How to De-mould a Wardrobe?

[BlueStringPudding]

My built-in wardrobe on the boat has gone mouldy. I've emptied it and binned all the clothes that aren't salvageable. The rest are all going to the launderette to get rid of the musty smell.

 

Thing is the wardrobe itself still smells of mould. The bottom half of it is lined with acrylic carpet and the top half with vinyl wallpaper. I've got some socks filled with cat litter to help with excess moisture in the future, but what can I do to get rid of the mould and smell before all my clothes come back from being cleaned? The carpet lining is making me think that bleach won't be usable (and it doesn't come off). Any suggestions?

[Grebe]

It probably started from wet garments being put in there. Throwing away is probably the best thing for the garments. I'm unable to offer much advice on the 'soft' furnishings.

 

Ventilation into the wardrobe should help with a long-lasting fix. You may have to make some holes and fit some grilles.

 

Can you get a dehumidifier into the wardrobe?

[Sweeny Todd]

sponge clean with vinegar and warm water. Vinegar helps get rid of the smell and will do the same as bleach for cleaning. Also, bicarb of soda or baking powder will get rid of the smell and absorb the moisture.

[BlueStringPudding]

It probably started from wet garments being put in there. Throwing away is probably the best thing for the garments. I'm unable to offer much advice on the 'soft' furnishings.

 

Ventilation into the wardrobe should help with a long-lasting fix. You may have to make some holes and fit some grilles.

 

Can you get a dehumidifier into the wardrobe?

Thanks for your reply. I've binned a lot already. I have no means of powering a dehumidifier. Nor do I have a dehumidifier unfortunately

sponge clean with vinegar and warm water. Vinegar helps get rid of the smell and will do the same as bleach for cleaning. Also, bicarb of soda or baking powder will get rid of the smell and absorb the moisture.

Good thinking, thanks. I'll try both.

[cereal tiller]

Thanks for your reply. I've binned a lot already. I have no means of powering a dehumidifier. Nor do I have a dehumidifier unfortunately

 

Good thinking, thanks. I'll try both.

Does the wardrobe have vents top and bottom?

 

CT

[BlueStringPudding]

Does the wardrobe have vents top and bottom?

 

CT

In classic Black Prince style, the door doesn't go all the way up to the ceiling. However that end of the bedroom gets mould appearing on the wooden bed base and internal door too. It's a condensation thing I think because there's nowhere for water ingress, and it happens low down only where it's cold. The mould is little dry beige spots which wipe off easily on those surfaces (not a heavy duty black or wet mould)

 

The wardrobe door is almost always slightly ajar but I do often store stuff in front of it which may well affect air circulation.

 

Basically that end of the bedroom is the halfway point between the warm end of the boat (where the stove is) and the cold end. I need to use my Taylor's heater more which is in the next cabin along, to reduce the contrast between hot and cold ends of the boat in winter which might help.

[Chertsey]

I'd be inclined to get rid of the carpet and the wallpaper :-(

[BlueStringPudding]

I'd be inclined to get rid of the carpet and the wallpaper :-(

The carpet doesn't come off, annoyingly. I know from trying to remove some in the past that it's held on with what looks like tile adhesive which destroys the OSB if you try to pull the carpet off. And anyway, in theory it's extra insulation as the wardrobe is against an exterior wall. In theory...

Edited September 29, 2016 by BlueStringPudding

[chubby]

Aswell as a number of grilles for ventillation , how about some of those disposable dehumidifier bag things that have a hook for hanging up . Ebay or Amazon have these and i use them myself in cupboards over the winter ?

Edited September 29, 2016 by chubby

[BlueStringPudding]

Aswell as a number of grilles for ventillation , how about some of those disposable dehumidifier bag things that have a hook for hanging up . Ebay or Amazon have these and i use them myself in cupboards over the winter ?

Ooh, I've not heard of those. I'll look them up. Thanks

[rustydiver]

Or paint over the wallpaper with anti mould paint I used some off the wicks own brand a few yes ago on the ceiling at home and it does what it says on the tin.

Don't know if it will be off any use on a boat.

[chubby]

I just googled " disposable dehumidifier ebay " and there were wardrobe type with a hook that i use & also the type that have a tub . Definately worth a punt and they do work as once theyve collected the water from the air the little bag of crystals fills with water and when full you bin it .

 

If the wardrobe is very full will that possibly affect the ability for air to circulate ?

Can ventillation be forced using computer fans for several hours a day ??

[ditchcrawler]

Frebreeze may help to remove the smell but a long time cure

[Bettie Boo]

As someone else has already mentioned - a small bowl of bicarb of soda will absorb the musty smell quite effectively

 

I've found soda works a lot better then bicarb of powder

[MoominPapa]

In classic Black Prince style, the door doesn't go all the way up to the ceiling. However that end of the bedroom gets mould appearing on the wooden bed base and internal door too. It's a condensation thing I think because there's nowhere for water ingress, and it happens low down only where it's cold. The mould is little dry beige spots which wipe off easily on those surfaces (not a heavy duty black or wet mould)

 

The wardrobe door is almost always slightly ajar but I do often store stuff in front of it which may well affect air circulation.

 

Basically that end of the bedroom is the halfway point between the warm end of the boat (where the stove is) and the cold end. I need to use my Taylor's heater more which is in the next cabin along, to reduce the contrast between hot and cold ends of the boat in winter which might help.

 

Our main wardrobe has an electric greenhouse-style tube heater in the bottom. This was fitted when we bought the boat, but I've added guards to protect it from direct contact with fabric, and a thermostat. It's only of any use when on shore-power, of course, (so not directly applicable to BSPs problem) We've never had problems with mould on stuff in the wardrobe. We did once get problems with mould on shoes stored in a equivalent cupboard on the other side which doesn't have a heater.

 

MP.

[Arthur Brown]

If you have mains or run a generator often then a dehumidifier (B&Q £200 200w as an example) will solve the dampness issue, I use one often in my house.

Silica Gel (indicating or not) will get rid of dampness but you will need a lot of it on a boat (maybe a couple of kilos) if it's in moderate sachets then you can bake one to dry it daily (or so).

 

Commercial de-mould sprays are available, spray everything thoroughly. White vinegar, and Bicarb solution are good to remove lingering smells.

 

Probably you could re-route a hot pipe from the heater to have some real warmth in the wardrobe to assist it staying dry and mould free.

[Tiggs]

We had two 28mm pipes, part of the central heating system running through the main wardrobe and never had any such problems - if you can contrive to fit a small radiator just a couple of heating pipes inside the bottom rear and add some vents at the top and bottom, that should sort it.

[BlueStringPudding]

sponge clean with vinegar and warm water. Vinegar helps get rid of the smell and will do the same as bleach for cleaning. Also, bicarb of soda or baking powder will get rid of the smell and absorb the moisture.

The vinegar has helped already. Time to dig out the bicarb.

[tree monkey]

The vinegar has helped already. Time to dig out the bicarb.

But I bet your craving chips now

[David Mack]

The carpet doesn't come off, annoyingly. I know from trying to remove some in the past that it's held on with what looks like tile adhesive which destroys the OSB if you try to pull the carpet off. And anyway, in theory it's extra insulation as the wardrobe is against an exterior wall. In theory...

 

You might be better adding another layer of insulation on top of the carpet. Use something like kingspan or cellotex, and perhaps front it with painted/varnished plywood. With more insulation you will get less condensation, but you still need ventilation and/or some heat.

[Robbo]

In classic Black Prince style, the door doesn't go all the way up to the ceiling. However that end of the bedroom gets mould appearing on the wooden bed base and internal door too. It's a condensation thing I think because there's nowhere for water ingress, and it happens low down only where it's cold. The mould is little dry beige spots which wipe off easily on those surfaces (not a heavy duty black or wet mould)

 

The wardrobe door is almost always slightly ajar but I do often store stuff in front of it which may well affect air circulation.

 

Basically that end of the bedroom is the halfway point between the warm end of the boat (where the stove is) and the cold end. I need to use my Taylor's heater more which is in the next cabin along, to reduce the contrast between hot and cold ends of the boat in winter which might help.

Also introduce air flow into the boat, this will benefit in heating the boat more evenly and reducing condensation.

[Dyertribe]

To keep things smelling nice I've been using Lenor Unstoppables "granules" (you're supposed to put them in the washing machine) in those little organza bags that gifts come in and hanging them on the hanging rail in the wardrobe. The fragrance lasts for weeks.

It won't stop the mould but will help with the musty smell.

[Chertsey]

To keep things smelling nice I've been using Lenor Unstoppables "granules" (you're supposed to put them in the washing machine) in those little organza bags that gifts come in and hanging them on the hanging rail in the wardrobe. The fragrance lasts for weeks.

It won't stop the mould but will help with the musty smell.

I use a Lush Karma bubble bar as my in-wardrobe pot pourri, sat in a saucer on the bottom. Every so often I replace it with a new one and use the old one for its intended purpose.

[Richard10002]

The carpet doesn't come off, annoyingly. I know from trying to remove some in the past that it's held on with what looks like tile adhesive which destroys the OSB if you try to pull the carpet off. And anyway, in theory it's extra insulation as the wardrobe is against an exterior wall. In theory...

 

What's the OSB? If its the board behind the carpet, perhaps that needs to go aswell, and a new piece fitted. The carpet and wallpaper will be full of mould spores, and you need to get rid of them to solve the problem. Anything else will be merely masking things until it returns - IMHO.

[MissMax]

The pound shop sells things that absorb water from the air and traps it in containers. Just replace when full I have four on the boat, seem to work ok