A lot of people who ring us about mould have already cleaned it off once or twice. It looks fine for a few weeks, then it's back in the same spot. Nearly every time, the mould was cleaned but whatever was keeping that spot damp wasn't fixed.

Why mould keeps coming back

Mould spores are in the air everywhere. They only grow where there's moisture, and in North Queensland there's plenty of it. Common causes in Townsville homes:

A roof leak that only shows up in heavy rain
An air conditioner with a blocked drain, dripping inside a wall or ceiling
A bathroom that never dries out because the exhaust fan is weak or not used
Condensation on air-conditioned walls and ceilings in humid weather
A plumbing leak inside a wall
Carpet or walls that got wet in a flood and weren't dried properly
A house that's shut up for weeks with no air moving through it

Bleach doesn't fix it

Bleach can make mould on plasterboard, timber or grout look clean, but it doesn't kill the mould growing inside the material. A few weeks later the same patch comes back. On hard, non-porous surfaces like glass and glazed tiles, bleach is fine.

Wiping it can spread it

Dry mould releases spores when you disturb it. Wiping it puts spores in the air, and the air conditioner can carry them to other rooms.

What we do

We find the moisture first. Then we remove the mould, replace any plasterboard it has grown into, and clean the area. We'll also tell you what caused it, so you can get it fixed and it doesn't come back.

What you can do now

Run the bathroom exhaust fan during and after showers
Get the air conditioner serviced and its drain cleared
Open the house up on dry days
Leave a gap between furniture and outside walls
Dry anything that gets wet within a day or two

If you've already got mould, don't wipe it or spray it. Send us a photo. Our mould cleaning Townsville page explains how we deal with it.

Why mould keeps coming back