Household,How to Clean

7 of the Hardest Places to Clean in Your Kitchen

How to clean sticky spots in your kitchen that are often missed

The hardest places to clean in your kitchen are also the easiest to overlook. Here are seven areas with sneaky dirt, and how to clean them. This list is excerpted from cookinglight.com. A link to the full article is at the bottom of this post.

Stove Hood & Fan

You’ll Need: Microfiber cloth, baking soda, soft brush, all-purpose cleaner

What to Do: After every meal, you should wipe down your cooktop with an all-purpose cleaner. Once every six months, spray the hood with an all-purpose cleaner and wipe it with a microfiber cloth. Remove the filters covering the stove fans and vents. Soak the filters soak for 10 to 20 minutes in a sink of hot water. Then drain and sprinkle the filters with baking soda. Scrub with a soft brush or toothbrush. Rinse, wipe, and dry the filters with a microfiber cloth. Air dry the filters before returning them to the hood.

Sink

You’ll Need: Baking soda and soft sponge, or toothpaste and a soft-bristled brush

What to Do: Sprinkle baking soda all over your stainless steel sink. If you have a ceramic sink, use Barkeeper’s Friend. Wipe the inside of your sink with the scrubbing side of a sponge. Follow the stainless steel grain. Scrub in the drain and around the faucet and handles. Rinse with warm water and wipe clean with a microfiber cloth. For tough spots, use white toothpaste or make a paste out of baking soda and lemon juice. Scrub with a soft-bristled brush, then rinse clean.

Behind Refrigerator Drawers

You’ll Need: dish soap, soft sponge, baking soda, microfiber cloth, toothpaste

What to Do: Remove the drawers completely, and wipe trouble spots with a damp sponge and warm, soapy water. Sprinkle a little baking soda on any tough stains and use the scrubbing side of the sponge to gently remove them. A dab of white toothpaste and scrubbing with the damp sponge can help the really tough stains.

Fridge & Dishwasher Gaskets

You’ll Need: vinegar or bleach, sponge, microfiber cloth, mineral oil

What to Do: Keep the gaskets around the door of your refrigerator or dishwasher clean with frequent cleanings. Combine a solution of half water and half vinegar or bleach. Dampen a cloth or sponge with water, dip into the solution, and scrub in and around the gasket. Dry with a microfiber cloth.

Finally, dab mineral oil on a cloth and oil the gasket. This helps keep the rubber and plastic supple and flexible.

Dab mineral oil on a cloth and oil the gasket. This helps keep the rubber and plastic supple and flexible.

Refrigerator Coils & Fan

You’ll Need: coil brush, microfiber cloth, dish soap, sponge

What to Do: Every six months you should unplug your fridge and move it away from the wall to clean the coils and fan. Hair, dust, and debris may force your fridge to work harder to keep cool. First, unplug the fridge. Use a coil brush to remove built-up dust or debris. Do not use a liquid cleaner. Then, remove any built-up dirt or dust from the condenser fan blade with a damp rag or sponge too. Dry with a microfiber cloth before plugging the fridge back in.

Silverware Drawer

You’ll Need: sponge, vacuum with a handheld extension

What to Do: Empty the whole drawer, vacuum out the crumbs, and wipe down the silverware divider with a damp sponge. Use warm, soapy water to scrub away sticky areas. Put the divider back into the drawer and reorganize your silverware.

Under Heating Elements of Stove

You’ll Need: vinegar, baking soda, metal-bristle brush, sponge, dish soap

Metal drip pans can quickly become permanently stained. Fill your sink with very hot water, add two cups of vinegar and let the pans soak for a half-hour at least. Drain the water and sprinkle the pans with baking soda. Scrub with a sponge to remove spots. For tough stains, use a metal-bristle brush. Rinse the baking soda and food with hot water, and repeat scrubbing any remaining spots. Dry thoroughly before returning to your stove eye.

If you need a professional cleaning technician to tackle your kitchen and the rest of your house, Castle Keepers House Cleaning offers a great one-time Deep Clean. Or we can clean your house every week, every two weeks, or every four weeks with our Routine Clean. In addition to our Routine Clean and Deep Clean services, Castle Keepers House Cleaning offers what we call our Rotational Deep Clean. We divide the rooms in your house into “wet”, “dry”, and “other”. Then each time we visit, we deep clean one room in each category, doing extra touches like hand washing the baseboards. Every room in your house gets regularly deep cleaned.

To read the full article on cookinglight.com, click here.

Additional Resources

Your Family’s Health Matters to Us

At Castle Keepers House Cleaning, the #1 way we prevent the spread of infection in your home is by using PerfectCLEAN® microfiber cloths. These cloths remove 99% of organic matter from surfaces. They also contain anti-microbial threads, which kill any germs caught in the fibers.