut the windows before a big rainstorm or there was a leak and your carpet has gotten very wet, it is essential to treat it as it is drying especially if there is a lot of humidity in the air.  The carpet could take a few days to thoroughly dry and in the mean time mildew could begin to grow.  It may be best to lift up the carpet and spray underneath it with regular white vinegar.  Place a fan on the carpet, and nail the carpet back down. 

If you are able to wash your area rug in the washer do so and put in a ¼ cup of vinegar in to the washer tub after it is filled up with water.  Hang the rug up outside to dry in the sun.

Visible Mold on clothing

This is said to work, but I tried it on a clothing item that was in my trunk that got wet and it removed some of the mildew but I ended up throwing it away.  They say to pour the vinegar on full strength on the clothing item and let it sit.  Then wash as usual. 

I once saw an article in a magazine that said to soak mildew stains in a solution of 1 cup of milk mixed 1 teaspoon of vinegar. Pour the milk on the stain and lay it out flat in the back yard on a clean dry surface, and let the sun work on it.  When it dries wash it as usual.

Mildew Smell on Laundered Clothing

If you forget to take a load of laundry out of the washer and by the time you remember it, it is smelling like mildew.  You can get that smell out easily.  Add the water and the detergent to the washer just like you are washing the clothes normally.  Leave the lid opened though.  After the water has filled up but before the washer starts rotating pour ¼ cup baking soda in, and then pour ¼ cup vinegar.  Swish it around the water with your hand a little bit then let the clothes sit in there for about a half hour.  Then wash your hands.  After the half hour clothes the lid and let it finish washing the clothes.  They should smell good as new now; if not repeat the process and let the clothing sit in the water again for a little longer this time.  They should be fine at this point.

If the clothes are white you could just use bleach after the tub fills up with water.

Cleaning Bathroom Fixtures

In bathrooms where the humidity is too high or there is poor circulation the fixtures can get mildew on them.  Clean them with full strength vinegar.  If the stains are stubborn saturate a wash cloth with vinegar and wrap It around or lay it on the mildew covered area. Allow it to sit there for about an hour and then wipe with the wash cloth, rinse with cold water, and dry with a cloth.