Running your pink-tinged curtain through the washing machine on a gentle wash cycle with warm water effectively removes Serratia marcescens bacteria and any associated stains. Shower curtains are a popular hangout for pink mold since they’re seldom cleaned and usually riddled with soap and shampoo residue. To remove pink mold on a shower curtain, sanitize the curtain in the washing machine. Use a soft-bristled scrub brush to lightly scrub down the sprayed areas, rinse once more, and dry the shower surfaces with a clean towel or squeegee. Spray the solution directly over the surfaces you’ve scrubbed and let the solution sit for 10 minutes. Pour 6 ounces each of chlorine bleach powder and warm water into a 12-ounce spray bottle, then replace the cap and gently shake the bottle. Bleach is your best bet since it does double-duty to kill the last of the bacteria and dissolve stubborn stains left in its wake. It’s not enough to simply scrub away the color you need to disinfect the surface to remove any lingering bacteria to prevent its return. Prevent pink mold in the shower from returning by disinfecting any surfaces on which you saw the mold. When you’re finished scrubbing, rinse away any loosened biofilm by either wiping down the scrubbed areas with a wet towel or turning on and detaching the shower head to flush the slime down the drain. This process should loosen and lift the biofilm. countertops, shower chairs, doors, and tile and grout lines on walls and floors). Suit up in gloves, protective glasses, and a respirator mask to limit your exposure to the bacteria, then dip the bristles of a soft-bristle scrub brush into the prepared paste and vigorously scrub down any visible patches of biofilm on hard surfaces in the shower (e.g. Start by mixing up a slightly runny paste consisting of ¼ cup baking soda and 1 tablespoon of liquid dish soap in a small bowl. The stubborn biofilm of Serratia marcescens can only be removed through agitation and elbow grease. Photo: Suit up and use baking soda to scrub the biofilm off of hard bathroom surfaces. Using basic household cleaners and the techniques outlined here, you can get rid of pink mold in bathtub and shower surfaces-and keep it from coming back. Better safe than sorry: It’s best to remove the biofilm before the bacteria multiply and your exposure to it increases.įortunately, learning how to get rid of pink mold in the shower is easy: You should have no difficulty in finding it, because the light pink to dark red coloring (a result of the pigment the pink bacteria in your shower produces) makes it easy to spot and remove from shower, walls, floors, countertops, shower doors, and curtain liners. The severity and variety of these ailments increases in individuals with compromised immune systems. While it’s harmless to most healthy people whose skin may brush up against the pink grime in a narrow shower, it can cause various ailments (e.g., urinary tract or bladder infections) if it enters the body through the eyes or open wounds. Can pink mold in the shower make me sick? The airborne bacterial species thrives in moist environments like showers, where it feeds on mineral deposits in soap scum and fatty deposits in soap and shampoo residue. What is “pink mold,” then? The discoloration comes from a biofilm-that is, a bacterial colony-of Serratia marcescens. What is the deal with this pink grout? How do I get rid of it?Ī: Unlike run-of-the-mill green molds like Cladosporium, or the infamous toxic black mold, Stachybotrys chartarum, the pink staining in your shower isn’t actually mold at all. Q: As I was cleaning my bathroom the other day, I saw that there was pink mold in shower grout that I had never seen before.
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