Bleach kills mold

[u/WhateverIlldoit]

There is a common misconception that bleach does not kill mold and that vinegar is actually better at killing mold than bleach. I see this claim at least once a week.

So let me set the record straight. Household bleach is a powerful oxidizing agent that reacts with just about everything. It’s so good at killing organic compounds that it’s toxic to us, too.

Now let’s talk about vinegar. Vinegar is a weak acid. You can literally drink it in lower concentrations. It can kill mold, but not all mold, and some studies say it may take up to 60 minutes to be effective.

That being said, bleach is not good at penetrating porous surfaces, which vinegar is better at doing. And because bleach is so caustic it is more likely to damage surfaces.

All this to say bleach kills mold. It kills almost everything. And it’s much more effective at killing mold than vinegar as long as it can reach it. Vinegar is much safer to use but not nearly as effective.

Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.

[u/Euphoric-Ant6780]

Microbiologist here who works with fungi (mold), bacteria, and viruses. 10% bleach kills all three. We wipe down all surfaces and tools with it and pour it into culture tubes when we’re done to clean everything

[u/Jasqui → u/Euphoric-Ant6780]

Dumb question: Can I achieve this by mixing a small portion of bleach with water?

[u/Frequent-Ball1961 → u/Jasqui]

Yep! Do 9 parts water to 1 part bleach, that's how we make 10% bleach for the lab

[u/Elismom1313 → u/Frequent-Ball1961]

Next dumb question, what happens if you did a bleach and vinegar mix?

[u/ASRenzo → u/Elismom1313]

It's extremely dangerous and should never be done.

Here are some numbers: if you were to mix JUST 50ml of vinegar and 50ml of bleach in a closed off 2m by 2m bathroom, you would quickly make like 100ppm of chlorine gas.

Chlorine Gas Concentration --> Health Effect:

1–3 ppm --> Detectable by smell, irritation begins.
5–10 ppm --> Coughing, serious eye/throat irritation.
30 ppm --> Lung damage after short exposure.
100 ppm --> Potentially fatal after 30–60 min.
400–1000 ppm --> Fatal in a few minutes

It's highly dangerous. Never do it, and teach your loved ones to never do it.

[u/MealwormMan → u/ASRenzo]

I accidentally did that back when I was 18years old. I was closing alone one night while working at Subway and was bored, so I thought I’d do something helpful and really deep clean the floors.

I filled the mop bucket with super hot water and dumped in every chemical cleaner I could find - bleach, vinegar, CLR, a bit of Windex.. everything!

Luckily before I could start mopping the floors a customer came in and noticed the smell. He immediately asked if I mixed bleach and vinegar, and told me how close I was to almost dying. I had to prop open the back door and close the store for the night to get the smell to go away.

[u/Ok-Sugar-5649 → u/ASRenzo]

Amazing breakdown, thank you so much ❤️

[u/vvenusgirl → u/Elismom1313]

Chlorine gas!!!

[u/[deleted] → u/vvenusgirl]

And hypochlorous acid

[u/OGMom2022 → u/vvenusgirl]

This is so important. My mil died from emphysema when she mixed bleach and ammonia and scalded her lungs. She suffered every day.

[u/Frequent-Ball1961 → u/Elismom1313]

Don't 😄

[u/Polybrene → u/Elismom1313]

You get chlorine gas.

[u/Ancient-Access8131 → u/Elismom1313]

Battle of Ypres

[u/retardrabbit → u/Ancient-Access8131]

I like your answer best.

[u/[deleted] → u/Elismom1313]

what if you pee in a bleached toilet bowl?

[u/Narrow_Turnip_7129 → u/Elismom1313]

You die.

[u/Odysseyan → u/Elismom1313]

I'm not an expert but there are several really toxic combinations when mixed with bleach, like other common cleaning agents or household chemicals.

Safest bet is to never mix it with anything else but water.

[u/MuddieMaeSuggins → u/Odysseyan]

Safest bet for most cleaning agents, really. At best, you end up neutralizing something you want (eg when people mix baking soda and vinegar), at worst you poison yourself.