Food is an important part of our lives. We need food to live. Some foods need refrigeration to keep fresh, so we use refrigerators. However, because refrigerators use moisture, mold may form inside the refrigerator.
This can be very bad, considering mold is bad enough to come into contact with. If we ingest it, it can make us very sick. In this article, we will tell you how to clean mold out of a refrigerator. We will also tell you how to prevent mold from forming in your refrigerator.
We’ve said it a lot, but it’s entirely true: mold can get anywhere. You can do a few things to prevent mold from forming, but you have to clean your refrigerator pretty often.
It can be a trying task, but it is sometimes necessary if you want to keep healthy. Mold can get into the smallest crevices in your refrigerator, poisoning your food with spores and deterioration.
If you don’t keep on top of cleaning the mold out of your refrigerator, you might have to throw out all the food inside of it!
How Does Mold Affect Food?
In its most basic form, mold is a fungus. The main purpose of fungi is to break down organic and inorganic materials. However, whenever it is exposed to organic material, the spores will try to break it down regardless of whether it is old.
Whenever mold is introduced to healthy organic material, it will try to break it down. It will age the material very quickly. Food will rapidly become inedible. It can also get into your lungs and cause allergy responses.
While mold is usually brought in by moisture, it can also be brought in by other foods. A moldy piece of food will cause other foods to deteriorate quickly because the spores will be released into the environment.
Once the spores take hold, the mold will grow on the uninfected foods. It can also spread on other surfaces, especially in the refrigerator. This is why many people use containers, aside from trying to keep them fresh.
Prevent Mold Growth in the Refrigerator
You may be wondering how to keep mold out of your refrigerator. Besides cleaning your refrigerator, this is a relatively simple thing. Mold can be prevented just as easily as any other germs or bacteria.
The refrigerator is an important storage area, so we must keep these microbes away from our food.
Keep Certain Foods Out Of the Fridge
The biggest way to prevent mold growth is to not store certain foods in it. Some foods normally have bacteria and mold on them. Some of them are more susceptible to mold growth as well. These items are:
- Potatoes
- Garlic
- Ginger
- Onions
- Tomatoes
- Grains
Most of these foods are considered “dry” foods to begin with. The skins of these foods will keep bacteria on the surface and away from the tender innards. Tomatoes are tender and will rot more rapidly than the other items on the list. If you need to store any of these items, separate them into air-tight containers.
Inspect Foods and Groceries Before Adding Them to The Fridge
Whenever you buy fruits and veggies, it is a good idea to inspect them thoroughly before purchasing them. Human error is prevalent when sorting food and pulling expired foods. You could find a nasty surprise after a few days if you buy a rotten egg or a package of strawberries with one moldy strawberry.
Always make sure that containers of food are closed and unopened.
Inspect all tops and sealed packages to ensure they have not been tampered with. Before adding them to your refrigerator, you should examine most fruits.
Someone may have missed an old piece of celery or a few rotting blueberries. This can lead to your refrigerator becoming infested with these molds.
Add a Box of Baking Soda to Your Fridge and Freezer
While this won’t necessarily prevent mold outright, it will help with odors lingering in your refrigerator.
Bacteria normally cause odors.
The fewer bacteria you have in your refrigerator, the better off you’ll be. Keeping an open box of baking soda in your refrigerator and freezer will cut down on the odors and a lot of the bacteria that might be floating around inside of it.
You should change it out every two to three months as well.
Cleaning Mold Out of the Refrigerator
If you’ve found out that you have mold in your refrigerator, there’s no need to panic. If your food is in an air-tight container, the food will likely be alright. However, there may be a source of the mold in your food.
The first thing you should do before doing anything else is to get safety gear on. Whenever you deal with mold, you must cover your hands and face.
A doctor’s or sawdust mask will not protect you from mold exposure.
Secondly, you need to remove the food from the refrigerator. Inspecting each piece of food you’re transferring is a good idea.
Putting these things in the freezer as you go might be best. Otherwise, keeping them out for a short time will be okay. Set them on a clean countertop and try to put them in a container if you can.
Third, remove all shelves and removable areas in the refrigerator. Wash the shelves in a soap and water solution, scrubbing deeply over each piece.
Bleach can help with this process to ensure all the mold is killed.
Fourth, wipe down the interior of the refrigerator. It’s a good idea to use a bit of bleach at this point, too. However, if you don’t want to use strong chemicals like this, you may consider the efficacy of household cleaners vs mold.
Wiping down each area is optimal. Make sure you don’t miss any area of the refrigerator. Use a cleaning brush or a brush with stiff bristles.
Finishing the Cleaning
An important area to remember is the door gasket. You must get deep into the gasket's crevice so no mold remains.
If you miss any of the mold, it can just as easily come back as before. Some refrigerators also have water tubes that connect them for easy water dispensing or ice-making.
You can detach this hose and run bleach or vinegar to clean it.
Either dry the refrigerator or let it air dry. Make sure all the bleach has aired out if you used it.
At that point, you can put your shelves and food back in. You can also set the opened box of baking soda in the refrigerator or freezer door.
If you’re worried about the freezer, there’s not much that you need to do.
The freezer is too cold for mold to grow as a general rule, but mold can and does grow in the coldest places and climates, including the northern and southern poles, and we even have what's known as snow mold.
Conclusion
Mold can get anywhere there is moisture and a food source. Even though it is difficult for mold to grow in coldness, it will still grow. Most molds won’t grow in the freezer, but it won’t kill mold.
If you find mold in your refrigerator, you want to remove it immediately. Mold on one thing will quickly spread to another, especially if it is organic.
Cleaning the mold out of a refrigerator is relatively simple, considering you can use bleach if necessary. The only thing you have to do is get into the nooks and crannies of the refrigerator. Take out all the movable parts like shelves and holders. Wash them thoroughly with soap or bleach. Wipe down the refrigerator's interior and rinse the water hoses with bleach or vinegar.
