I don’t like mould that grows on silicon in baths and showers and doesn’t come off. I’ve tried vinegar, bleach, elbow-grease, baking soda, and regular shower cleaner but it stubbornly remains. In the past we’ve paid a plumber to come and remove it and reapply fresh silicon. But over time the mould returns and we have to do it all over again.
We’ve been in lockdown for four months and although I think plumbers are still working I decided to give it a try myself. It’s something I’ve always wanted to be able to do. The hard part is removing the old silicon and then applying the fresh silicon in a neat line. I didn’t do a particularly good job of either but as my first attempt the result is not bad and I’ll definitely do it myself again next time.
Here’s the bath before.
It’s not a huge amount of mould but it’s ugly and spoils an otherwise lovely bathroom.
I used this tool to scrape away the old stuff.
One of the advantages to doing it myself is I was able to give it a really good clean underneath the silicon before applying fresh stuff. This is something the plumbers don’t do.
Once it was clean and dry I applied fresh silicon.
It’s a bit messy but you can get special tools to slide over the top to create a smooth line.
And now, voila, it looks like this. Much better.
rachel.blog 
Gosh, isn’t that mould terrible stuff? The worse of it is, even the tiniest amount is so visible and it’s so easy to set in. I’m lucky that I don’t seem to get it in this flat like I did in the house. Your bathroom looks great now.
I hope I don’t have to deal with it again for a good long while. I wonder what your trick is with the flat? Let me know if you figure it out.
That mould is such a pain. However, I believe that in newer bathrooms it’s not necessary to silicone the edge anymore. The panels on the shower or bath are glued right down to the bottom, so that water doesn’t get in underneath them. This (apparently) eliminates the need for silicone, and also the resulting mould from it. This is how the shower in my new flat has been done – I’ll let you know in a few years’ time whether it has worked 🙂
That is very good news! I hate silicone. It’s messy, sticky stuff. I’d love to dispense with having to use it.
In my experience, there are no perfect answers to this type of mould problem. It is a case of mitigation and adaption.
The measures I have used are:
Use the best anti-mould silicone, which, from the picture, you are;
Make sure the bathroom is well ventilated, particularly after use;
Wipe down and dry after use. You can train yourself to do this. Results from trying to train the rest of the household may vary;
When the mould does start to come back, the only way of getting rid of it is to use a chlorine based anti-mould spray. The longer you delay in tackling the mould, the more of the spray you will need to use, more times and for longer duration.
I am not keen on using chlorine based sprays, particularly as we have a septic tank, but I have to say that they are effective.
Good luck!
Thanks, Mike. I was thinking about drying the silicon after each shower. I might get a system in place to train the family to do that. I don’t like using chlorine bleaches either.