A feared danger in the home, and rightly so, is mold. Various causes can cause it to develop on joints, walls or other surfaces. And while some of the possible causes can be prevented, there are those that arise from poor construction quality and cannot be easily eliminated. If the walls are affected, then the wallpaper will quickly be affected too. What can you do to remove a mold stain and, above all, to prevent re-infestation? We will explain to you the best way to remove mold from wallpaper.
First find the cause!
You can remove the fungus or change wallpaper as often as you like, as long as you don't alsoHome remedies like vinegar, it will keep coming back to make your life miserable (and your wallet empty). Therefore, check the following:
- Is the outside wall affected? The reason for this is the condensation that forms due to the large temperature difference between inside and outside. Insulation and/or suitable wall cladding is ideal here.
- Is the mold spot near the window? Then it is likelypoorly insulatedand so-called thermal bridges arise.
- Moldy interior walls are a sign that a pipe, for example, could be damaged. The wall absorbs the moisture, which leads to mold formation. This problem should be investigated and eliminated immediately.
- If none of these causes apply, the humidity in the room due to a lack of ventilation can also be the cause. Theproper heating and ventilationis important to maintain a healthy indoor climate.
- You can counteract excessive humidity despite good ventilation with the help of a dehumidifier.
So you should first address and eliminate the causes before moving on to the next step and removing mold from wallpaper. Because just because you've wiped away the mushrooms once doesn't mean you're rid of them. They will keep appearing as long as the source of the problem remains.
Hopefully the cause has been found. How do you get rid of fungal spores permanently? For better or for worse, you will have to change the wallpaper. Below we explain how to proceed step by step:
Danger!Throughout the entire process, keep the windows wide open to allow air circulation to carry the mold spores outside, and the doors to the next room closed to avoid spreading them throughout the house!
- Cover furniture in the room and never move it to another room instead to avoid bringing the spores there too.
- Put on a suitable protective mask and goggles, gloves and old clothing. This not only protects you from the mold spores, but also from the cleaner.
- The affected areas are thoroughly vacuumed using a suitable vacuum cleaner. The purpose of this is to prevent the spores from flying around when the damaged wallpaper is removed.
- Apply an anti-mold product to the wall. For example, get advice from a hardware store. This is also intended to prevent further spores from spreading throughout the apartment.
- Now remove all of the wallpaper and not just the obvious stains!
- Next, treat the wall itself, because there will also be mold behind the wallpaper. Spores not only remain on the wallpaper, but also gradually spread to neighboring surfaces. Simply use the same product as before for the wallpaper itself and apply it to the walls that were under the wallpaper.
- Then clean the furniture thoroughly.
- Leave the window open for some time after treatment.
- Then clean all the tools you used as thoroughly as possible or throw them away! The same applies to clothing and protective accessories.
A notice:If, when you tear off the wallpaper, it turns out that the problem is much bigger than expected, you should hire experts to take care of the problem and remove the mold. Otherwise, you risk inadequate removal of mold and the risk that it will return again.Home remedies like vinegar, alcohol or hydrogen peroxide against mold are completely inadequate in such cases.
Despite its effectiveness, you should avoid chemical agents such as chlorine, as they penetrate surfaces and continue to release harmful fumes for some time afterwards.
It is recommended to go to oneAnti-Schimmel-Tapeteto invest. This is breathable, allowing air to circulate and dry moisture on walls.
What if mold is only present on the surface of wallpaper?
Of course, before you can say with certainty whether the mold is only present on the surface, you need to know how to identify mold behind the wallpaper.
If the cause is a damp wall, you can assume that the fungus is not only present on the wallpaper. A musty smell in the smoke or even health problems are further signs that the mold has spread significantly and is not covering the surface of the wallpaper. You can also remove part of the wall covering in an invisible area to check whether there is mold underneath.
However, if only the top is actually moldy, you can simply vacuum and/or wipe off the fungal spores with a vacuum cleaner with a fine dust filter. Please clean or dispose of these aids carefully afterwards. The affected areathen disinfect with ethyl alcohol(70 to 80 percent).
