Mold In A Toilet Bowl Below The Water Line? (4 Ways to Fix It)

Keeping a sparkling clean house is a source of pride for every homeowner. Health is always of the utmost importance, so having control over the cleanliness of one’s surroundings is a top priority. These include high-traffic areas in the home such as the kitchen, the living room, and especially, the bathrooms.

Mold can form in your toilet bowl if the water has been stagnant and you haven’t flushed it for one week. A crack in a ceramic toilet can allow mold spores to grow and spread. It is easier for mold to grow if there are mineral deposits in the toilet bowl because they can feed off of them.

Luckily, it is easy to remove mold from your toilet bowl with household items such as bleach and vinegar. Follow along as we explore the 4 best ways to remove mold from your toilet and how you can prevent future growth.

There are a few methods to effectively remove mold from your toilet bowl. It all depends on the severity of the spread and how often you need to deep clean your bathroom. The following ways all work quite well, but it is up to you to choose which method works best.

Before you start, ensure you completely shut off the water supply. You can locate the water valve on the wall behind the toilet. Twist the valve clockwise to close, flush the toilet and drain out as much water from the tank as possible.

Now you are ready to tackle the mold.

Pour one cup of vinegar into the toilet bowl and sprinkle baking soda all around the inside. Be sure to include under the rim where the mold appears. Ensure that the baking soda touches every part of the bowl, including the seat hinges where rust collects.

As the vinegar and baking soda start to bubble and fizz, close the lid and let sit for an hour. After an hour, open the lid and begin brushing the inside of the bowl with a non-abrasive brush. Pay extra attention under the rim of the bowl to remove all traces of mold as much as possible.

Close the lid once again and let it sit for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, turn on the water valve and flush the toilet. If there are still signs of mold, repeat the whole process.

Hydrogen peroxide is not only great for sterilizing cuts and discouraging infection, but it is also a fantastic mold killer. Pour half a cup of hydrogen peroxide into the toilet bowl and use a brush to coat under the rim. Close the lid and wait 15 minutes.

After 15 minutes, get the brush out and start scrubbing the inside as well as under the rim, then flush. You may use this method as part of the deep-cleaning process in your home. Hydrogen peroxide not only helps clean but is a very effective sanitizer against bacteria and mold spores.

Yes, you read that right. A hand-held portable steam cleaner is actually quite an effective tool in removing mold from the toilet bowl.

To begin, attach the angular nozzle attachment to your steam cleaner and turn it on. Direct the high-pressured steam in your toilet bowl and under the rim, where mold is present.

Continue steaming the toilet bowl and seat, including the hinges, to loosen rust and trapped debris. Fill a spray bottle with vinegar, set it on stream, and direct the vinegar stream on the loosened dirt. If you still see mold, repeat the process one more time.

Once you’ve removed all the dirt and mold, wipe down the toilet bowl with a clean and dry washcloth. Do not forget to wipe under the rim.

Bleach is powerful, caustic, useful, and readily available for the average homeowner. That makes it one of the best ways to eliminate mold in your toilet bowl. Carefully mix 1 part bleach with 10 parts water and pour it into the toilet bowl.

Make sure to cover the entire surface all around the toilet bowl. Be careful so that you don’t get any bleach on your skin, mouth, or eyes. Let the bleach solution sit in your toilet for 10 minutes and flush it to kill mold and prevent future growth.

Poor ventilation in your bathroom can cause mold and mildew to build up on the walls, ceilings, and in the toilet. This primarily applies to bathrooms that have a shower, and the accumulation of moisture is the main cause. Moisture can linger in a small place such as bathrooms for a while, and that is the ultimate recipe for mold.

Open a window or run a fan during or after a shower to improve ventilation. Install an overhead fan in your bathroom if you don’t already have one

Stagnant water is the ideal breeding ground for mold, and it is common in toilets that you don’t use often. Homeowners commonly find mold in toilet bowls in spare bathrooms that rarely get flushed. Generally, you must flush a toilet once per week so that mold spores don’t grow in the stagnant water.

It is harmful to your plumbing if you don’t flush your toilet for weeks or months at a time. An unused toilet can also cause sewer odors to spread throughout your home if the plumbing trap dries out. Leave the toilet lid open if you rarely use a toilet because the darkness can make it easier for mold spores to grow.

It is easy to mistake mineral deposits for mold, but it is also possible to have both at the same time. Mold can feed off of mineral deposits in a toilet bowl if there are already mold conditions present. Mineral deposits can grow more in stagnant water, and they are largely unavoidable if you have hard water.

Hard water is treatable with a water softener, but water softeners cannot eliminate the mold in your toilet bowl. Treat your hard water so that the minerals cannot make it easier for mold to grow. It is much easier to remove mold from your toilet if there is no mineral deposit for it to feed on.

Related Questions

Can I use bleach to get rid of mold?

Bleach is a great household cleanser but not for mold growth in a toilet bowl.  In fact, OSHA and the EPA have specifically advised against using bleach for mold removal.  Bleach only removes surface mold and does not kill the internal roots.Bleach is considered a toxic chemical and is in the same category as gasoline. Constant use and inhalation in its gaseous form have been proven to cause cancer due to the dioxins it produces.For a healthier and much safer home environment, simple white vinegar is the best alternative to toxic bleach.  

Is toilet mold dangerous to your health?

Mold growing in the toilet tank, bowl, or anywhere around it, is a health hazard to anyone.  It does not matter if you are healthy or unhealthy; exposure can affect anyone.  Some symptoms of mold exposure are skin and eye redness and itchiness, stuffy nose, even shortness of breath.Touching or breathing in mold spores may result in complications for certain individuals.  People with asthma, allergies, or a compromised immune system should be careful when dealing with mold in the home environment.

Is a ring in the toilet the same as mold in the toilet?

One good way to find out is to scrub the inside of your toilet.  If you cannot get it clean, it is most likely a hard water stain from calcium or mineral deposits.  This brown or reddish stain is notoriously hard to remove as the deposits have already eaten away at the porcelain.  However, if the ring around your toilet is neither black nor brownish red, you may be dealing with a pink bacteria ring.  This is a mixture of airborne contaminants and bodily excretions that turns into this not-so-pretty pink ring. You can find this stain not just in your toilet bowl but also on the shower floor and the sink.For pink bacteria rings, employ the same cleaning process as you would for mold.  The vinegar or hydrogen peroxide methods work quite well.  Don’t forget to give the affected area a good, thorough brushing.