Today’s post is short and sweet. It comes as an answer to a friend’s email, asking me if there is any product she can spray inside her shower after daily use to just leave on, without scrubbing or anything to prevent mold/mildew formation.
Well, as a matter of fact, yes! Yes, there is a homemade product that you can use, that actually works better for me than most store-bought products.
The beauty of this “shower spray,” is that it is safe for natural stone and granite alike, since many folks now have those materials in their bathrooms. That’s actually why I created it in the first place. I was cleaning our new shower, and needed a solution, other than the products that I had been using, since now, our shower tiles are stone.
This shower spray is also wonderful to use for your glass shower stall doors, if you have them, because it will prevent the water spots from ever forming, and will prevent soap scum build-up. For all of my mold-cautious readers, you will especially like this feature, because soap scum can be like the “dust” of the shower/bathtub. The soap scum acts as the organic material for the mold to feed on in the often chronically moist/humid bathroom environment. Additionally, you can use this spray when you do your more thorough weekly clean, spraying it on, allowing it to sit, and then wiping and scrubbing it off with a sponge. It will really give your bathroom an added sparkle with a little elbow grease.
So, now that you are all geared-up for this homemade solution to keeping your tub and shower mold free, here it is:
HOMEMADE SHOWER SPRAY
Ingredients:
- 32 Oz. empty, clean, dry spray bottle
- 1/2 cup 3% hydrogen peroxide (Just your average drugstore variety. This will “bleach” any mold or mildew stains and keep your grout looking nice and bright.)
- 1 tablespoon of EC3 Mold Solution Concentrate (This will clean the mold at its root and prevent it from coming back. This also acts as the acid in your cleaner with the citrus seed extracts that are included. It will serve as your rinse aid. I actually use this periodically in my dishwasher as a mold-preventing rinse aid. See my post about that here.
- 1/2 cup rubbing alcohol (This has your evaporation agent that will help the spray to dry quickly and not create water drop marks of its own. It will also prevent the spray from leaving an unsightly residue.)
- ½ teaspoon liquid dish or Castile soap (I use Dr. Bronner’s. Also, if you are using a super-concentrated soap, you can even use less. This part is the only real wild card, depending on what brand you use. It’s always best to start conservatively, and then add, if needed.)
- 3 cups distilled water (DO NOT use tap water. The minerals in the tap water will not cause this spray to work in an optimal fashion.)
Pour the peroxide, rubbing alcohol, EC3 and dish soap into a spray bottle of at least a 32 oz size. Slowly add the 3 cups of distilled water. You may even want to use a funnel here to make your life easier, and to make less of a mess.
I like to use a funnel and a measuring cup to make sure I get the amounts of my ingredients correct and that I don’t make a mess pouring them into the bottle.
Label your bottle, so that you know it is your shower spray.
My EC3 Shower Spray is now mixed, labelled and ready to use.
After bathing or showering, give your shower stall or tub a nice all-over misting. Walk away and allow the spray to dry and do its thing. If you want a more thorough clean, mist your tub or shower, wait 5 minutes, and wipe or scrub clean with a moist sponge.
After a week or so of using this, you will see that you have to scrub less for a sparkly bathroom. Feel free to also use this spray on your bathroom sinks and counter, or anywhere you want to both clean and kill/prevent mold.
Happy cleaning!
