No matter if you own your home or rent, one thing is the same: Dirty surfaces and shower scum will build-up over time, especially in heavily used bathtubs and on kitchen counters. Home Armor’s Instant Mold and Mildew Stain Remover is a spray home cleaner designed to eliminate those kinds of household dirt. Like many household cleaners, it comes in an easy-to-use spray bottle and works on various surfaces. We tested it to see how it rates as a shower and multi-surface cleaner and whether it’s worth adding to your shopping list.
Cleaning Ability: Works well for mildew-specific concerns
The Mold and Mildew Stain Remover works well, but it’s not a general cleaner. If dirty kitchen counters or stained wood and walls are your concern, you may want to consider other options—unless those surfaces are stained and dirty because of mold. If you run your finger over dirty spot, and it feels slimy or textured, it’s likely mold or mildew, rather than just dirt. Mildew is most likely to develop in damp and dark places, like the corners of bathtubs or in shower curtain folds. For us, most of the slimy build-up in our home is in our primary bathroom shower, which is relatively roomy. It’s a 4-feet by 6-feet walk-in style shower, which leaves plenty of wall space where light from our small window doesn’t reach. Especially in corners and along the sides of the built-in shower bench, our tile was feeling slightly slimy and, for lack of a better word, gross. Fortunately, the Mold and Mildew Stain Remover quickly took care of the shower. While it wasn’t exceedingly dark or noticeable, it was easy to tell the build-up was there. We sprayed the mold remover on it, waited three or four minutes, then rubbed it off with a paper towel. Once dry, it felt like the mildew was gone. While this product says it’s just a stain remover, it felt to us as if it had removed it entirely. After three weeks of daily shower use, the slimy feeling has yet to return on the areas where we used the spray, making us think it’s helping delay new mildew redevelopment.
Read more about our Diversity and Inclusion Pledge to make The Spruce a site where all feel welcome. We also used it on soap scum and dirt build-up on what was possibly the world’s dirtiest electric toothbrush base, and it took care of it after a quick spray and wipe, leaving it looking brand new again. We didn’t have to scrub or soak the base to remove all the build-up. To test the cleaning qualities, we also used the Mold and Mildew Stain Remover on our countertops and sink and kitchen tile. While it helped clean the toothpaste stains that had build-up over a month or so, it didn’t get rid of fingerprints and dirt; a general household cleaner like 409 Multi-Surface is best for that. It did work well to remove water stains on drains, showerheads, and faucets. In areas like this, we found that using a cheap toothbrush to get the solution deep in crevasses helped remove more stains on the first try. It wasn’t very effective at cleaning grout or dirty tiles in our kitchen, so it’s best to consider this truly as a mold and bathroom stain/scum remover.
Smell: Very similar to bleach
It seems the spray’s cleaning power comes at the expense of a pleasant smell. It smells just like using a bleach and water mix, so if you don’t like the scent of bleach, you’ll want to skip this product. Make sure any room you use it in is well-ventilated. When we opened the windows on either side of our kitchen, the scent took about an hour to dissipate. Another time using this product, without opening windows, it took several hours to fade away. We had used it around 9 a.m., and when someone visited our house around noon, the first thing they asked us was whether we’d been cleaning.
Ingredients: Not great for sensitive buyers
According to the Mold and Mildew Stain remover’s list of ingredients, the primary ingredient is sodium hypochlorite, the primary ingredient in household bleach. The next component is sodium carbonate, a salt compound found in many laundry detergents. Beyond that, the only item listed is “other ingredients,” which raises many questions. We don’t know what chemicals are actually in it. It’s not organic and includes chemicals, so people who prefer to keep hazardous toxins out of their homes may not like this product. It’s also a poor fit for anyone with allergies, children, or pets; you have to ensure this cleaner is kept well out of their reach. Be sure to thoroughly wash your hands after using the spray as the ingredients can irritate eyes and skin.
Price: What you’d expect
Competition: There may be a better product, depending on your needs
Formula 409 Multi-Surface: This choice comes down to what your needs are. 409 Multi-Surface is a multi-surface antibacterial cleaner. It’s great for sinks, bathroom and kitchen counters, and other non-porous surfaces. But while 409 helps clean mildew, it doesn’t have bleach, so it’s not going to remove stains as well or prevent future build-up for as long. 409 is a better everyday cleaner, while the Mold and Mildew Remover is best for serious shower gunk. The bleach in Mold Armor is too much for daily use. 409 has a more pleasant (and shorter-lived) smell. Krud Kutter Original Concentrated Cleaner/Degreaser: The cleaning concerns in your home will dictate the product you should buy–or you might even need both. The Krud Kutter Cleaner and Degreaser is a robust multi-purpose cleaner that can also be used on fabric and flooring, whereas the Mold and Mildew Remover works best on shower scum and mold buildup. If you have both issues, you may need both products. Krud Kutter is a bit more expensive than the Mold and Mildew Remover priced from $13 to $18. Based on our testing, we’ll keep both on hand. Mold Armor’s Mold and Mildew Remover is great on shower mildew and scum, but it isn’t the best choice if you’re in the market for an all-purpose cleaner. It also has a powerful bleach scent that takes a while to fade, especially in rooms with poor ventilation. It’s useful to have on hand for stubborn mold spots but won’t replace your everyday weekly cleaning products.
