Will Alcohol Kill Mold? (Find Out Now!)

Mold is a terrifying sight in any home when you consider the health and financial implications. Homeowners frequently spend thousands of dollars on mold remediation and would love any cheaper alternative. So, will alcohol kill mold?

Isopropyl alcohol will kill mold, especially if it has a 70% concentration or stronger. Ethanol which is found in liquor can clean and sometimes neutralize mold, but it is unlikely to kill it. The best option is 99% isopropyl alcohol which can kill mold and prevent the spread of spores.

The cheapest option is isopropyl alcohol because you can find a 16 oz bottle for $12 or less. Always exercise caution when you alcohol to kill mold to avoid injury. Follow along as we explore how you can kill mold with alcohol.

You can kill mold with alcohol because it can directly destroy cells and spores. Isopropyl alcohol, better known as rubbing alcohol, is a great way to kill mold. It is possible to clean mold with other forms of alcohol such as ethanol from vodka or gin.

However, traditional alcohol that people drink cannot generally kill mold because it isn’t concentrated enough. Isopropyl alcohol comes in 60%-99% concentrations that can easily clean mold and help you remove existing spores. The levels of ethanol and methanol in most liquors aren’t high enough to kill mold, but you can clean it.

Isopropyl is the best type of alcohol that you can use to kill mold. Doctors, businesses, and homeowners use isopropyl alcohol to sanitize surfaces to this day because of how effective it is. Also known as rubbing alcohol, isopropyl has a small concentration of water which adds to the potency.

You need to use at least 70% isopropyl alcohol if you want to kill mold in your home. The higher the percentage of alcohol, the better the chance that you will eliminate spores. Serious cases of mold may require 99% isopropyl alcohol, and you can find it at most pharmacies or hardware stores.

Liquor and spirits contain ethanol which is the intoxicating component of adult beverages. Ethanol is a form of alcohol that features mean of the same cleaning properties as isopropyl alcohol. Isopropyl and ethanol are two different types of alcohol that vary in strength, purpose, and production.

You can use ethanol to clean and possibly neutralize mold spores in your home. However, the percentage of alcohol in ethanol isn’t strong enough to kill mold in most cases. Isopropyl alcohol is unfit for human consumption because it can harm your gastrointestinal system, unlike ethanol.

The average bottle of liquor contains 35%-40% ethanol and contains a high water content. Ethanol lacks potency and has too much water to fully kill mold, but it can help you clean it.

Methanol is another form of alcohol that you can find in liquor. Manufacturers consider methanol to be the most simple form of alcohol because it occurs early in the process. You can use methanol to kill mold, but we cannot recommend it because it can be harmful to touch or breathe in.

Paint, plastic, and liquor companies use methanol early in the process and eliminate as much of it as possible during production. You will find more methanol in cheap liquor than in top-shelf products that are more refined.

With that said, it is possible to kill mold with methanol if you take safety precautions. Wear face protection and don’t let the methanol touch your skin. Otherwise, you could simply use cheap liquor to clean the area because it contains both methanol and ethanol.

You cannot ensure that you will kill all of the mold spores if you solely use alcohol. It is possible to release mold spores in the air if you wipe them away or even run the air conditioner. However, chemicals such as isopropyl alcohol and chlorine can help neutralize or kill mold spores if you saturate them.

Apply rubbing alcohol, ethanol, or chlorine to the mold spores and let them sit before you wipe them away. Hopefully, the chemical will kill the spores so that you can wipe the mold away. This will allow you to remove existing mold without spreading spores.

You need to understand the variants of alcohol. Alcohol is available in two forms, methanol, and ethanol. The major difference for most people is that methanol is toxic, and ethanol is the alcohol commonly found in beer, wine, and liquor.

Either one will work for killing mold. Any people suggest using cheap vodka as a mild killing agent. Others recommend using methanol because of the slightly different chemical makeup. In either case, the goal is to find the most effective way to use alcohol to kill mold.

Alcohol, especially rubbing alcohol, attacks the mold cells directly. Rubbing alcohol is a mixture of either isopropyl alcohol or ethyl alcohol mixed with water. Concentrations typically range from 70 to 99 percent. Surprisingly, the lower concentration products work better to kill mold than the higher concentration rubbing alcohols.

The water in the rubbing alcohol denatures the mold cells, which allows the alcohol to enter the cell walls of the mold and disrupt their functions.

However, there are times when molds are the bad guy. A natural part of a mold and fungi biological cycle is spores, fragments of molds and fungi, and dust from the decaying organic material. Chief among the dangerous parts are the mycotoxins that these spores can contain or produce.

These mycotoxins are responsible for allergic reactions, toxic reactions, and some long-term exposures resulting in cancer. Exposure to mold spores is not something to take lightly. You can impair your and your family’s health if exposures to mold spores continue over long periods.

Unfortunately, our homes are rich in the necessary environment for mold to prosper. Bathrooms, laundry rooms, and kitchens are excellent breeding grounds for mold. If your home develops a roof leak that lets water enter, you can almost bet that a mold infestation will soon appear.

You can take a few steps to remove mold if you notice it appearing in your home. Unless your mold problem is more than just some surface mold with a bit of underlying damage, most homeowners can remedy the situation.