Stopping Mold Growth On MDF and MDF Furniture

So it turns out that our flat has mold. For whatever reason (poor ventilation, cracks in the walls) we are now getting mold growing on the walls due to the condensation forming on and underneath wallpaper in our bedroom.

As we rent our flat, this would normally just be irritating. However, the problem is that mold loves MDF, the cheap wood that is often used as the backing for furniture. As a result, our large wardrobe and chest of drawers became quickly covered in green mold. Even when wiped away this would come back strongly within a week.

The mold can grow through the MDF either growing through the wood or finding cracks in it. Once on the inside of the cupboard/drawers, it can grow on clothes, notebooks and pretty much anything you’ve got tucked away in there.

We’ve hit upon a simple solution for this that we wanted to share with anyone else who’s dealing with this nightmare…sellotape! By taping up the back of the cupboard we have drastically slowed down the growth of mold on the furniture. The photos show how effective this is.

Now, I’m not going to pretend that this is a particularly long term remedy, but it is a lot better than having mold covered clothes. If you are planning to do this, however, you will need to cover both the outside and inside of any MDF furniture, unless the MDF has some kind of veneer which prevents the mold passing through.

I would also recommend you use clear tape, as this means that you can see how much mold growth is going on and can remove and replace the tape if the mold grows back too much. Also, when affixing the tape, try and make sure that there are as few air bubbles as possible.

I hope this helps someone out there who is dealing with the same problem! If you have a better solution, please let me know!