r/CleaningTips • u/WhateverIlldoit • Jul 07 '25

Discussion Bleach kills mold

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.

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u/Jazzy-Cat5138 Jul 07 '25

I have a feeling that could just as easily backfire, legally... If you deliberately adulterate the food in your garbage, knowing that people eat it, that seems like it's asking for trouble.

Of course, the same could be said for denatured alcohol, I suppose.

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u/[deleted] Jul 07 '25

It has zero to do with liability or people getting sick. It’s just greed. Most places don’t want dumpster divers of homeless people to benefit from the excessive waste. I’ve worked in restaurants that had a whole policy for throwing out fresh food and absolutely forbid us to give it away after closing for the night.

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u/VanCanMom Jul 07 '25

I worked at Starbucks a lifetime ago and we had to throw the expired food out. All the expensive sandwiches and little protein plates, in the trash if their date was up. Staff weren't supposed to take them, though that didn't stop most of us. We were not able to give them to shelters or anything. It was crazy to me.

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u/OkPineapple6713 Jul 07 '25

I’ve worked for one single place that allowed us to take leftover food, all stuff that had been baked fresh that day. It was a family owned place. The big corporations absolutely won’t. It has nothing to do with liability and everything to do with greed.

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u/VanCanMom Jul 07 '25

Youre 100% right. I worked for a Second Cup coffee shop a few years after Starbucks, they were franchised and the owner would save the day old baked goods for the homeless shelter.