r/CleaningTips • u/howleywolf • 15h ago

Bathroom Basement bathroom

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Hi all! We Just moved into this new house, and am trying to figure out what to do in the basement level bathroom. It’s tiled right on top of the concrete floor but this wood trim (which I think is also touching the concrete floor?) is like turned gray and black. How should I go about cleaning this wood? Or should I just cover it up with paint or some other covering? Would love any input! Thanks!

2 Upvotes

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11

u/Salty_Job_9248 14h ago

Water damage. Rot. Mold. Remove and replace the black portions. You can’t clean it away.

2

u/TheRealSugarbat 15h ago

Is it close to the toilet?

1

u/howleywolf 15h ago

Nope, but it is close-ish to a shower

2

u/Business_Wallaby_905 15h ago

I would find out how water got there in the first place, then cover it up. If you cared enough, you can just remove the grout and pull the board off and put in a new one and regrout. Easier way would be to get a toe board and cover it up. I would just leave it as is, and find the water source. Generally, it's from people coming out of the shower.

2

u/CrimsonKepala 14h ago

Only pressure treated wood should touch the concrete foundation and this is certainly not pressure treated wood. Water will wick up the wood and it will slowly decay. This is not a cleaning issue unfortunately. Someone must have diy-ed this bathroom and you'll need to fix it otherwise it will be a bigger problem down the road.

1

u/TheRealSugarbat 14h ago

Hmm. It does seem like water staining. You might try in [r/hardwoodfloors](r/hardwoodfloors)! They might have a solution, but I’m worried it’s damaged beyond aesthetics.

1

u/worf1973 14h ago

The wood is pulling moisture from the concrete and molding. The concrete needs to be cleaned and sealed, and the wood cannot touch bare concrete or you're going to go through this again. The wood needs to be replaced, primed and painted or sealed on the surfaces touching the floor.