Aaargh Killing black growth in toilet w/o killing 22 pound cat

My pet spent the week with a relatives dog and came back with a new learned bad habit, drinking from the toilet -- If I leave the lid down a black mold starts growing within a day or two and rapidly spreads - Even with the lid open, without a toilet cleaner hanging, the mold grows -- It is definately mold as it grows and grows! -- I have tried Lysol brand clip on toilet bowl hangars but with the lid closed they are only effective for a few days. My spouse doesn't like the smell of the hangar with the lid open and is paranoid they will kill the cat if he drinks from the toilet with the lysol brand Cling toilet cleaner hanger. So what are my options? Certainly others have pets who drink from the toilet.

If I put nothing in the toilet, mold will grow, lid up or down. I also don't want to eat away at the rubber tank flapper which I was frequently replacing when I put cleaners in the tank; which is why we switched to a bowl hangar. I have used a weekly cup of bleach in the bowl to kill existing mold when it was an unbeatable problem when we first moved in -- I would hope there is a more reasonable answer than doing this weekly to both toilets. We are on city water.

Thanks in advance. Andy

Reply to
1_Patriotic_Gal
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I'm surprised a 22 pounder can heft himself in there.

Yes, chemicals will eat the rubber flappers. Replace the flapper with the newer "red rubber" parts; these have very long life in harsh environment. Add bleach to the tank water periodically; it will be dilute enough not to harm the cat.

Jim

Reply to
Speedy Jim

Interesting.

I agree about the in tank cleaners. Leave them alone.

I don't think anything you hang in the bowl is going to really help.

Mold does not just grow. It needs food and the right conditions. Moist conditions are not something you can do much about. However what about the food. It has to have some source of food. Dust, what? Most water does not come with much in the line of food for mold. I would vote for a very careful cleaning of the tank and the bowl. Not with the standard toilet bowl cleaners. Use a good cleanser. You are not trying to kill the mold, you are trying to remove it and anything else that it may feed on. Could some internal parts (like the flapper valve) be disintegrating and providing food and a hiding place for the mold?

Exactly where is it growing? Maybe a new toilet seat would help and removing or very often washing of any toilet seat cover would not hurt.

For the next few weeks be extra vigilant about cleaning. Not once a week, but daily for a while. See what happens.

Reply to
Joseph Meehan

Yes Wake up you are in a mold PIT find the cause the moisture entry , fix it ......

Reply to
m Ransley

Reply to
1_Patriotic_Gal

Reply to
1_Patriotic_Gal

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Wayne

Reply to
wayne

rj made a good point, one I should have noted. Softeners don't get the iron out if they are just softeners. Sorry I can't help you on this one. I have no experience with iron problems as I live in a area with out such problems.

BTW when you say it is at the rim of the bowl and grows up, do you mean the water level? The rim is the very top of the bowl.

Reply to
Joseph Meehan

close the the bathroom door so the cat cannot get in the toilet or keep the cat outside... remedy...

Reply to
jim

Reply to
1_Patriotic_Gal

"Iron out" is a bleaching agent, converts the iron in the water to a salt, kills the bacteria, and the water is sparkling clear. Do not use it with a clorine bleach product. I've seen it in grocery stores and hardware stores. Our water was so bad, we had tiny rust flecks in the laundry and my wife used it instead of bleach a few times to get rid of the rusty spots in our clothes. This was a "last resort" as it will really attack some dyes. As for the pets, putting some in the tank at night, then a couple of flushes in the morning will get rid of it. If you have to use it to clean the bowl, then leave the lid down while it's working.

Reply to
rj

Jim, I appreciate any further advice -- I previously tried your suggestion, but the bathrooms are rather small -- The consequences:

1) The air circulation in the house is much better with the doors open as the A/C air supply duct in there provides a lot of air that is needed in the adjoining rooms. 2) The wife finds the air freshener (toilet hangar) smell overwhelmming on entry when the door is kept closed

Unfortunately the cat is an indoor only cat and has been with the wife longer than I have (1989).

Thanks aga> >

Reply to
1_Patriotic_Gal

Hi Andy,

Before you start throwing toxic chemicals into the toillet, start by pouring some vinegar in it or lemon juice concentrate in order to make the water as awfully tasting as possible.

After a few weeks of not being able to stand the taste of the water, the cat will give up on trying to drink from the bowl.

Then you can start with the plutonium-based mold disintegrating acid.

Good luck!

A
Reply to
Remove Animal from email addre

Awesome idea -- Thank You!

Reply to
1_Patriotic_Gal

Looks good on paper, but too strong acid may end up etching the glaze in the bowl. Is the bathroom ventilated adequately? I'd be inclined to leave the lid down and clean once a week with a spot of bleach. I'd start by filling the tank with a strong bleach solution and flushing that to get what lurks in the innards the water passes through to the tank rim. Be sure to scrub up under the rim because that is where it gets the nastiest. My cat was smart, but he couldn't reach the knobs to open doors, either :o)

Reply to
NorMinn

Don't you all flush regularly?

Reply to
Oscar_Lives

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