When I first moved in, my landlord and friend only had a couple of cacti in this window. It was terrible. They were the kind with the hair-like needles that you couldn't see which would stick in the curtains. I would get stuck with them all of the time. I finally got him to take the cacti home with him, took down the curtains, washed them, pressed them and hung them up again. The first problem was solved. Next, I noticed that the wood base of the window is unfinished. It was also a bit moldy and had some water stains. I took some bleach solution and scrubbed it, which helped but I had to repeat. I'll have to finish that wood, but what is the best way to clean the wood and the window to remove any mildew, mold and pests that might be hiding in any crevices? This is the window I use to grow my seedlings in the spring and keep other sun-loving plants in over the rest of the year. New sprouts in window ( photo / image / picture from Beeker's Garden )
If the window sill is stained and has been moldy, I'd paint it. A latex paint with a chlorine bleach added (the paint company can give you instructions for the specific paint you are using) will take care of mold, critters, and mildew. We had the same problem when we moved here--stains and crud on the window sills. I did the same as you--scrubbed with a 10% bleach solution, and after a couple of days to let that dry, painted two coats with a latex paint with chlorine bleach added. We haven't had any problem since.
I'd clean it all with a bleach solution, let it dry, paint it with KILZ and then paint it over with an enamel paint that would dry hard (makes clean up easy)
