Eh? Before you bleach

The United Way has been asking for donations of bleach to help with flood cleanup, but before you pour, consider this:

Reader Tim Baker, who said he’s a former disaster-cleanup specialist, e-mailed Eh? with words of caution.

“I commend the United Way’s efforts on the flood cleanup; however, they need to know bleach is not always the answer,” he said. “On any surface that can absorb water such as wood, cloth, etc., bleach can actually do more harm than good. As bleach is applied to these surfaces it gases off before it can penetrate deep enough to kill mold spores and after it gases off, it leaves its ‘vehicle’ behind, which is water and can actually cause breeding ground for the mold.

“Using white vinegar is the proper way to kill mold on these types of surfaces and is safer to use.”

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Tags: life, eh, environment, flood, updates