Say Goodbye To Mold! Tips For Keeping Your House Clean

When you buy a house in Seoul, South Korea, as soon as the rainy season comes after the summer season, mold starts to become active. Mildew not only affects the beauty of your home but is also harmful to anyone’s health, causing respiratory diseases and allergies. In this article, we’ve compiled practical methods for removing mildew.

• Bedroom

Many single rooms in South Korea and apartments for rent in Austin do not have a balcony. Koreans generally do not have the habit of hanging clothes to dry outdoors, so residents in South Korea usually dry clothes indoors. During the rainy season, wet clothes are not only difficult to dry, but it also increases indoor moisture.

Dehumidification method:

1. Buy a clothes dryer, or go to a laundromat near the community and spend 3,000-5,000 won for clothes drying;
2. Purchase a dehumidification box (제습제). You can buy good dehumidification boxes at online supermarkets at a good price. They should be placed in the corners of the room, closets, and shoe cabinets, and they should be replaced regularly;
3. Air conditioning dehumidification. Press the 운전선택 button on the remote control of the air conditioner to select the 제습 function.

• Refrigerator

People think that the refrigerator is clean and fresh, so they ignore the anti-mold work of the refrigerator. But once you remember if there is any bread in the refrigerator that you bought a month ago, onions that you bought three months ago, or tofu that you bought a year ago? Look at the refrigerator seal again, that is the moldiest part of the refrigerator!

Anti-mold and mildew-removing method:

1. Don’t put everything in the refrigerator. Vegetables that are not suitable for the refrigerator, such as potatoes and radishes, should not be put in the refrigerator. Store in a cool place and eat in the near future.
2. Cleaning raw meat. The raw meat you bought should be washed with clean water first and left to dry for a while before putting it in the freezer.
3. Organizing. To prevent cross-contamination of food, you can put fruits and vegetables on the bottom, meat and dairy products on top, and leftovers in the middle. Dairy products and seasonings must be sealed or covered, and put in the refrigerator after opening the bottle/packaging.
4. Make good use of fresh-keeping boxes and bags, and clean them regularly. Even if the fresh-keeping bag/box is used, the food cannot be stored in the refrigerator for a long time. The shelf life and condition of the food should be monitored regularly. If there is any dirty place in the refrigerator, immediately wipe it off with a paper towel. Don’t stack too many things, make sure there is room for air circulation.
5. Eliminate odor.

After eating the orange flesh, use the orange peel and place it in the refrigerator for 3 days; You can also slice lemons and put them on each floor of the refrigerator; Dry the tea/coffee grounds and put them in a gauze bag, then place them in the refrigerator.

6. Remove mildew.

Unplug the power, empty the food in the refrigerator, dispose of the expired, spoiled, and moldy food, and remove the drawers and partitions. Wipe the inside of the refrigerator with baking soda(for stubborn stains), leave it for a few minutes, and wipe it with a hot towel. The glass and ceramic accessories should be cleaned after they are at room temperature to avoid breakage.

The inside of the refrigerator door, hard-to-touch corners, and rubber seals are parts that are easily overlooked but often contain dirt. You can clean them carefully with a toothbrush moistened with baking soda or toothpaste. Wipe the refrigerator from top to bottom. The refrigerator on the tempered glass surface can be wiped gently with soda water, and the refrigerator on the stainless steel surface can be cleaned with vegetable oil, olive oil, or baby oil.

Of course, you can also use water, or use the ratio of 3 white vinegar to 1 water to clean. It is recommended to use a softer cloth to avoid scratching the surface. Open the refrigerator door to ventilate. After all of the components and the inside of the refrigerator are dry, put it back in the drawer and compartment, and place the food back in the refrigerator.

• For professional cleaning, the oil drip pan (located above the condensation pan at the bottom of the refrigerator to prevent oil from dripping on the coil and the ground) and the coil of the condenser (adsorbing dust, too much coil dust may affect the refrigerator’s cooling function) must be cleaned, it is necessary to know the structure of the refrigerator and have professionals to disassemble the parts if needed. Carelessness might damage the refrigerator, so it is not recommended to clean it blindly. If the normal use of the refrigerator is affected by these two places, you can contact a housekeeping company for special cleaning.
• Bathroom

In a humid house or rainy season, it is difficult to remove the moisture in the bathroom after taking a shower. At this time, if there is no good method, it is easy to cause mold in the bathroom, and even the cracks in the wall tiles will also be moldy.

Moisture-proof and mildew-proof method:

1. Soap stains and dirt from people’s bodies will also become molds’ favorite places to go to. To prevent the growth of mold, it is necessary to thoroughly wash away the remaining soap stains and dirt. You can wash it with hot water against the wall and underground, then rinse with cold water, and finally, do a simple wipe and ventilate;
2. After taking a shower, turn on the dehumidification function of exhaust fans, windows, and air conditioners for good ventilation and dehumidification;
3. If you already have mildew, you can buy these two cleaners from 다이소, 뿌리는곰팡이싹 and 바르면곰팡이싹, to remove mildew.

• 뿌리는곰팡이싹: Whether it is a wall, floor or a faucet, just spray this detergent at a distance of 20cm-30cm from the moldy part. After the mold is eliminated, clean it with plenty of water. If it is a stubborn material, wait 1-2 hours after spraying, and then clean it with a brush or spray it once, which is simple and fast. If it is the drain of the kitchen sink, you can spray the lotion, wait 3-4 minutes, and then wash it off with clean water.
• 바르면곰팡이싹: This cleaning agent is gelatinous. Apply it to the moldy area and clean it with water after 1 hour. It is suitable for removing mold between tile gaps and silicone products.

Wallpaper

There may be many reasons for moldy wallpaper, such as indoor humidity, water leakage in the house, and not being cleaned for a long time. It is also a condition that is more difficult to deal with. If the moldy area of ​​the wallpaper is relatively large or moldy occurs repeatedly, you should communicate with the homeowner whether to replace the wallpaper or do a leak detection of the house.

Indoor mold is harmful to your health, so the guest officials must not think it is troublesome and ignore this problem. If it is moldy in a small area, you can use the cleaning potion described below to solve it. Note, however, that this kind of potion may change the color of the wallpaper, so it is not suitable for use in a very large area. It is recommended to try it on a small area in the corner first, and then use it without problems.

This potion is called “Mold Solution”(곰팡이솔루션) and is available online. The red potion eliminates mold, the green potion reduces bacteria, and the blue potion prevents mold, but do not mix it with water or other solvents.

Instructions:

1. Spray the red potion first, and then wipe it clean with a dry rag after a period of time. If it has a lot of molds, keep it for 8 hours, wipe it clean, and repeat it several times, but pay attention to the state of the wallpaper, and don’t rub it repeatedly, so it wouldn’t damage the wallpaper.
2. Spray sterilized green potion, wait for a period of time, and wipe it with a dry cloth.
3. Remove the mold, and after the wallpaper is completely dry, remove the surface dust and impurities. Then pour the blue potion into the container, dip the potion with a small brush, and brush the wall. If it is the part with severe mold, you can repeat the brushing process 3-4 times.

Note: Keep the room well-ventilated when using it, and you can wear goggles, masks, gloves, aprons, etc. to avoid contact with the skin, eyes, and clothing. Because of the fading effect, it does to other wallpapers, it is not suitable for fiber wallpaper, and the mold may not be eliminated completely.

Air Conditioning

When the summer heat season comes, netizens will shout: “My life is given by the air conditioner!” But, guest officials, have you ever thought of bringing a refreshing summer air conditioner, but it hides dirt and even dirt. Is it a petri dish for mold? Search the Internet for photos of “air conditioner cleaning”, I believe it will make you jump up and open the wall-mounted air conditioner cover!

Cleaning method:

1. Ask professionals to clean your air conditioner. You can contact the housekeeping company by consulting friends, homeowners, or online inquiries. Because the price difference between each store may be very large, in order to avoid paying a higher price, it is better to compare the prices and services of several stores first before deciding. At present, the cleaning fee for the indoor unit of a wall-mounted air conditioner in one room is generally around 35,000 to 60,000 won, while the bigger air conditioner is around 60,000 to 150,000 won. The cleaning of the external unit requires an additional fee. After the cleaning company comes to the house, and after the inspection, it will be covered with plastic sheets to prevent contamination of other furniture, and then the parts will be disassembled, cleaned, reassembled, etc.

The cleaning time is between 40-70 minutes. After the air conditioner has been used for 2-3 years, the problem of insufficient cooling may happen, and a refrigerant needs to be added. The additional cost is around 20,000 won, this part of the cost is generally paid by the homeowner.

Note, however, that the homeowner must be informed in advance that the air conditioner needs to be added to the condensing agent, and the process should be carried out after consulting with the homeowner. The proof and receipt of the negotiation process should also be kept to avoid unnecessary conflicts.

2. Simple cleaning by yourself. The price of cleaning companies is relatively high, but they spend money and save trouble to clean the inside and out of the air conditioner, and avoid the problem of wrong or forced demolition and damage to the air conditioner. After all, the furniture in the rented house is also owned by the owner. However, if there is no mold or peculiar smell, you can perform simple cleaning of some parts such as the filter on a regular basis. There are also many cleaning methods introduced on the Internet, and tenants can search for reference. Generally, wall-mounted air conditioners are used for monthly rentals in South Korea. Depending on the model and brand, the cleaning method may be different. You can refer to the main air conditioner’s instruction manual.

Here is a more general (no technical content) wall-mounted air conditioner cleaning method:

-Unplug the power supply, find the grooves on both sides of the outer cover, gently open the outer cover, and take out the left and right filters.

-Use cold water and/or a soft brush to remove dust on the filter screen. Be careful not to use a hard brush or vigorously scrubbing, and do not wash with large volumes of water to avoid damage to the filter screen.

-Air-dry naturally, replace the filter and close the outer cover.

-Clean the case with a soft cloth, paying attention to the corners. Therefore, for customers, the filter is very important, and the air conditioner filter cannot be ignored.