How Does Mildew Remover Work?

Yesterday I used Kilroc mildew remover on our bathroom blind. They get wound up wet and contaminated with shampoo/conditioner that creates a home for the foul mould.

Given half an hour or so it was like new, except for a few spots I'd missed and got second time around. Last time I gave up and bought a new blind!

It seems to have dissolved the mildew, which I thought was impossible because the spores are keratin and almost impervious to attack by bleaches, alkalis and acids. Yet it's non-toxic - I wonder if it uses enzymes - there seem to be such products for hair removal!

It also worked on some patches of discoloured grout.

If its the blast away mould spray , it contains bleach.

Neil,

At the risk of recommending the obvious source of information:

Here's the 2010 version of the MSDS **LINK**

https://www.e-secure.biz/documents/897FG425JU/Mildew%20&%20Mould%20Cleaner%20Bottled%20RTU.pdf

'though of course that may be superseded by a modern version that doesn't work.

MichaelG.

Michael, thats if thats the product ,if its this **LINK**

then its basically bleach.

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Accepted, Mark

Common problem, I'm afraid

... Product identified by its genus, but not its species !!

[ we have seen this many times with "Loctite" ]

MichaelG.

Michael,

Nice to see you posting again

Rod

Problem is, those two ingredients are a fungi/bactericide and a wetting agent. While the latter may help unstick spores, neither would cause black mould to 'disappear'.

Actually, it's this product:

www.kilrock.co.uk/productDetail.asp?PID=37805&categoryID=1862

The problem is they have loads of similar products, and this one seems to be only a consumer product without a MSDS. there is a gel 'banish that mould' but it's a hypochlorite bleach/caustic soda that is definitely NOT the product above.

Neil

Most mould killers are just dressed up bleach. I've read that it does not kill the mould, as you have said, but it bleaches the mould white so you can't see it. Eventually it grows back of course, then you buy some more of the wonderful mould "killer" and do it all again.

Here in the wet tropics (8 foot of rain a year) we have to get the outside of the house washed down with mould "killer" every couple of years and the bloke who does ours uses a mix of commercial bleach and household detergent. He tells me that's what they all use.

If you want to actually kill the mould the only thing I have heard of is called "Thieves Mixture" , a combination of clove oil, lemon oil, cinnamon, eucalyptus oil and rosemary oil. Never tried it though as the ingredients are too expensive large quantities.

From Neil's link it says just that

"...Effectively removes black and brown stains caused by mould fungus and algae" Removes the stains not the source.

We buy the stuff by the gallon down here.

Pete

Most of the Aussie home DIY sites recommend against using commercial products as they are mainly bleach-based and will not kill mould on porous surfaces. Best thing I've found is ordinary household vinegar. Mix in ratio of about 8 parts vinegar to 2 parts water and wash the affected area. It might need a little scrubbing. Repeat if necessary. Make sure you rinse your cleaning cloth in a separate bucket containing a weaker vinegar solution to prevent recontamination. If you want to neutralise the very mild residual acetic acid from the vinegar then you could wash afterwards with a weak bi-carb solution but I've not found that necessary on walls and ceilings.

Here is a link to a story which explains how vinegar works:

http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2011/02/25/3149028.htm

I'm sure if you searched the internet you would find many other sites endorsing the use of vinegar. Some people add essential oils to mask the vinegar smell but i found it dissipates naturally soon enough.

HTH

Rather than using ordinary household vinegar (which contains caramel and other mould foodstuffs) - unless pickling (spirit) vinegar - if you must, buy in ethanoic acid and dilute it to the same strength. Saves one buying water.

They have two products with similar names. One is a bleach with sodium hypochlorite and sodium hydroxide, the other (which I used) contains a fungicide and a wetting agent, both at ~<1% rather than a bleach - it is also labelled non-toxic and has no hazard symbols, unlike the bleach based version.

If it had acetic acid or ethanoic aciod in it, teh MSDS woudl mention it. I think it has a chitinase in it.

So I'm still in the dark as to WHAT it is in the non-bleach version that removes the mould. Having tried spray bleach to minimal effect on several occasions, whatever it is is the 'mild version' works far better.

Neil

Neil,

I replied to GP 1's post just above mine. No relevance to bleach.

Chlorine based bleaches need to remain alkaline as chlorine gas will be produced in acid conditions. Ozone bleaches are often likely used as they are better, in some ways, than chlorine based products.

Chitinase will be an enzyme which breaks down chitin (the clue is the ending of 'ase'. That should mean that mould spores are destroyed. The spores are very difficult to kill off as they are resistant to many conditions found in nature - and a good few man-made ones, too.

Benzalkonium chloride has been used as a surface active biocide for at least 45 years. IIRC It works against bacteria and fungi by disrupting the bonds in cell walls. It's also a pretty good detergent, which can be helpful in this use.

Neil,

your linked product claims to remove the mould from silicone round showers. If it works I want some, as I'm fed up of digging out the old silicone and replacing it. Have you tried it on this application?

I saw a video somewhere on youtube, showing use of bleach to get rid of black mould on bath silicone sealant. Basically, it requires a long soak time, it is no good just wiping it on. I guess the mould takes a long time to grow, and goes deeper than just the top of the silicone, similarly it takes a while for the bleach to get in.

So I used toilet paper folded to make a small fillet on the silcone between the bath and tiles, soaked with a modest spray of bleach using a syringe (it only needs enough to get it reasonably wet) and pushed it place - WEAR GLOVES!

In 10 - 12 hours, my mouldy silicone was changed to almost pristine white - there were a couple of very minor spots which could be helped with a longer soak, but I was very pleased with the result! I had done a trial run on a few inches of sealant previously, just to check what would happen.

I don't know how long the silicone will stay white, but it is very good for now. Bleach used was 'real' bleach, Domestos brand in a blue bottle, this is a somewhat viscous formulation, so helpfully it does not immediately run away.

Look to find 5% sodiun hypochlorite in the ingredients, igore the ******** anionic surfactants!.

Hope this helps

Martin

Yes, and it works.

That's why I guess it has chitinase in it - I have a biology degree

That's what's so amazing about this stuff, virtually gone from silicone in less than 30 minutes.

N.

Edited By Neil Wyatt on 13/08/2017 20:42:48

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What a strange world we live in !

"only a consumer product without a MSDS." ...

yet it has the word PROFESSIONAL proudly displayed on the bottle.

[ their capitalisation, not me shouting ]

MichaelG.