Mildew in hard to get places - Fiberglass RV
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Old 05-18-2007, 12:09 AM   #1
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I'm sure that this topic has been covered before, but I haven't been able to find the thread...

I've been renovating another Scamp that was stored outside in the wonderful Northwet. Overall it is in incredibly good condition. There is a bit of mildew in the cupboards and on some of the "rubber" white trim that is used on the edges of the bathroom wall. I've been removing all of the trim work inside and cleaning the mildew off of it. It looks like there is some mildew on the fiberglass where the fiberglass flanges of the bathroom wall mate with the roof. I'm trying to figure out the best method to kill this without discoloring the ratfur or having to remove the bathroom walls. Does anybody have a trick to do this? I've had the trailer airing out for a while and it is stored under cover. If I get all the leaks fixed, will the mildew go "dormant"?

Thanks for sharing your experiences.
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Old 05-18-2007, 06:16 AM   #2
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I'm not really recommending this, but it is what I did. I had horrible mildew/musty odors in my trailer when I got it. Lots of leaks that were never found/repaired. I discovered one source was between the shower and exterior walls. The carpet had gotten wet with one of the leaks. Thinking that I had nothing to lose, I diluted (a little, but not much) some bleach, put it in one of the old spray bottles that allow one to used "spray" or "stream", put it on stream and sprayed the heck out of it. When the moisture and the bleach all dried out, the smell finally disappeared. It did not discolor my carpet, put I wouldn't do it on your until you test an area first.
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Old 05-18-2007, 07:12 AM   #3
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Hi: The little I know about MILDEW is that if that area gets damp again the odour and black spots will reapear!!! What about using an aerosol can of carpet shampoo and a toothbrush/scrub brush ...check the label on the can ...or maybe some good old Tylex bathroom cleaner... tested on a hidden place before using to check for discolouration of the "RAT FUR" I am only guessing as we have vinyl coated Ensolite in our Boler Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie
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Old 05-18-2007, 07:28 AM   #4
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I have had good luck controlling mildew using M-D-G Mildew Control Bags available at West Marine. Here is a link:

http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/store...hallpartial/0/0


Good luck!

Don
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Old 05-18-2007, 11:55 AM   #5
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Diluted bleach is the best thing to kill mold/mildew as Suz suggested, but if in an area that might be damaged, try full strength Simple Green in a spray bottle and scrub with an old toothbrush and rinse well.

Vivian, who lives with mold on the Oregon Coast!
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Old 05-18-2007, 04:13 PM   #6
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I recently read somewhere that lemon juice plus salt is a mildew killer (and likely less destructive than bleach on some stuf).
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Old 05-18-2007, 06:17 PM   #7
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Quote:
Diluted bleach is the best thing to kill mold/mildew as Suz suggested, but if in an area that might be damaged, try full strength Simple Green in a spray bottle and scrub with an old toothbrush and rinse well.

Vivian, who lives with mold on the Oregon Coast!

Just to add to what Vivian has said .............yes, Diluted Bleach will kill mildew,and IF you want to keep it from comming back after it has Dried real good then you should rinse real good with white vinger and the mold or mildew will never come back in that place. At least that is what they tell us here on the Tx Gulf Coast. We have done this for years and it seems to always hold true for us..........you can also mix vinger in your water base paint to be sure you have killed all the nasty stuff.

Lynn from Tx
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Old 05-19-2007, 10:23 PM   #8
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Thank you all for the advice. I ended up using a mildew killer and on que tips, then ran the que tips behind the fiberglass along the mating surfaces until I could wipe and the que tips were clean. It looks like it did a good job getting it out. It also worked a whole lot easier then bleach on the areas that were easily accessible (I did it with bleach first, then went over again with the milder killer / remover).

Now on to scrubbing the bathroom walls to get years of dirt that is in the recesses of the texture out...scrubbing and scrubbing and scrubbing...has anyone used anything that helps to cut the dirt without damaging the surface? The inside walls are not the nice smooth gel coat surface.
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Old 05-31-2007, 04:58 AM   #9
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Laundry "chlorine" bleach contains sodium hypochlorite which is also the active ingredient of most of the commercial mold and mildew removers such as Tilex. It's very effective at killing mold and mildew.

Roger
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Old 05-31-2007, 01:26 PM   #10
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...dirt that is in the recesses of the texture out...scrubbing and scrubbing and scrubbing...has anyone used anything that helps to cut the dirt without damaging the surface?
I think that the texture calls for a brush - the bristles, rather than a cloth or sponge, are the key. Of course this is too large an area for the old standby toothbrush, so some sort of scrub brush is called for.

On automotive interior surfaces I have had good results with some plastic scrub brushes intended for pre-surgical cleaning, and sold by Lee Valley as "The World's Kindest Nail Brush".

I'm not saying that this is the best brush or the best source (although they are cheap there), just illustrating a type which seems to get into textured vinyl surfaces well.
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Old 05-31-2007, 08:39 PM   #11
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Hi!
I use those little white brushes to clean hands and nails after gardening and found them at the "Dollar Store" - never thought of using them to clean the Boler but sounds like a great idea!! Thanks Brian!
Julie
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Old 06-01-2007, 06:05 PM   #12
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I'm trying to figure out the best method to kill this without discoloring the ratfur or having to remove the bathroom walls. Does anybody have a trick to do this? I've had the trailer airing out for a while and it is stored under cover. If I get all the leaks fixed, will the mildew go "dormant"?
No the mildew will not go dormant unless you kill it all off.

You can use Concrobium to clean, and/or once cleaned by any method by fogging the entire inside of the trailer with it.

It is available at Home Depot. We bought a gallon, but have not used it yet. We will post results after we have. This is what we started with:

Attachment 3128



We got rid of a lot of it using TSP and a brush, followed by some Simple Green. Some of the nooks and crannies are impossible to get to. Having just picked up the trailer from winter storage, we were expecting more mold to return but surprisingly it did not.
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Old 06-02-2007, 01:41 AM   #13
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Check this out it may be what you are in search of. www.jenesco.com/
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