> So, Mike. I live in the south - where heat and moisture are
> common, especially in the summer. At least a couple times every
> summer, I find a mold patch or two on my shower curtain, where it
> folds together when the shower is not in use. I keep a spray
> bottle of bleach right in the shower area so I can spray these as
> soon as I spot them, then I rinse the area with clean water as
> soon as the mold disappears from the shower curtain. The shower
> curtain, incidentally, is vinyl. Are you saying that I when I do
> this, I haven't killed the mold? That the spores remain alive? If
> so, then where are they? MA
Hi MaryAnn,
Boy, this is the perfect example of how the list archives would
help. I posted a detailed analysis of mold growth long ago, and
spent considerable time finding the links with the best pictures to
illustrate the various components. All I would have to do is find
the post, which is easy in google or mail-archive, check the links
to make sure they are still valid, and post the link with a brief
message. It is starting to look like that might be possible again.
In the meantime, I also keep a squeeze bottle with bleach in the
shower, and spray it on the mold when it starts becoming noticeable.
I don't bother rinsing, but let the bleach dry into crystals. These
wash away the next time I take a shower. But like you, the mold
always comes back.
There are three components to mold: the invisible spores which
propagate the plant, the visible part that you can see on the
surface, and a hidden part called the hyphae, which you cannot see.
The hyphae is buried in whatever the mold is growing on, like the
root of a tree.
Bleach will kill the visible part on the surface, but as far as I
can tell, it has no effect on the spores. The channels made by the
hyphae are too small for bleach to penetrate, so it can't kill the
root portion.
So when you apply bleach to a surface, you only kill the visible
part.
The spores continue to germinate, and the hyphae start growing back
immediately.
In addition, new spores continually arrive. If they are the same
kind of mold, they will probably start growing. If they are a
different kind, they may not survive the toxins produced by the
existing mold. This is the effect that led to the discovery of
penicillin by Fleming in 1928, as well as Tyndall in 1875, Duchesne
in 1897, and Picado between 1915 and 1927.
The mold coats the spores with toxins to destroy any competition. We
are just the collateral damage in their biological warfare.
However, I am excited by the recent post by Pat and my private
emailer concerning chlorine dioxide. If this works as well to
inhibit mold as it does for libraries, it might be the perfect
solution for people with severe mold allergies.
But it would have to be a multiple approach. Put the packets in
various rooms to kill the spores, and make a closet into a sealed
chamber to hang bedding. Hopefully the chlorine dioxide will
penetrate the fabric and kill the spores. I'm trying to locate some
right now, and will report the results to the list.
More news later,
Mike M.
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