Question from Nikki
I’ve been working on turning our apartment “green.”
Background: Our bathroom doesn’t have a window and the exhaust fan the manager had put in doesn’t work as well as the old one. Two showers are taken on a daily basis.
I’d like to get a hemp or cotton shower curtain. Which curtain type dries faster? Is one more resistant to mildew than the other? Will either curtain type completely dry overnight?
Thanks for your advice!
Nikki
Debra’s Answer
A hemp shower curtain will dry faster, however, it will still mold.
I’ve used cotton shower curtains in the past, and they seemed to mold to the point of having the mold eat holes in the curtain, rendering it unusable in 3-4 months. I finally just installed glass shower doors, which cost less than $100 at Home Depot and Lowe’s. And they are pretty easy to install if you are handy around the house.
If you don’t want to install glass doors, go with the hemp and pretreat it as described in Q&A: Controlling Mold on Shower Curtains.
I use an old Ikea shower curtain made from nylon. It dries quickly and I do not notice fumes from nylon. I can throw it in the washer too. You could purchase nylon from a fabric store and make your own.
Everyone has different sensitivities but I have found nylon to be one of the few non-natural fabrics that I can tolerate. However, even given that, I use it sparingly and strategically.
Will cotton shower curtain mold if used with a liner?
Thanks.
No.
I have a square fan, one of the big ones in my shower. I wipe down the entire shower after use then turn on the fan to dry the curtain. I also wring it out first.