Use a scrub brush to apply to the mixture directly onto the green mold stain and allow it to sit for about 20 minutes. A pressure washer may prove helpful. After the second wash, thoroughly rinse the deck with clean water to remove all cleaning residue. Scrub in the direction of the wood grain, and pay special attention to areas with green mold. Your ability to enjoy your deck may be diminished if algae infiltrates the wood, making it more than a bit unsightly. Use a stiff-bristle scrub brush or broom to work it in and to remove the fungus. Regular cleaning and improved airflow will help keep the green mold off the deck. Spray or mop the solution on, and you’re done. Before you consider replacing your hardwood deck with a composite deck that is resistant to mold, try a few of our simple methods for removing green mold off your deck. Mold can appear in different colors depending on the type of mold, environmental factors, and sometimes on the content of the material, it is feeding on. Wash the whole deck thoroughly. However, they also kill mold and mildew, while other homemade cleaners won’t. Removing unsightly green mold, mildew, moss, and algae from your wooden deck is necessary to protect the wood and your investment. 7 Clever Ways To Remove Green Mold From A Wood Deck. Wash Down Sealed or Painted Wood If the mold has grown on painted wood like an interior door or a sealed wood finish like floors, begin by washing down with a liquid dishwashing detergent and water solution. Use the brush to scrub away the loosened mold. If the article proved interesting or helpful, please share it with others. They should be applied on a morning with mild temperatures and no chance of rain for at least four hours. Use a specialized deck cleaner containing oxygen bleach which will help to remove any markings. The deck must be cleaned first. You’ll have to scrub down any affected areas, use a dehumidifier to dry out the space, and use an air scrubber to remove any mold spores. An alternative to chlorine bleach is oxygen bleach. After the mold has been removed, use a garden hose to rinse the deck surface. Let it sit for several minutes before scrubbing up the mold. 1. Useful Tips To Make Your Everyday Life Just A Bit Better. It’s a soluble powder that acts as a mild scouring agent to loosen and remove green mold. Oxygen bleach is a compound of hydrogen peroxide and natural soda crystals and is commonly used in many cleaning products. To effectively remove mold from wood, the badger recommends using a Borax solution. How to Clean Mold from Wood with Vinegar. Green mold is similar to green algae and is a common problem on the deck. Mildew stays on the surface and spreads across it. Cover nearby plants with a plastic tarp to protect them from the cleaning solution. Begin by sweeping the deck to remove dirt and debris. Is your deck turning green? It should be applied using an attachable hose spray bottle, pump-up sprayer, bucket and mop or broom, or a hand-held sprayer for small spots. Thereafter, the first option is to buy an algae removing product from your decking supplier, which has been designed and developed with the sole purpose of removing mold from your decking. Dip a scrub brush into the solution and spread it over the deck. Finish by spraying the deck surface with clean water from a garden hose. Guidelines for Removing Mold: If you see mold on your deck, clean it with a commercial deck wash containing a detergent and bleach (the ingredient on the package might call it “sodium hypochlorite"). This homemade deck cleaner utilizes the strength of oxygen bleach, Borax, and soap to remove mold. Give the area a proper rinsing with a garden hose. Apply it liberally to the whole deck as a cleaner, or only to the mold or mildew areas. When removing mildew from your wooden deck, select a hot and sunny day to do the job. Green mold growth occurs commonly on wood in shady or damp moist areas, or under debris that creates a shady, damp area. Spray the solution alongside the surface of the area affected by green mold. Outdoor decks experience the full spectrum of climatic conditions and may spend weeks or even months being damp, especially if they haven’t been maintained and sealed or stained regularly. While this is a useful measure for killing fungi, it can cause damage to the wood fibers. Get rid of any stains and dirt and debris before staining or sealing. Use a … Many people find that deck cleaning without a pressure washer is very labor-intensive, unless your deck is a small one. Mold isn’t mildew, although both are fungi and can occur together on different surfaces. Let the application sit for ten minutes. Mold and mildew can be problematic for your wood decks, see below for why this happens and what you can do to prevent it. After rinsing with a garden hose, the surfaces should look brand new again. For years, people have used … If the mold area is large, do a section at a time, so the vinegar solution doesn’t dry. Rinse the wood thoroughly with clean water. Using oxygen bleach, vinegar, or hydrogen peroxide, or TSP solutions will also remove algae from the deck boards. Affiliate Disclaimer: Tipsbulletin.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com, How to Remove Green Mold from a Wooden Deck with Oxygen Bleach, Removing Green Mold from a Deck with Vinegar, How to Eliminate Green Mold from a Deck with Baking Soda, Cleaning Green Mold Off a Deck with Trisodium Phosphate, How to Remove Green Mold from a Deck with a Pressure Washer, Privacy Policy – GDPR – Medical Disclaimer – DMCA. A safer alternative to chlorine bleach for mold cleaning is oxygen bleach. Add the deck cleaner to the pressure washer per the manufacturer’s instructions. When cleaning moss off wood decks, use concentrated (25-30%) hydrogen peroxide in a spray bottle – don’t dilute it. Pressure Washer. Like a weed growing on your front lawn, mold and mildew must be killed by an effective, acknowledged, Environmental Protection Agency-registered disinfectant cleaner making mold and mildew claims. As always, your comments and suggestions are appreciated. Wear gloves, mask, and eye protection and spray the peroxide directly on the moss. Airflow over and under a deck helps dry the wood and prevent mold growth on the top and underside of the planks. Apply the solution in a sweeping motion across the planks starting at the farthest side or corner. Washing your wood deck regularly with one of our cleaner recipes will also prevent that mold from coming back. 4 Amazing Homemade Deck Cleaner Recipes. It has also been linked to cognitive concerns like memory loss, depression and mood swings, dizziness, and fatigue. Tips for Mold and Mildew Prevention . Deck Cleaner Qse For Mildew Mold Algae. Sweep dirt and debris off the deck before you begin this method. Green mold ranges from greenish to black and is usually slimy or fuzzy. It also makes the surface safer to walk on and is healthier for those who enjoy relaxing on it. Just combine one gallon of water with one cup of white vinegar and scrub the deck with the solution to remove algae, mildew, and mold. However, there are some things you should know to prevent damaging the wood’s surface while cleaning. The best thing to use isn't chlorine bleach, but plain water and perhaps some detergent. Dissolve the powder in warm water, pour it into one of those garden hand-pump sprayers and squirt it on your algae-coated surfaces. It’s incredibly useful as a cleaning agent and works well to remove green mold from wood. After cleaning the deck, it will require a brightener to restore the wood luster, neutralize the oxy bleach, and restore the natural pH of the wood. Here are different ways to clean green growth off your deck. There are … Mix 1 cup of bleach into 1 gallon of water. https://ir.library.oregonstate.edu/xmlui/handle/1957/25595?show=full Need to know how to remove green mold from wood deck boards? If left for too long, the algae can actually cause damage to the deck, too. Shade keeps the deck inviting on a sunny day. Pressure washing: If you don’t want to use any products or chemicals on your deck, you can blast algae away with a pressure washer. Use this simple mixture for removing mold from walls with vinegar or for any other area affected by the fungus, both indoors and out. There are many homemade deck cleaning recipes available. You may also opt to use a power or pressure washer to save time and labor. We hope you enjoyed learning how to remove green mold from a wood deck, and we’d love it if you shared these wood decking cleaning tips with your friends and family on Facebook and Pinterest. Mold releases airborne spores that affect those with asthma, allergies, and other respiratory concerns. Cleaning your deck was never so easy. How to Remove Green Mold From Wood Decks. Use the scrub brush in awkward areas and where mold is present. Available in “green” or “eco” (and some not so green options), essentially what these cleaners do is attack the moss, algae and lichens that cause your decking to look a bit tired. This is one of the best methods on how to clean moss off decks, as well as removing algae, mildew, and mold. Let it soak for about ten minutes, then use a scrub brush to remove the green algae. Finally, rinse the deck surface with a garden hose to remove any lingering residue and allow the deck to dry completely. Wet it, wash it, and scrub where necessary, and then rinse it thoroughly. Now that you know the tricks to remove mold from your wood deck, you may want to think about cleaning mold off vinyl siding, too. Wood Decks. Baking soda is a natural cleaning alternative to use instead of a cleaning product that contains harsh chemicals. The wood will eventually gray over time, but repeated cleaning can keep it bright and mold free for a long time. Scrape the surface foliage off first without damaging the wood. Dryness doesn’t encourage spore growth and intense heat will aid in killing existing spores. A hot sun does a great job of quickly drying the wood and makes killing the mold spores and removing mildew that much easier. Re-wet the brush as needed. The key element to preventing most mold and mildew is to control dampness. Use a scrub brush or stiff-bristled broom to brush away the green mold. Alternatively, try a mold-mildew-algae stain remover and let it do the work or one of the many homemade wood deck cleaners. Add moisture, and you’re dealing with green mold on wood flooring, stairs and railings. Letting it dry up in the hot sun is definitely an easy technique to kill mold and mildew. Just be carefully not to use too much pressure – if you are not careful, you can damage the softwood. Mold penetrates wood or other organic material, not just on the surface. It may take more scrubbing effort to lift the algae or mold out of the wood. You can use a homemade deck mold remover to clean the entire deck or just the areas that are affected by green mold. Mildew usually begins as yellow spots and then turns grayish white to a brown or greenish tinge, and has a powdery or fluffy texture. I hope you understand what mold is, why you don’t want it on your deck, and now know how to clean green mold off wood deck surfaces. How to Remove Mildew and Algae from a Wooden Fence. After removing the moss and cleaning the deck, apply a brightener to restore the wood luster, and restore the natural pH of the wood. Work the solution into the wood with the brush to lift the fungus out of the wood. How To Clean A Wood Deck The Easy Way You. Begin by removing all furniture from the deck and sweep away any debris. A pressure washer is not usually practical when getting rid of black mold indoors. Pressure washing: If you do not want to use any products or chemicals on your deck, you can clean algae away with a pressure washer. The concentrated formula is diluted following the manufacturer’s instructions. Leaves, planters, BBQ covers, furniture, and even lattice screens provide shade and can keep wood from drying out. To prevent algae on wood deck surfaces, you need a good airflow over and under the boards to help them stay dry or dry after a rain. Chlorine bleach has been used for years to remove mold and mildew, but due to environmental concerns, its outdoor use is discouraged. The green tinge may be caused by mold, mildew, algae, or moss on deck surfaces. Green mold can cause health problems in people and animals, so it should be taken care of as soon as possible with the proper cleaning process. After power washing the entire wood deck, you may want to apply a deck sealer if it hasn’t already been done. How To Remove Mold And Algae From Decks Best Deck Stain Reviews. Some work better than others, and some are an environmental hazard like chlorine bleach. Then, add two … For years, people have used chlorine bleach to clean their decks and for removing mold. Mold can cause headaches, rashes, nervous-system disorders, and some types are linked to blood poisoning (sepsis) and even brain infections. Algae, like mold and mildew, flourishes on warm, moist surfaces. If the wood is stained from the mold, you may have to do more. Review the owner’s manual when adding a cleaning solution or detergent to the power washer. 2. It kills bacteria and destroys fungus, is non-toxic, biodegradable, and safe for the environment. However, it shouldn’t be used on wood. Trisodium phosphate, or TSP, is an inorganic compound that becomes an alkaline solution when combined with water. To remove mold, mildew, and grime from wood decking, you only need a few ingredients, the right tools, and some elbow grease. Work it into the wood in the direction of the grain. Begin at the farthest corner of the deck and start up the washer. Anything that offers a shade that prevents sunlight from penetrating and drying the wood provides an ideal ‘home’ for mold to grow. Eugene has been a DIY enthusiast for most of his life and loves being creative while inspiring creativity in others. It often begins as dark spots or ‘shadows’ before becoming furry or fuzzy. Although not the same, they grow in similar damp, dark conditions. It's amazing what you can do for a few bucks. A power or pressure washer is an ideal tool for cleaning the wood on your deck. While it will destroy the fungus, it also damages the lignin (organic polymers) that binds the fibers together. Pressure washing can remove the mold, but it’s a job best handled by cleaning professionals. Hold the nozzle two feet from the surface and move with the wood grain while using a sweeping motion as you move along the deck. Green mold on deck surfaces may be less worrisome than if it was growing in your basement or bathroom, but it is still a health hazard. The following method requires a detergent for pressure washer. Mold and mildew grow when the wood is wet and doesn't get a chance to dry often. There is no rinsing or scrubbing needed. The bleach, Trex says, will remove the mold, but also could lighten the color of the boards. Dip a hard brush into the solution and scrub the deck. 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