Your Ultimate Guide to Beating Mold for Good (And Keeping It Away)

Living in Chicago means juggling a busy schedule, and keeping your home spotless can feel like a full-time job. Between work, family, and enjoying the city, who has time to battle stubborn grime or mysterious mold? You want a clean, healthy space without the weekend-long scrubbing sessions. We get it.

Mold is more than just an eyesore; it’s a persistent problem that can affect your home’s air quality and your peace of mind. If you’ve ever scrubbed a dark spot in your shower, only to see it return a week later, you know the frustration. This guide will help you understand why mold keeps coming back and give you a clear, actionable plan to eliminate it and prevent its return.

Mold 101: It’s Not a Dirt Problem, It’s a Moisture Problem

First things first: finding mold doesn’t mean your home is dirty. Mold is a living fungus that grows where moisture is present. It feeds on humidity, leaks, condensation, or damp materials. You can find it on drywall, wood, carpet, and even dust. The goal isn’t to create a sterile environment but to manage moisture so mold spores can’t grow.

When people clean mold and it reappears, it’s because they’ve only removed the surface growth. The spores are still in the air, and if the moisture source remains, the mold will return. To find mold, look for three things: dampness, low airflow, and organic residue.

Common Mold Hotspots in Your Home

• Bathrooms: Showers, grout, caulking, and even damp towels or bathmats.
• Basements & Cold Cellars: Often damp with poor circulation—mold headquarters.
• Window Sills: Where condensation builds up, especially in Chicago winters.
• Under Sinks: Slow leaks create the perfect damp environment.
• Appliances: The rubber gaskets and filters in washing machines, dishwashers, and refrigerators.

How to Treat Mold Safely and Effectively

Safety First: Before you start, gear up with gloves and ensure the area is well-ventilated. Never mix cleaning products, especially those containing bleach.

Step 1: Remove Surface Mold

Start by scrubbing the visible mold with soapy water. Use disposable paper towels (not reusable cloths) to contain the spores, then throw them away immediately.

Step 2: Apply a Mold Remover

For stubborn stains on safe surfaces like grout or rubber gaskets, use a mold remover gel. Apply it, let it sit for 3-5 hours as directed, then wipe clean. This attacks the surface stain.

Step 3: Prevent Regrowth (The Most Important Step)

After the area is dry, spray it with a mold control product like Concrobium. This creates an invisible, safe barrier that prevents mold from returning. Reapply every few months in problem areas.

Room-by-Room Mold Prevention Strategies

Winning the Bathroom Battle

The bathroom is a constant mold magnet. Here’s your prevention routine:

• Use the Fan: Turn it on during your shower and leave it on for at least an hour after. Consider an automatic timer so you never forget.
• Squeegee: After every shower, squeegee walls and doors to send moisture down the drain and remove potential mold food (like body oils).
• Air It Out: Leave the shower door or curtain open to speed up drying.

If the battle feels endless, sometimes the best solution is to schedule a cleaning with pros who can tackle it thoroughly.

Taming the Basement

Basements need constant moisture vigilance.

• Run a dehumidifier continuously to keep the air dry.
• Treat any mold-prone areas with the clean-and-spray method mentioned above.
• Avoid storing cardboard boxes directly on the floor near walls.

For a comprehensive refresh, consider a deep cleaning help to address hidden issues.

Keeping Appliances Mold-Free

Dishwashers: Clean the filter and gasket regularly. Leave the door slightly cracked between cycles to let the interior dry out completely.

Washing Machines: Wipe the rubber gasket and detergent tray dry after use. Leave the door and detergent tray open between loads to air out. This small habit prevents big, smelly problems.

Proactive Moisture Control for Your Whole Home

Think beyond cleaning. Use moisture-absorbing products like “moisture grabbers” (large desiccant bags) in tight spaces like under the kitchen sink, in storage bins, or in a musty closet. They silently pull dampness from the air, making it harder for mold to take hold.

Remember, managing mold is about controlling your home’s environment. But when life gets too busy, or the problem feels overwhelming, there’s no shame in calling for backup. As a trusted Chicago cleaning company, we understand the unique challenges homes here face. Whether you need apartment cleaning or a whole-house refresh, professional home cleaning can be the lasting solution you need.

Struggling to find reliable cleaning services in Chicago? Look for a service that offers fast cleaning services to fit your schedule. The right team can be the someone to clean my apartment that finally gives you your weekends back. Ready to get your space cleaned? It’s easier than you think.

Recently, I did a video all about mold and mildew and how to deal with it. And in the comment section, there were so many people who had things to say about mold. It is a big struggle. One of the biggest things that people complained about was mold that wouldn’t go away. No matter how many times they cleaned it, no matter what they used, it kept coming back. So, I’m making this video as a follow-up video to that one. We’re going to talk about the causes, the specific areas to check for mold, some of the things you can do to prevent it from happening in the first place, and if you have mold, we’re going to talk about how to treat it so that it doesn’t come back. And a quick caveat before we go on, it’s really important to know the difference between a mold problem that you can deal with at home and a mold problem you should call a professional in for. Mold can lead to health problems and it can be really, really difficult to live in a house with mold. So, please make sure that if you have a large mold problem that you get it dealt with professionally. And by the way, if you’re new here, welcome, welcome. This is the Clean My Space channel and I am Melissa Maker. Make sure that you subscribe if you want more cleaning and organizing tips to get the job done right the first time. The first thing I want you to know about mold is that mold is not a cleaning problem. It doesn’t mean that your house is dirty. Mold is a moisture problem. You see, mold is a living growth. It’s a fungus and it grows where moisture is present. So that could be humidity, leaks, condensation or damp materials. It can grow on drywall, wood, carpet, fabrics, even dust. And it loves a bathroom, a basement, laundry rooms, window frames. Anywhere that moisture hangs out, that’s where mold is going to be. And the goal isn’t to create a sterile home. It’s to stop allowing for the growth of those mold spores. And the best way you can do that is to manage the moisture in your home. Now, when people complain that they’ve cleaned the mold, but it keeps coming back, here’s the issue. You can physically remove the mold, no problem. But as long as those spores are present in the air, which will be the case cuz you live on planet Earth, as long as there’s moisture, and if enough time is given, that mold will come right back. So, if you want to find where mold lives, you just need to look for these three things: dampness, low air flow, and some form of residue. So, areas like your bathroom, shower, grout, and cocking. Your basement, cold sellers, this is pretty much mold HQ. Window sills where you can see that condensation buildup. Under your sinks where you might have a slow leak building, washing machine, especially front loader machines with those rubber gaskets and detergent trays. Same thing with refrigerators and freezers. Those rubber gaskets where little ice cubes might fall in, those get moldy, too, as well as your dishwasher. Both the filter and the gasket. And when you think about mold, think of it like a plant. You see what’s growing on the outside, but it’s also got a root on the inside. So, you want to deal with the mold at the source so that it doesn’t come back. Both what’s on the surface as well as the root. Now, we’re going to talk about how to treat the mold. But before we get into that, I want to make sure that you are taking the appropriate safety precautions because to deal with mold, you need to use some pretty powerful stuff. First, you want to make sure that you’re gearing up. Whether that means protective gloves or eye covers or face covers, whatever you need to make yourself feel safe and protected when you’re using these products, go for it. Next up, you want to make sure that you’re ventilating well. Whether that’s opening a window or turning on a fan, these products can be strong. And finally, you want to make sure that you’re not mixing products. Please do not play at home chemist, especially with something that contains bleach. It’s super dangerous. Now, of course, the symptom of mold, you’re going to see that smell, but you’re also going to see mold building up. You’re going to see that staining, those dots, okay? And that’s the first thing that we’re going to deal with. So, the first thing you can do is just scrub and wipe it. And you can just use a little bit of soapy water to do this just to clean whatever is on the surface. Please don’t use cloths or scrub brushes that you reuse. In this case, I just like to use paper towels and then bundle them up really well and throw them in the garbage because this is going to contain as much of the mold and the mold spores as possible. Then you’re going to use a mold treatment product. And for this, I really like active mold remover gel. And the reason I like it is because a gel isn’t liquid. It’s not going to drip and it’s really going to stick to a surface. Now, you’re going to follow the product instructions and make sure that you use this on the right surface. So, this is safe for things like rubber gaskets and grout and cocking, but you don’t want to use this on areas that aren’t listed on the package. I’ve got something else for that in a moment. You’re going to apply this onto the surface and you’re going to let it sit and dry. It typically needs anywhere from 3 to 5 hours. Once that’s done, you’re going to wipe it clean and you’ll see that mold stain come up. The results for this product are pretty impressive and that’s why it has gone absolutely viral. Now, I’ve got a link to this product and all the products that I’m going to talk about in the description box down below. It’s really important that you let this product sit and do its work. If you rush the process, you are not going to remove that stain. Okay, so we’ve removed the mold stain, but now we are going to treat the mold and prevent it from coming back with this step. This is not to be skipped. This is when you’re going to get yourself Concrobium mold control. I’ve been talking about this product for years. Essentially, what you do is you take the area when it’s dry and you spray it with Concrobium. That’s what you do and you let it dry. And you can repeat this treatment, say once a month or once a quarter, whatever the case may be. But this is going to provide an invisible coating on the surface that’s safe and it’s going to prevent the mold from coming back. All right. So, now that you’ve cleaned and treated mold in the areas that you know where it is, I’m now going to show you the different spots around the house that are mold hotspots, and we’re going to figure out how to deal with them. In the bathroom, it is going to be a constant struggle with mold all the time, and we do not want mold to win in this case. So, this is the bathroom routine that you need to follow if you want to prevent mold from coming back. Tiles, cocking, toilet, wherever you’re seeing it, this is going to do the trick. And I want to remind you that mold doesn’t just live in showers. It also lives and can grow on your towels and on your scatter rugs because that’s where moisture is going to hang out. So you have to work really hard to keep it dry in there. First, you want to make sure that you’re turning your bathroom fan on while you are showering and leaving it on for at least an hour afterward. This can be hard to remember to do because you’re showering and then running out the door. The simple fix for this is getting yourself an automatic fan timer. I have one in my bathrooms and it makes a huge difference. I hit the two-hour button when I walk into my shower and the rest is history. The next thing you want to do is to make sure that you squeegee after every shower. And by the way, I’ll put links to those things down below as well. Using a squeegee is going to remove all of the moisture from your shower, your tiles, your tub. Throw it down the drain so that mold doesn’t have anywhere to grow. It’s also going to get rid of dead skin cells, body oil, product, anything that you’ve used in the shower that could potentially feed the mold. Remember, we talked about that we don’t want any food sources hanging out for the mold. And finally, you want to make sure that you’re leaving the shower door open or the shower curtain fully open so that everything can speedily drip dry. Basements and cold sellers are a really special place for mold to grow and fester. And it’s always going to be an uphill battle for you, especially if that space is already damp. The first thing, get yourself a dehumidifier. You can find these online. I’ll get a link for you down below. Make sure that it’s active and constantly working to keep that space dry. Any areas where you’re noticing mold or you’re seeing kind of mold potentially start to form, you want to make sure you clean it in the method that we discussed and that you are treating that area regularly with conrobium. You also want to make sure that you’re not storing anything like cardboard boxes right on the floor, especially near any walls or drains because that is going to be a great place for mold to grow and fester. Window sills can also be another area where mold builds up. And if you look at your window sills, especially in the winter in the colder parts of the world, you might see some black spots building up. That’s not dirt, my friends. That is mold. So, you want to make sure that you’re wiping that area regularly just to remove any dampness or condensation. You can treat that area with conrobium. And you also want to make sure that you don’t have any furniture kind of blocking that area so that you’re increasing air flow and allowing that area to dry out naturally. Studies have been done that show dishwashers can be some of the biggest hot spots for mold in your home, especially the dishwasher filters. So, what you want to do is this little mold reduction routine for your dishwasher. First, you want to make sure that you’re cleaning the filter regularly. Remember, whatever schmutz is living in that filter is potential mold food. Second, you want to make sure that you’re cleaning the gasket regularly to remove any of that gunky buildup, but also to keep moisture at bay. And third, this one’s the easiest, is to just leave your dishwasher door slightly cracked between uses. Also, when my dishwasher goes off, I run it at night, so it usually finishes around 9:00 p.m. I just open it up just so that it air dries instead of sits damp overnight inside. This just helps to keep the inside of the dishwasher clean and to keep mold at bay. I think I hear this at least 20 times a week from people and it is that their washing machine stinks and their washing machine gasket or detergent tray is disgusting and that is quite simply a result of mold. So, first you can treat it the way we’ve already discussed treating it with the active mold remover gel and with the conrobium as a treatment and preventative. But the other thing you can do is to leave both the washing machine door open and the detergent tray open between uses. I know this is an extra step. I know it’s a little bit annoying, but if you think about it, detergent feeds mold. Moisture is great for mold. This is an area with low airflow. It is quite literally ground zero for mold. So, please make sure that you’re doing this on a regular basis. And if you notice in your detergent tray that there’s a bunch of water just pulled, especially in that little bleach compartment, you can just pull it out, dump it, let it dry, and pop it back in. These small little moves are going to go miles for you when it comes to mold reduction. Now, anytime that you buy a purse or a pair of shoes or something like that, you probably notice those little desicant packages in there. And those are quite simply there to prevent mold from building up in those items. So, here’s what you can do. If you have kind of a tight space where you’re worried about mold potentially growing, you can get yourself one of those really large desicant packages. In fact, they look like bean bags. These are called moisture grabbers. I use them. I’ve got a link for you down below. And they are super easy to use. Basically, take them out of a package and toss them where they need to go. I’m talking areas like under a kitchen sink, inside a bin or a storage container. These are also great for hockey bags or cars in the winter, even shoe closets or laundry rooms. These are just great at capturing that moisture and keeping that small, tight, contained area dry so that you don’t have to worry about mold. And I want to remind you again, mold does not mean your house is dirty. It means your house has a moisture issue. So, my hope here is that I’ve empowered you with all the information that you need to detect mold, to deal with mold, and to prevent it from coming back. Let me know in the comments down below what mold challenges you have dealt with at home and if you’ve been able to treat them successfully. If you found this video helpful, you might also love our newsletter. It’s called the Dirty Dish and I’ve got a link for it down below. And if you want to see the first video I did on mold called Secret Weapon for a mold-free home, you can see it right over here. Also, if you haven’t done so already, make sure that you subscribe to the Clean My Space channel. Thanks so much for watching and we’ll see you next time.