I have re-caulked my shower stall recently (and once a few years ago). Both times, within a few weeks the caulk has started getting moldy. I used the best stuff I could find at Home Depot. Is there a brand out there that is considered the best and will keep from molding? This past time I even used one of those "after shower" sprays to try to help.
Consider improving the air circulation in your bathroom. There are a number of ways to do this. Mold won't grow on a dry surface.
the only thing that works for me is GE silicone I bathtub caulk. Dap latex, Dap Silicone and GE Silicone II all mildewed on me within a year. I'm going a year with the Silicone I and no signs of mildew yet. I get the feeling it has to do with "paintable" property. GE silicone I is a slick surface and is nonpaintable. THe other 3 I mentioned all have a matt finish and are paintable. Maybe the paintable stuff collects dirt which the mildew feeds on (I'm guessing). Available at lowes.
THe problem I have is that with 3 people in the house, taking showers in the morning, afternoon and evening, the stuff never dried out.
I also had to use a silicone sealer on the grout. I'm guessing again , that enough water was getting behind the caulk in the grout that it never dried out.
There is no one "best" caulk. It sounds like you used a very good caulk, but used it in the wrong place. You may need to replace it, but this time use a good caulk that indicates it is designed for bath and kitchen use. They have mold protection built in.
The "after shower" spray is not going to help much if any. They are there to keep the soap scum from sticking and to allow the water to sheet off rather than dry with spots.
The shower spray that I have used, does not have bleach. At least I don't think it does. If it does it does not have much.
You might want to think twice about that. Adding bleach to many household cleaners can produce a pretty poisioness gas.
I use a squeegee to get the water off the shower walls after a shower. Target used to have nice big ones for shower use. That is all I used to do and still got some mildew growth even with a big vent fan. So now I do that AND one of those everyday shower sprays and the combination is close to perfect preventing mildew.
If you get the water off the rest of the shower and have reasonable ventilation then the caulk will dry quickly. It takes a lot longer to dry if the rest of the shower is wet.
Actually my last step is after I dry myself with a towel a drag the towel around the edge of the shower wall and floor to get the caulk pretty dry. But I the other poster said, if the walls are squeegied things will dry up pretty fast if ventilation is good.
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