I recently built my first model railroad. I used the “goop” found in the Model Railroaders Basic Scenery Magazine article and it said to prevent mold buildup just put a capful of lysol disenfectant cleaner. However when i mixed up a couple of batches i forgot to put in the lysol cleaner. Are there any other ways to prevent mold build up and what can be done? There is no mold yet but i want to stop it before it starts. Thanks to anyone that replies
Mold likes dampness. Make sure the area stays dry, including the air. A dehumidifier will help a bunch.
[#ditto] But where is this railroad located? If it’s damp enough to produce mold, I would think that mold would at the low end of the worries scale. Wait a minute. It just hit me! We are worried about only the “goop” and it’s make up, right? Well, maybe lightly spraying it with lysol once in awhile will prevent the mold.???
Do you actually have mould forming?
If so… where? Is it on the treated goop, the untreated or both?
I would have expected the setting of the goop to negate any additive but could be wrong.
As said, Mould does not like fresh air, sunlight or a cool breeze. The cheap solution is therefore just to open any windows and let the wind blow through (not forgetting security critters etc).
A de-humidifier will dry everything out including your woodwork and any card models… but it beats everything going furry. Follow up de-humidifying with just enough DRY heat to keep the place comfortable.
Are there sources of mould in the room? Remove them! Mould spores travel in the air but having anything mouldy in the room just gives them a shorter journey. (Remove those old football socks)!
If the problem persists you might like to look at air filtration if not air conditioning. DO NOT forget to maintain Air Con filters… you could get a lot worse than mould from them. Legionela is survivable… you just won’t want to while you’ve got it.
I can’t recall whether Ultra Violet (artificial) light kills off mould… you could ask about that and other ways of getting rid of it at a garden centre… gardeners hate mould even more than we do.
Please let us know how you get on.
The lysol was used in “goop” so that it won’t spoil (sour) if any leftover goop was stored in an air tight container for use at another time. Once goop dries on the layout, there isn’t much of a chance that mold will grow unless you have your layout in a very warm humid location. I would think that most buildings today are well enough insulated from the elements that mold won’t be a problem. …chuck
There is no mold formingb/c i gooped a couple weeks ago, i just wanted to take some preventative measures to ensure no mold would form…the house has a dehumidfier in the heating and airconditioning through the house. There is no mold in the house either were pretty good at keeping it clean. It is set up in the basement but its finished and just looks and feels like a regular floor. It never gets damp either so if this is enough prevention i should be ok. Thanks for the imput i really appreciate it
Yep, you should be set to go. My old Lionel back in the 40’s-50"s was set up in the cellar, notice I said cellar not finish heated basement. It was there for 15 years- no mold problem, just dust from floor above. Ken
When I used Sculpamold in the Maine summer (humid and long drying times), I get mold sometimes. I don’t have it in the winter when the humidity is low. As long as the product sets up and dries without mold formation, I have not had problems with mold re-forming.
I’ve just recalled…
When I shovelled the Edwardian plaster out of my front hall in London on a hot and humid day some years ago the lime content (acid or alkaline???) left my arms burnt raw like I’d been in the sun for two days with not protection. Boy did that hurt! (The guy down the council dump tried to sting me for commercial waste and got his head blown off so loud I think my old sargeant majors probably heard back in Lancaster).
Anyway. modern stuff isn’t so nasty but I’m pretty sure that both cement and plaster products are nasty enough in their own right to kill off any mould spores while wet. (Both are normally marked “irritant” and we have to handle them with gloves at work. (Okay for “occasional” use at home you don’t always use gloves… but our occasional is pretty much a bug’s “industrial”).
Hope this helps.
Lethal to molds and bacteria is a cheap and highly effective product known as sodium methabisulphite. It comes in wine and some beer kits as a preservative and as an initial cleansing/sterilizing agent. It is highly efficacious in small quantities. You can buy a small sachet of it at your local brew kit store for pennies. Mix a teaspoon of it in a couple quarts of water and then spray down the affected areas.
Do, please, and very soon, find a reliable way to control humidity. I have two dehumidifiers in my layout area, and one or both seem to be humming away most hours. It is just the nature of may place on the planet.
You don’t have to dry the place to a crisp; 50-66% humidity is fine.