Black mold is actually a form of fungus that thrives in dim or dark places. It also requires enough humidity to grow and form its structure.
This can happen in your toilet bowl or even in your toilet tank, depending on certain factors that take place.
It only needs a few short nights and days to grow before it starts to look like a mess. But how to get rid of black mold in toilet?
With the help of vinegar and a scrub, you can remove mold within a few minutes. We’ll flesh out the entire process for you below.
What Causes Black Mold in Toilet Bowl?
While mold is not necessarily specific to color, it may come in the hue of pink or even black. In this case, normally, the black mold can be found just under the rim of the toilet seat.
Because the washroom of any household is the perfect place for its growth.
Due to high levels of humidity in washrooms, it’s not very difficult for the fungus pores to be born and take host into the toilet. Still water inside the bowl is also another factor that helps the fungi to thrive.
Can Black Mold Grow in the Toilet?
If the toilet is not being used frequently or the flush function is not being used, then it may create rust stains in the toilet or black mold.
Other reasons can be rusted pipes, or even something as uncontrollable as the pH of one’s urine can be a contributing factor as to why mold can appear or grow in certain places. This can be due to what your sugar intake is, as molds love sugar.
A house containing a diabetic patient is more likely to cause mold in the toilet than someone who has no diabetic symptoms. Mold can also grow in the tank from not being used frequently, as the tank may tend to heat up and become a breeding ground for the mold.
Is Black Mold in the Toilet/Toilet Tank Dangerous?
Black mold can prove to be dangerous for your health if you let it grow and remain exposed to it for a longer duration.
Black mold has been known to cause things such as rashes, fatigue, headache, nausea.
You can also read the article on: How To Clean Toilet Tank Perfectly
Can Mold in the Toilet Make You Sick?
As I mentioned before, if left untreated, long exposures to mold can lead to serious damage to one’s health.
It can also completely weaken your immune system. So, mold can make you very sick but not quickly.
What Should You Wear When Removing Toilet Mildew
As prescribed by the CDC and EPA, when dealing with small-scale mold extermination, the minimum requirement is that the person wears PPE or personal protective equipment and covers everything from head to toe.
Optionally one can also wear eye goggles if need be.
A respirator or mask that is rated to protect you from germs and pores alike for your own respiratory safety and rubber gloves, preferably long ones.
Latex gloves might still do the trick for small mold removals, but it is still advised to use rubber ones due to the structural integrity of latex being questionable next to rubber.
What Tools You Need to Remove Black Mold from a Toilet?
Aside from the safety gear, if you’re thinking about getting rid of the black mold yourself, then you might also need a handheld steamer, a spray bottle, vinegar, toilet bowl cleaner, bleach, and a toilet bowl scrubber.
How to Get Rid of Black Mold from Toilet?
First and foremost, you must identify what type of mold is occurring in your washroom.
It could easily be mildew instead of black mold. While both of these are kin and alike, they are not the same. Mildew, unlike black mold, has fewer chances of causing health issues to those exposed to it.
For the first step, you must flush the toilet and get rid of any excess water. Use a steam cleaner, preferably a handheld one, to steam just below the rim and part of the hinges should there be any rust there to loosen it.
Then, use a spray bottle filled with vinegar and spray it onto the visible mold stains. After that, get a scrubber to vigorously scrub off the mold or mildew.
Use the steamer and pressured water to wash off the lingering stains, and then flush them away! If you still see the stains persisting, then repeat this process a couple of times.
How to Prevent Black Mold in the Toilet Bowl?
A viable solution is to use bleach in the tank and flushing a couple of times to get rid of any remaining residue of mold in your toilet system.
However, there are also other subtle ways to prevent the growth of mold, such as when taking a shower, always turn on the exhaust so as not to humidify the washroom too much or for long periods of time.
One could also use a bathroom dehumidifier if they do not have an open window or exhaust. Alternatively, you can also add vinegar to your tank every few weeks if you’re really scared of a recurring outbreak happening in the bathroom.
Fix any leaks you may have, and if the toilet is not being used frequently, at the very least, be sure to use the flush anyway to steer clear of still water.
Conclusion
It only takes a bit of reading and a few easy techniques and tools to get rid of black mold in the toilet. Not to mention that the prevention of black mold coming back is twice as easy as clearing it out.
So, a quick tip from an expert is if your house or specifically your toilets do not contain black mold yet, then just do the prevention parts. It would save you a few bucks and a lot of time and hassle. Good luck with your next mini home outbreak!
