"Indestructible" white mold in bong! Help!

Basically, we lost our bong and found it months later filled with dirty bongwater in a hot stinky closet. It was, predictably, filled with a miraculous ecosystem of diverse mold.

We did a bleach soak, which took out all of the black and brown mold. I then used salt and 90% alcohol to scrub away the orange mold.

What I was left with is this white mold that just will not die. Neither bleach nor alcohol will kill it and I'm worried that it pull no stops to take over the entire world.

Is there anything else that is safe, inexpensive, and reliable that may take care of this strong-willed beast?

P.S. I would throw it away but it has sentimental value.

P.P.S. I can try to post a picture of the creature tomorrow if needed.

 

Can u die sect the bong and scrape it?

 

It's a glass zong, so there is no way to physically reach many of the areas. The salt did a good job at scrubbing the rest, but the white mold simply did not budge.

 

Unless someone who actually knows something about molds and can tell you it's safe/or a way to clean it, I think the safest thing to do is toss it. I don't think you want to risk inhaling anything... untoward.

 

well, i would try CLR. every once in awhile my mom uses that on the old restaurant skillets to get off the lacquer of stuff on the bottoms, and then she just cleans the pan again a few times before cooking with it. so i would try that next. maybe some peroxide, oxygen kills some things. you have to figure out if its still alive or just a residue.

 

I might give those a try after I do a little research. CLR on cooking ware could be a little different than in a bong and I just want to be safe. Peroxide is a nice idea - I wouldn't have thought of that!

McFuddy - you're probably right. However I'm probably too much of a shameless nostalgia-phile to really take that honestly good advice. I definitely will not use it if even one flake remains, but once it looks totally gone (the zong is regular see-through glass) I'll probably give her a couple tries before exposing her to any friends or guests. ;P

Any thoughts on lighter fluid or something? Is that too similar to bleach or alcohol? I obviously learned nothing in chemistry.

 

i think if you treat it as though you were to drink out of it, yo should be ok once youve removed the icky stuff. whatever it takes to get it off, then you clean it really well in a traditional manner, like salt/ alcohol, or bleach or whatver. i think if you do that you'll be at very low risk of anything being left behind (though something greasy like WD40 would be an exception to that, i dont know how youd get that out) and besides, you arent planning to drink out of it, how much possible contaminant can move from the water into the smoke?

could try lemon juice. could try boiling it. could try heating it slowly in the oven, and letting it cool slowly in the oven. not really hot, maybe 200-250 degrees or so. i would rest it on a towel.
definitely post pictures if you can. im very intrigued.

 

This is a close-up of some of the darker-colored white mold. It's kind of orangey-brown. It may be dead?



It should be completely clear with just orange and yellow stripes. All that white stuff is the mold. This stuff definitely looks alive - it's nice a fluffy. Looks like regular ol' mold, but it just will not die.

I'm going to try the peroxide suggestion today. We'll try to get our hands on some CLR when we go shopping tonight.

Sorry these pictures are kinda bad. I'll add some links to bigger ones later.

 

"white mold" you speak of is probably hard water stains... its not mold its calcium build up.. use CLR

 

EDIT: woah, i think you're right!^^^

i can't believe that iso and salt, or bleach won't get rid of it...
the only other thing i could think of would be an autoclave (really hot oven used to sterilize science and hospital equipment) might break though, not that you probably have access to an autoclave for your bong

maybe try bleach and salt? peroxide mixed with salt? make sure it doesn't react too violently first though, with small amounts

 

Yup we're going to try the CLR either way. But it looks really, extremely fuzzy so I'm leaning on 80% positive that there is at least some mold in there. To be honest the idea of calcium build up didn't even enter my mind! We've never had problems with that before!

I really wish I could get a better picture but the glass is just too reflective.

 

I speak as one whose bong incorporates a copper pipe that spent decades in a heating system before I got hold of it, AND as a ship-in-bottle maker. Its amazing what you can get at with bent wires. You might get it off with a piece of wire (copper, paperclip, coat hanger etc.); straighten it out and put the end in the neck or through the hole or whatever, you'll see where you need to bend the wire to pass round corners etc., take it out and bend it for each corner. If its thin eg paperclip or soft eg. copper it'll spring a bit to go through BUT be really careful not to stress the glass. That looks a nice one

Alternatively you could start your own bong museum with it and get a jam jar and some blu-tack

 

fungus likes dark and wet so i perscribe FIRE! LOTS AND LOTS OF FIRE!! destroy the mushroom antichrist!

 

Mix chlorine and ammonia in an small room. Make sure it is not vented. Not only will your bong be clean but you will get hiiigggghhh.

NO NO NO i am kidding! lmao Seriously though. CLR as mentioned above.

 

Oh shit, I'm so glad you said you were kidding, I was like, "MUSTARD GAS??? For reals???" Haha.

 

Thought that was mustard gas too but learned that it is not mustard gas at all. It's chlorine gas which was also used in chemical warfare. Yay for wikipedia!

 

Bahaha thanks for the advice to follow, as well as the advice not to follow!

Forgot to get the CLR, but this fungal or calcium deposit beast will soon face it's demise. I shall reclaim the bong for humanity!

 

Just make sure when you do it, you get ALL of the stain out and then scrub it good with dish soap to make sure you don't leave any icky chemicals behind.

 

Well, this might be really bad advice, not sure whether I'd follow it or not with hindsight, but I've often revived festering old bongs without getting them totally clean. I appear to still be alive

 

^^^but I am green