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Tue, Sep 9, 08 at 9:01
| Hi all. Had a flood in our basement storage room. So now, after moving all boxes out, mopping up, and dehumidifying, I find that we have a little black mildew forming on the cinder block walls. Before I return everything back to that room, what do I clean this with? bleach solution?? thanks in advance! |
Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by carpetguru (My Page) on Tue, Sep 9, 08 at 9:05
| Bleach and water, scrub brush elbow grease. rinse and make sure it dries good. |
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- Posted by nicole93089 (My Page) on Tue, Sep 9, 08 at 20:12
| Thanks! I figured clorox would do the trick. Do you have any idea what proportions the solution should be? 50%water/50%bleach? thanks. |
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- Posted by michelle_phxaz (My Page) on Tue, Sep 9, 08 at 20:57
| 1/4 bleach to 3/4 water. Then use box fans to help dry the space for several days; basements are hard to dry out, so give it extra time. |
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| Even ten percent bleach to 90 percent water is good for sanitizing/killing germs viruses and odors. |
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- Posted by nicole93089 (My Page) on Wed, Sep 10, 08 at 21:36
| Thanks everyone. I'll fill the old spray bottle tomorrow with the mixture and kill the black stuff. |
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| Once you've washed with the bleach solution the bigger issue is drying the air and a dehumidifier is NOT the way to do it. As michelle said, use fans and keep the air moving - that's the most critical part. If you're in a climate where you'd be using an air conditioner, make sure it's on - that pulls moisture out of the air far more effectively than a dehumidifier. I've spent the entire weekend doing the same thing in my niece's basement and we'll have fans running for days before we move anything back. |
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- Posted by nicole93089 (My Page) on Mon, Sep 15, 08 at 18:22
| Thanks for the info dlm2000. I just finished scrubbing the walls and have a big fan on the area. The AC is on too so should do the trick. It looks much better in there and even smells better :) Thanks all! |
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- Posted by chambleemama (My Page) on Thu, Sep 18, 08 at 8:17
| Once it's dry, use a clean garden sprayer to coat the entire area with No More Mildew. We've used it with good results. After all you've done, it's worth it, just to make really sure. |
Here is a link that might be useful: No More Mildew
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- Posted by snowflakelover (My Page) on Sun, Oct 19, 08 at 18:28
| I agree, a fan is the best way because it keeps the air moving which keeps the mold spores from landing and multiplying to cause the icky black patches. Use a bleach and water solution, doesn't really matter proportions, bleach will kill all, then use fans to dry. Once completely dry, think about painting your basement with a glossy anti-fungal paint. It costs a little more than regular paint, but if your basement floods again, you won't have the mold problem again. Plus, the paint will brighten up any basement. |
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