The Good, the Bad and the Very, Very Ugly (Dettox Mould and Mildew Cleaner)

Member Name: aefra

Product:	Dettox Mould and Mildew Cleaner
Date:	27/10/02 (1624 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: It works

Disadvantages: Ventilate when using

Mould is a word which conjures up different pictures in the individual imagination. To some it is the green and white stuff which attaches itself to that old satsuma left in the fruit bowl after Christmas. For others it is dark slime which creeps inexorably up the bathroom wall high up where it joins the ceiling. If any of you have the old metal Crittall windows, so fashionable decades ago, you won't want to be reminded of it's greedy presence.

Mould is a live fungus, a microbial growth which ranges from the miraculously beneficial Penicillin, through the green pin mould which grows contentedly on bread, to the black stuff which attaches itself and reproduces on any surface within a warm damp atmosphere. Although many moulds can exacerbate asthma and allergies, the one which we see commonly in our bathrooms can be normally lived with quite easily. That is if you don't mind the sheer ugliness of it. I am using the word "mould" to include mildew.

I thought I had beaten the monster when I fitted double glazing a few years ago. "Hah!" I thought, "That'll stop you!" Sure enough the little beggars couldn't find a meal off the new frames. But mould is adaptable. Despite an extractor fan built into the wall, wallpaper attached with anti-fungal paste and constant wipeovers with a bleach soaked cloth, my bathroom walls and shower still sent out successful invitations to mould when I wasn't looking.

It starts sneakily on my newly painted ceiling with a few black spots and I try not to notice.....because the stepladder is in the garden shed and it is all such a performance for something that only I can see. Big mistake! Mildew reproduces at a rate of knots. The wallpaper should be washable, but was not intended to have bleach rubbed into it's embossed pattern several times a week. Of course I tried various mould destroyers, but they seemed to be as much hard work as bleach
. All this was until I found Dettox Anti-Bacterial Mould & Mildew Remover (forthwith to be called The Dettox for ease of typing); a handy 500ml spray in a plastic bottle which is a much nicer green than mould/mildew can be, depending where it is growing. The cap has a closeable flap and a strong effective spray. Equally as strong is the bleach-like smell and you should not breath it in. I always have a window or, at least, the bathroom door open as I use it. It does, however, leave a very clean smell in the room.

The Dettox contains an antimicrobial agent which removes the stains produced by mildew as well as bleach. We couldn't do without bleach in everything, could we? It happily works on most surfaces, such as walls, plastic, metal and concrete, although the bottle warns against varnished surfaces, gold taps etc. Do read the exceptions on the back of the bottle. Until I read this for the purpose of my op I hadn't realised that I should not have used it on paintwork. It hasn't done any harm so far. Instructions suggest you should wear rubber gloves, and you probably should. Life outdoors hasn't done my hands much good, so I feel it is a little late for me. Spray the affected area from 20-25cms (8-10 inches for those of us who still think imperial) and leave for 3/5 minutes. Rinse off, and the mildew/mould should have disappeared to wherever it goes after such treatment. Since this cleans as well as removes mildew, no other cleaner should be necessary after it's application.

I have found an unexpected bonus when using The Dettox. I live in a very hard water area. "My God!", you must be saying, "What bathroom problems this woman has!" The result is that the grout on my shower tiles turns a pink colour and the taps on the wash basin are quickly ringed with rough scale. I spray The Dettox onto the tiles and around the taps and walk off and leave it. On my next visit to the bathroo
m I run the shower over the tiles and rub round the taps with a damp cloth. The pink scale just disappears and stays away for many weeks and the taps once more sit unringed on shiny porcelain. Because the effect lasts for such a long time, I am not bombarding my bathroom with chemicals too frequently.

Because this product is part of the Dettox range, it is easily available and not too pricey. You should find it on the shelves of major supermarkets and in hardware shops.

Because my favourite mildew remover is sitting on my desk at the moment I shall quickly replace it in the bathroom. If I don't, as sure as eggs is eggs, that mildew will know it is gone!



This is the closest link I can find.

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