# Mildew on Furniture



## atticwalker (Jan 16, 2018)

Hi all,

I have some furniture to clean and I don't know what the best product to use is. The environment is humid/subtropical, being in Houston, Texas. I have some mildew on three pieces of furniture that I would like to clean. I attached pictures of both. 

Furniture 1: 36 Inch Single Sink Bathroom Vanity with Cream Marfil Marble Just the drawers. 

I include the websites of each product, for information I may not have thought of but could be pertinent to answer my question.

https://www.uniquevanities.com/36-i...y-with-cream-marfil-marble-UVSR0210CML36.html

The white, fuzzy spots in Slide1 and Slide2 show the mildew I would like to clean off. 

The material is "This bath vanity is constructed of a combination of solid Poplar hardwood, select veneers and high grade medium density fiberboard. The framework of the cabinet is hardwood, and the ornate trim and the elegant features are MDF."

Furniture 2: This was bought at Macys as a Casana, Edgewater 2-drawer Nightstand. The only description of what the material is made out of is 

"A fresh perspective. Charming birch veneers in a rich chocolate finish throw a classic touch on this nightstand, which features contrasting drawer pulls, angled legs and subtle all-over accenting."

I don't know what the material it is made out of is, though. This is the only link to show what it was:

https://www.macys.com/shop/product/limited-availability-edgewater-nightstand-2-drawer?ID=836509

Slide 3 shows the main piece of the nightstand. The mildew is hard to see from a general view. Closer inspection of the ledge under the drawer shows the mildew I need to clean (Slide 4).

The last slide, slide 5, is the backside of a Casana Edgewater 6 drawer Chest

https://www.macys.com/shop/product/...=MCOM-_-MCOM_MyAlerts_TRIGGERED-_-seePDP-_-MB

There is mildew on the backside of this. This chest and the nightstand are made of the same material 

Anyway, let me know what a good product to clean this furniture is, both to make the furniture look good and not damage the material they are made out of.

BTW, has this forum ever thought of a "Housecleaning" Category? There really aren't any such forums on the internet. Good Housecleaning is an essential part of protecting/preserving what you have, it is certainly DIY for most people.


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## wraiththe (Sep 27, 2011)

Horrific. Betting it smelled too. I had used bleach and microbium to get some off of studs. Did you ever get an answer to your question some place else?


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## daluu (Jan 2, 2012)

I wonder if the following would work that's not harmful to the material: steam clean, rubbing alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, chlorox/lysol disinfectant wipes.

Would diluting bleach be safe enough to use?


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## Nik333 (Mar 1, 2015)

If you don't know what was used to paint/stain the furniture, I'd be careful in using any strong cleaner. Try testing it.


Chlorine bleach kills mold and Concrobium, tri-sodium phosphate kills mold spores. 409, a cleaner, contains benzalkonium chloride which kills spores. I use that a lot. Also, plain dish detergent, diluted, of course. But, honestly, I've never seen mold on furniture, just everything else.


Alcohol can be a solvent.


I thought this was humorous - 


"A mildewed surface is often difficult to distinguish from a dirty one. To test for mold and mildew and how to tell if your house has mold, simply dab a few drops of household bleach on the blackened area. If it lightens after one to two minutes, you have mildew. If the area remains dark, you probably have dirt. Feb 11, 2020"

*Mold Testing: How to Test for Mold in the House*


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## SeniorSitizen (Sep 10, 2012)

We hope you find a suitable cleaner, but if the moisture isn't controlled the mildew and or mold will return shortly and may be on other items at present. If in fact mildew or mold i wouldn't want to be in that environment. I believe i'd be doing some humidity testing, long term and not just spot tests.


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## atticwalker (Jan 16, 2018)

Hi all,

Just some updates.

I asked around and it seems that this is not mildew, but hard-water stains. This environment is really humid--enough for such stains to form out of the air. The stains don't smell which--as wraiththe and SeniorSitizen had mentioned--should probably have given off a hard smell if they had been mildew. The fact that there is no smell means that these stains can't be mildew, since mildew smell is strong. 

The suggestion is to use "Old English" and see if that works. I will get that tonight and let you all know what I find. 

I will try some humidity testing but I have to go to home depot for that and will let you know how that goes when I get a test from that store. I am expecting a very humid positive because that's just what this climate is.

I will also do the test of Nik333, that's a good idea. 

Has anyone ever tried what daluu mentioned on furniture: 

rubbing alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, chlorox/lysol disinfectant wipes, or diluting bleach?

Those chemicals feel strong for furniture, best to know if someone has experience with these chemicals. Also, these solutions above were suggested for mold but since I have hard-water stains that I found out in the interim before a reply came in for this thread, I would want to know if these suggestions are also good for hard-water stains or other solutions are now needed. 

I don't have access to a steam cleaner so I can't try that for now. 

If anyone else has more suggestions, certainly let me know.


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## SeniorSitizen (Sep 10, 2012)

If you have a refrigerator and or ice cubes, and a thermometer, you have enough tools to accurately check relative humidity. For starters set a glass refrigerator container out on the counter and determine if dew form on the container. If you would like to continue with this procedure post back with that info. and the room temperature and we can tell you the next step.


How it was done back in the good ole days.




Edit: Edit:


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## NeoHawk (Jun 13, 2020)

Try some spray Moldex. Available most anywhere. I live near your neck of the woods.


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## wraiththe (Sep 27, 2011)

Your best bet really would be to take it to a carpenter or a woodshop. Maybe even send a pic instead. They deal with this stuff all the time. It looks like mold to me.


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## JohanXV (Oct 26, 2020)

Hey, have you cleaned your furniture how was it? Can you share how did you manage to do that? I have small kids and they have drawn my new cherry oak dining table. I was dreaming about this table for a long time. I couldn't find something interesting until one of my friends shared this Classic Astoria Grand Furniture Store - Buy furniture by Astoria Grand site. There I found all kind of classic furniture with an incredible quality and good prices. So, I bought, of course, my table from these guys. But now I'm afraid to wash it with different substances in order not to damage the oak. So can you please share your experience?


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## Nik333 (Mar 1, 2015)

@atticwalker - I have a strong sense of smell. I noticed over the years that guys that wear mildewed t-shirts can't smell it, I've asked them. So, I'm not sure a noticeable smell is a hallmark.


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