How to Clean Mold from Refrigerator Door Gasket

Cleaning your fridge is not limited to your interior walls, shelves, and drawers. While those are vital areas to keep clean, you need to include the door gasket in those cleaning times.

The reason for not excluding them is because mold and mildew can grow on the rubber. It is essential that you take the time and use the proper cleaning method to get those door gaskets clean and healthy.

A dirty, moldy, etc., door gasket can spread those elements to your food. To avoid that, just continue to read our article for the right method to keep those gaskets clean.

How to Clean Mold From Fridge Door Gaskets

Mold is not a good item to see in a fridge. It is a dangerous bacteria and the mold spores can spread to uncovered food or containers even with the simple opening and closing of the fridge door.

Keeping that gasket free from mold will take a little elbow grease but it is not a complicated or difficult task to do. Here are the steps to follow:

Step 1 – Make the Right Solution

Mix one part chlorine bleach with one-part warm water in a bucket large enough to hold the mixture. Chlorine bleach is the best mold killer you can find and when you do the mixing & cleaning make sure to wear plastic gloves. Mix the two ingredients well.

Step 2 – Turn the Fridge Off

You do not want any surprises like having the mixture hit live electrical connections. This means you should unplug the fridge from the power source and turn it off. Next, open the fridge door.

Step 3 – Use a Toothbrush

This scrubber should be new and clean and dip it into the solution, then apply the mixture to the gasket. You need to cover the whole gasket as you do not know where all the mold spores have gone.

You will also need to do some scrubbing as you go and make sure to get into any folds or crevices with the toothbrush. Use as much of the solution as you can as in this case more is better than less.

Gently pull the gasket out to make sure you reach every spot on its surface. Scrubbing firmly is ideal but not too firmly.

Step 4 – Clean the Entire Gasket

Not just where you see the mold, but go all the way around the door gasket to make sure every inch of it is cleansed and sanitized. Mold has a way of finding unsanitary spots and making a new home.

Step 5 – Wipe the Mixture Away

While chlorine bleach is a great cleanser, it is not so good when it comes in contact with your food inside the fridge. Take a few moments and wet a clean cloth and wipe all the mixture away from the gasket.

Rinse well and rinse this cloth several times to make sure all the chlorine bleach is gone from the gasket. You may have to rub the gasket several times in order to remove all the chlorine bleach.

Step 6 – Dry the Gasket

A wet gasket doesn’t seal very well at times plus it can add moisture to your fridge giving you more issues to deal with. Once you have finished rinsing it, take a dry, clean, soft cloth and dry the gasket completely.

Both the rinsing and the drying stages should see you pulling the gasket out gently to get between any folds and crevices. It may be possible to pull the gasket completely off and soaking it in the bucket. Then use the toothbrush to scrub the mold away.

But this may not be the best method to use as you could damage the gasket during the removal and replacement stages.

Step 7 – Put Everything Back

Once you are done with the cleaning and drying, put everything back to where you found it. Plug the fridge back in and make sure it is in the right spot. Turn the fridge back on so your food can get cool once more.

Unplugging the fridge is not always necessary but it is always best to be safe rather than sorry.

This is one of the tougher tasks when it comes to maintaining your fridge. There is a little scrubbing involved and you have to be careful not to spill any of the mixture on your clothes.

Take your time, be gentle but firm and make sure to cover the whole gasket with the bleach water solution. That way you know all the mold is gone.