5 Ways to Get Mold Out of a Mattress
If your mattress is smelling a bit more than usual, or you see strange stains when changing the sheets, you likely have mold in your bed. Of course, no one wants a stinky, ugly mattress. But perhaps more importantly, you don’t want the adverse health effects that come from sleeping on top of the mold.
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Mold in your home is a severe problem. While home remedies can do wonders, a widespread infestation can be solved by hiring a team of mold remediation experts.
However, if the problem is currently just on your mattress, a quick home remedy may just do the trick!
Here are some you can try right now!
1. Vacuum it Out
If you have a vacuum in your home, you could be putting it to even greater use than just your carpets. When you use it on your mattress, you can suck up all the unwanted mold from your mattress.
If the mold problem is severe, using a vacuum may not be enough. First, you may need to treat the mold with one of our solutions discussed below.
However, if the mold has just started and you catch it early, this handy tool may be all you need.
No matter where the stains are, you’ll want to vacuum the entire bed, front and back. Don’t skip any spots because you want to make sure all the spores are completely removed from the bed and can’t start growing again once you put the sheets on after vacuuming.
If you are suffering from fire or water damage, the mold may be too prevalent to vacuum. But when you simply have some mold on your mattress, a quick session with the vacuum is all you need to start sleeping peacefully again.
2. Expose It to the Sun
Typically, after you have water damage, you’ll need professional services like those from All Dry USA to get your property back to working order. But unlike your home, you may just be able to put a moldy mattress out in the sun and see your problems go away.
Studies show that the UV rays from the sun have bacteria-fighting properties. Those properties mean that they can kill the mold on your mattress. Additionally, it will dry out your mattress. Since mold thrives in damp places, getting your mattress completely dry will help prevent future mold growth.
Take off all the bedding from your mattress and place it outside, where it will get tons of sunshine. Make sure it won’t be a wet, rainy day as this will only worsen the problem.
Even if you opt to try the other methods, leaving your mattress in direct sunlight is best, even for just 15 minutes. If you use liquid cleaners or it’s had water damage recently, this will get your mattress completely dry.
Unfortunately, sitting inside may not get it dry enough. And if you already have a mold problem, you need it as dry as possible.
3. Apply Rubbing Alcohol
Rubbing alcohol is a powerful disinfectant that you can use throughout your home, even on hard surfaces. It kills germs and even prevents the growth of future bacteria. So it’s no wonder why alcohol can also take care of a moldy mattress.
After your home experiences water damage, bacteria can thrive in the damp spaces left behind. But having a tool like rubbing alcohol can help you avoid the need for serious mold remediation to keep bacteria away.
Find rubbing alcohol that is about 60-90% concentration. Don’t use just rubbing alcohol. For safety, create a mixture that is about 50/50 water to alcohol. Now, simply apply the rubbing alcohol to the stains you see.
If you don’t have rubbing alcohol on hand, you can also use hydrogen peroxide in the same way at a 3/1 ratio of water to chemical. However, it should only be used if your mattress allows bleach cleaning. Check the tag first!
Alcohol treatment is more of a spot treatment, whereas a vacuum and sunlight can take care of the entire mattress. So if you have a few minor stains, this will target the bad spots with full force.
4. Create Disinfectants
If handling strong chemicals like rubbing alcohol on your bed doesn’t appeal to you, you can use less harmful chemicals. Here are some standard mixtures you can make yourself from what you have around your home:
- Baking Soda. Mix it with warm water and a splash of vinegar to create a paste, and apply to stains. You can even use this to treat non-mold stains.
- Lemon Juice. Mix it with lukewarm water and evenly spray it onto the mattress.
You should always dry it entirely whenever you use a liquid cleaner like this. The best way to do this is by keeping the mattress in the sun. As previously mentioned, this will both dry the mattress while further killing bacteria.
5. Hire Professionals
Unfortunately, home remedies don’t always do the trick. And if you have a severe mold problem in your home, the bacteria will only return again and again to your mattress and elsewhere.
When your home experiences serious damage after flooding, storms, or fires, you want the damage taken care of by professionals. The same goes for when you regularly notice mold. If you don’t get expert services to rid your home of mold completely, it will only continue to grow and spread.
Unfortunately, there are times when a mattress is beyond saving by yourself. Professionals like those at All Dry USA have expert cleaning solutions. If they determine that your mattress is beyond repair, they will let you know that it’s time for a new one.
If you notice mold after using the home remedies and continue to use your mattress, you could be subjecting yourself to serious health risks.
So when in doubt, have the professionals step in to help.
Get Rid of Mold for Good
The fight against mold can be a hard battle if you don’t have the right tools and expertise.
Don’t let mold take over your home and your life. The All Dry USA team is professionals in home damage, including cleaning up after storms, water damage, fire, and mold growth.
If you need mold remediation after you notice mold in your mattress, get help from the experts at All Dry USA.
Call today and start sleeping easy!
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With Ben’s knowledge, and visionary leadership, All Dry USA has expanded into a national, full-service property damage restoration company with multiple locations across the United States. Ben holds numerous specialty licenses and certifications in restoration and construction.
