Maybe this is a cleaning question, but I'll give it a shot here.

We get some mildew on our master bathroom walls, within a foot or so of the ceiling. We keep the bathroom fan running most of the day to try to keep it well ventilated, and the door open when taking a shower. We thought the problem would go away when we painted the bathroom, but it did not.

Any clues about getting rid of it? We can use a solution with bleach, but it will come right back.

You may want to try repainting the walls with a mildew resistant primer and paint. Your local paint store should be able to help you out. I like Kilz primer for this type of problem and I typically prefer Benjamin Moore paints, but there are all sorts of products out there.

If that doesn't work it you should make a small hole and see if there is mildew behind the wall. Sometimes surface mildew is just a indication of a larger moisture problem within the wall cavities.

Good luck.

You may have a leak in your roof somewhere & the water is making itself known in the bathroom.

Do as animator2002 suggested, however, remove a large enough piece of the wallboard to really be able to view the interior of the structure. If you have a leak in the roof you should see evidence of it.

This could be a leak around a bathroom vent pipe that that needs resealing.

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[This message was edited by MiranndaGrey on 07-20-02 at 12:36 PM.]

The best product for permanently removing mold and mildew is good old fashioned rubbing alcohol. Put it into a spray bottle and scrub down your entire bathroom. Not only will it kill mildew, but it will rid your bathroom of all other forms of germs and bacteria. Just be sure to avoid smoking while you're spraying alcohol.

Well Mouth wash will work as well, and leave your bathroom smelling minty fresh.

The other ideas all work as well.

Since this is a problem that keeps on coming back, it may take a bit more of an aggressive stance on the matter.

Such as getting better ventilation in the room if at all possible, this may require a simple cleaning of the vent duct, or it may mean that you need a more powerful vent fan.

Mold and Mildew spread through spores and can, over time, penetrate into the wall itself - if you find that even after cleaning the bathroom and not using it for showers the problem continues, you may want to consider having a contractor look at the wall.

David

Risk:

If as you say in your question that I reread again, that you used Chorine Bleach & the Mildew comes back, then you have a serious problem in your house.

Chorine Bleach is about the strongest solution you can use. It will remove Mildew & Mold if you get to the source of the problem.

I don't know about Alcohol & Mouthwash, as solutions to rid your house of Mildew. They may work if your problem is minor & it has just begun to become noticeable.

However, I would seriosly suggest that you call in a contracor as DvdGStwrt has mentioned to get at the root of the problem.

Mildew & Mold are very serios problems. I have a neighbor who has just completed ridding his house of black Mold.

He had to completely gut the inside of his house by tearing out all of the wallboard. He also had to install a new drain line for water creapage on the outside of house 6-feet below the surface level at about the level of his basement.

The cost was in the thousands of dollars.

I am not trying to alarm you, just making the facts known that Mildew can lead to Mold & to other serious internal problems if they are not addressed immeadiately.

According to your Profile, you are an Engineer. Therefore, you should be somewhat cognizant of the kind of problems that can develop in your house if you let it go along with out finding out what is causing the problem.

Call a contractor, you will be happy when he finds out what the problem is. You will also sleep better, knowing you get the problem solved. However, it may cost you a few bucks.