One of the downsides of living here in this part of Portugal is that the winters are wet, damp and humid just the right conditions for mildew and mould. In the bathroom the grout between the tiles is a great breeding ground for bacteria; we use a small scrubbing brush dipped in white vinegar to rub down the tiles and the grout - works a treat and costs 0.38 cents a litre and does the environment little harm when it is diluted with the water we use to rinse down the showers afterwards. We do not use shower curtains, but cleaning them is just as easy - wash the curtain in equal parts of laundry soap (green of course) and bicarbonate of soda, then rinse the curtain with 120 ml of white vinegar added to the rinse water. Hang the curtain back up to air dry.