The Best Marble Mold Remover Case Study!
Marble mold is an unfortunately common problem, especially in your shower. We’ve created an article to guide you through a safe and effective shower mold removal process, and received many questions from our readers about which mold remover is most effective. We did some research and put together this article to determine which is the best marble mold remover.
After conducting an in-depth study into marble shower cleaners and testing 5 cleaners on various shower stains, we found MarbleLife and MB Stone Care to be the heavyweights of the marble cleaning industry. So, we decided to put their mildew and mold removers to the test.
During our detailed testing, we found both of these cleaners to be very effective. But one cleaner did come out on top.
The Winner!
The MarbleLife cleaner is very effective at removing surface mold and mold stains with no scrubbing required!
Why You Should Trust Us
We spent hours designing and setting up a 3-part test so our team could objectively test and judge the most effective cleaner. We then spent hours researching the important factors of a mold remover and the composition of a safe, effective marble mold cleaner.
We then acquired both marble mold removers and spent 3 hours carefully testing them to determine which cleaner best removed the mold and mold stains from the grout and surrounding marble.
We detail our three tests and the winner below.
The Tested Marble Mold Cleaners
MB Stone Care’s MB-9 Mildew Stain Remover
This product is made by MB Stone Care which has a strong reputation in the marble care product business. They have over 30 marble care products in their catalog and their founder is well known for his mantra of “education before sale,” since he was committed to educating his customers about proper marble care prior to any sale.
We have used many of their products in the past and found their products be very effective in past reviews. Although the product is on the more expensive end of the spectrum, we feel this product will be highly competitive.
*At the time of writing this.
MarbleLife’s Mold & Mildew Remover
This product is made by Marblelife which is another giant in the marble restoration business. They have over 50 stone care products in their catalog developed specifically to support their large stone restoration business. MarbleLife is the largest marble restoration company in North America and polishes more marble floors than any other company in the world. They use their products everyday during their restoration services.
We have used many of their products in the past and found their products be very effective in past reviews. This product is very competitive and competitively priced, and we therefore chose to test this product.
*At the time of writing this.
How We Judged
Our goal was to find a mold cleaner that effectively removes the surface mold from your marble shower, removes any staining left behind by the mold, and does both safely and without leaving streaks on your marble surface. The ideal mold cleaner will remove the mold and stains without scrubbing.
Remove Surface Mold and Mold Stains
The most important role of the mold remover is to remove the mold and the stains the mold leaves behind.
Mold is a living organism, so the first step of the cleaner is to kill the mold and keep it from coming back after it is removed. This can be problematic in some cases because marble and grout are porous surfaces and mold spores will penetrate these pores. If the cleaner does not enter the pores and kill the mold, the mold will be back in no time.
Bleach is commonly recommended for the removal of mold, but bleach will not be effective long-term on porous surfaces like marble and grout because bleach will not penetrate the pores and kill the mold. So, while bleach will remove the mold from the surface and do a great job at removing any stains (hence the term “bleach the stains out”), the mold will come back. The mold spores inside the pores of the grout and marble will not be killed and will instead spread and grow back.
In other words, using bleach to get rid of surface mold is a temporary fix for a deeper problem — literally.
For the tested cleaners to be effective, the cleaners must be able to penetrate the surface’s pores and eradicate all the mold so it can’t grow back. The manufacturers of our two cleaners claim to be able to penetrate the pores and kill all the mold. Below is a screenshot form the MarbleLife website with details on their mold remover.
MarbleLife Mold Remover Product Description
Once the mold is removed from the surface (and hopefully the pores of the surface), there will be stains that the mold leaves behind. The cleaners need to not only be able to remove the mold, but they also need to be able to remove the mold stains. If the cleaners are unable to remove the stains, then the grout will remain dark and discolored, leaving a very unattractive look which we definitely do not want.
Safety of Use
Universal pH Indicator paper
Even if the marble cleaners remove the mold, they won’t do much good if they harm the marble in the process. Unfortunately, marble and other calcite-based stone like travertine are highly reactive with acids. When marble comes into contact with acid, the acid dissolves part of the marble’s surface, leaving behind unattractive dull marks that ruin the aesthetic of your marble. This process is called ‘etching.’ For more information on etching, click here.
This problem is unfortunately common. Vinegar, an acidic solution, is commonly recommended as a natural way to remove mold. While it’s effective at removing mold and mold stains, vinegar is acidic and it will quickly etch the marble, creating ugly dull marks on the surface. Check out this video to see how quickly vinegar will ruin marble.
Therefore, we must ensure that these cleaners won’t be harmful to the marble surface. Both cleaners we’ve chosen are specifically designed for marble so they will probably be fine, the test will provide peace of mind.
For the cleaner to be safe, the cleaner must not even be the slightest bit acidic. This means the cleaner must have a pH level of at least 7, but will probably need to be much greater than 7 to have some cleaning power.
pH Balance Chart
We will test both cleaners using universal pH paper, which will determine the pH level of the cleaner. We know that the cleaners must have a pH level of greater than 7 because they cannot be acidic, but we also do not want a pH that is too high because a very high pH (called very basic) can also be harmful.
The Marble Institute of America recommends the use of bleach in some cases to remove mildew as long as it is used infrequently and in small amounts. We can assume that bleach, with a pH level of 12-13, is still a safe level for marble cleaners. Therefore, we’ll define a safe range of marble cleaners as a pH level of 7-12. The universal pH paper will tell us if they are safe for use with marble.
Streak-Free
Nothing is more frustrating than scrubbing a surface clean, removing the stain, and then finding you’ve created streaks all over the surface. You then try and wipe the streaks away over and over again, just to remove streaks from one part of the surface and smear them onto another.
We want these cleaners to not only remove the the mold and mold stains, but to deliver a streak-free shine when they’re removed.
In the past, we’ve used specialty cleaners like grout cleaners or soap scum removers which aren’t as effective at delivering a streak-free shine as general purpose cleaners. Given this tendency, our mold removers may not be perfect at creating a steak-free surface, but we’ll see how they perform and use this as another data point for us to objectively determine which cleaner preforms the best.
Keep in mind, if these cleaners aren’t perfect at delivering a streak-free shine, we could always come back with a general purpose marble cleaner to clean up any remaining streaks.
How We Tested
Does It Remove Surface Mold and Mold Stains?
Mold Test Area 1 with Respective Cleaners
We put these cleaners to the test on mold in a marble shower. We designed the test as objectively as possible by picking regions of the shower which had mold on the marble and grout, which we then separated into two equal regions to test each product and compare the results.
We did these on two separate parts of the shower that had very similar mold growth in each respective section. We cleaned each section in as close to an identical method as possible. (Unfortunately, we didn’t have a cleaning robot to perfectly recreate each cleaning step, but we’re confident we did a pretty good job here.)
The method we used was as follows:
1. Liberally apply marble mold cleaner to each region in equal amounts.
2. Let each cleaner sit for 5 minutes.
3. If mold does not disappear on its own, scrub the mold using an old toothbrush until it is gone. We applied the same amount of pressure and same amount of cleaning time on each respective section to ensure an objective and fair test.
4. Using a microfiber towel, wipe up the cleaner and dry the surface.
These instruction are shown in the below video.
Mold Test Areas 2 with Respective Cleaners
During the cleaning of each section we objectively judged how much mold was removed at each step. We wanted to know how much mold was removed by the cleaner itself without scrubbing, and the total amount of mold and mold stains which were removed at the end of the test. At the conclusion of each step, we wrote down the percentage of the mold and mold stains removed so at the end of the test we could determine which cleaner did the best job.
The cleaners were judged on a removal scale of 0-100%, with 100% removal being perfect.
Is It Safe to Use?
The safety of use is a critical factor in determining the best marble cleaner. As we discussed above, a safe range for our tested mold removers is a pH level between 7-12.
We tested this by dipping the universal pH paper into each cleaner. We replicated this test 5 times for each cleaner to ensure we received a consistent pH level.
Does It Deliver a Streak-Free Shine?
Streak Free Shine Test Setup
To determine if the cleaner left the surface streak free we tested the cleaner on a mirror so the streaks would be easily identified.
We added two teaspoons of each mold remover to the mirror and wiped up the surface with a new clean paper towel. We used a repeatable motion to make the test as similar as possible with each cleaning solution.
After the removal of the mold cleaner, we carefully examined the mirror and recorded the total amount of the cleaner removed on a scale of 0-100%. 100% being completed removed, this being the best result.
The Results
The Winner
After running the three tests, we determined the best marble mold remover to be MarbleLife’s Mildew remover.
The cleaner did a great job at removing the mold from the surface and really distinguished itself from the competition by thoroughly removing the staining left behind by the mold.
The cleaner had a pH level of approximately 12 which means it’s safe for use on marble. It also did a reasonable job at delivering a streak-free shine. However, it left some streaks behind so we recommend using a general purpose marble cleaner after wiping up all the mold remover.
The Winner!
The MarbleLife cleaner was very effective at removing the mold without scrubbing and was the best cleaner at removing mold stains.
Effectiveness
Value
Ease of Use
We Like:
- Removes most surface mold and stains without scrubbing
- Effectively removes mold staining, about 95 % of mold stain was removed
- Great value
- Safe pH level of 12
We don’t like:
- Cleaner has low viscosity so it does not stay on grout lines while soaking the cleaner over the mold, which usually means reapplication of cleaner
- Leaves some streaks behind, about 75% of cleaner was removed
Price: $ 24.95
*At the time of writing these.
How the Competition Fared
The MB-9 mildew remover also did a great job at removing surface mold and removing mold stains. What hurt this cleaner is that it did not quite remove the mold stains as well as the MarbleLife Cleaner. Only about 90% of the stains were removed, so the grout lines were slightly more discolored compared to the MarbleLife-cleaned grout lines. However, it is worth noting that there was not much of a difference. Both cleaners performed very well.
We actually felt like MB-9 was easier to use because the cleaner has a much higher viscosity (looks and feels like a gel) compared to the MarbleLife product. It stays on the grout lines while you let the cleaner soak. This makes it much easier to use because the cleaner does not run and you do not have to reapply the cleaner during the 5-10 minute soaking time. A picture of this is shown below; notice how the cleaner pools in spots rather than running along the grout lines.
Close up of MB-9 application, notice how the cleaner pools and does not spread
Effectiveness
Value
Ease of Use
We Like:
- Removes most surface mold and stains without scrubbing
- Effectively removes mold staining; about 90 % of mold stain was removed
- High viscosity makes it easy to spray cleaner and keep the cleaner in the trouble spots
- Safe pH level of 12
We don’t like:
- Cleaner is the more expensive option
- Cleaner did not do quite as good of a job at removing mold stains as the competition
- Left more streaks than the competition, probably due to the gel-type makeup
Price: $ 26.45*
*At the time of writing these.
Summary of Results
Before and After Mold Removal, notice both cleaners did a great job at removing the mold and stains
All in all, both cleaners did a great job at removing the surface mold and mold stains, and we would recommend both cleaners. However, the MarbleLife product did a slightly better job at removing the mold stains which resulted in cleaner, better-looking grout. Both cleaners had pH levels of 12 which is within the safe range for use on marble. Since both of these are specialty cleaners (as opposed to general purpose cleaners), they did not do a perfect job at delivering a streak-free shine. The MarbleLife product did a slightly better job at leaving fewer streaks, but it was also a little more difficult to use since the liquid cleaner would run off the grout lines after application.
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