A kitchen must be kept clean at all times. Cooking in a clean kitchen is not only more enjoyable, but it also promotes our health and well-being.
1. Cleaning the furniture
Mix a glass of water with 1/2 glass of vinegar and 1/2 glass of vodka. Stir it all thoroughly, and pour it into a spray bottle. To disinfect as well as clean, add a drop or two of eucalyptus oil. This unique mix will easily remove limescale and grease.
Caution: Always wear rubber gloves while cleaning, and don’t forget to air the kitchen afterward.
2. Removing limescale from the kettle
To get rid of limescale in your kettle, you will need a packet or two of citric acid, 0.7-0.8 oz each. The amount of acid needed depends on the condition of your kettle and the amount of limescale.
- Fill two-thirds of the kettle with water, then open one packet of citric acid and add it to the water.
- Boil the water for 3-5 minutes.
- Check if the limescale has peeled off. To do this, take the kettle off the stove and carefully shake it — the remains of limescale in the water will show you how efficient the cleaning has been.
- Pour the dirty water out, and thoroughly rinse the kettle.
- Fill the kettle with clean water, boil it, and pour it out. Repeat this twice before returning to daily use.
3. Washing the sink
Ammonia is good at getting rid of limescale. Add some to water, apply this solution to the inside of the sink, and wash it off with hot water after 10 minutes.
4. Making the microwave shiny
What you’ll need: water (13-17 fl oz), a bowl, and 2 tbsp 9% vinegar or 1 tsp 70% vinegar essence.
Pour the water into the bowl, add the vinegar, put the solution into the microwave, and turn it on for 5 minutes (or up to 10-15 minutes, depending on the grade of dirtiness). Now give the vinegar fumes some more time to dissolve the grime on the microwave walls, and then start washing the microwave from the inside.
Caution: Don’t forget to wear rubber gloves.
5. Getting rid of hood grime
Wet the grimy kitchen hood filters with water from a spray bottle, then rub them with a toothbrush dipped in bleach. Leave for 10 minutes and rinse under the tap. Done!
Caution: Always wear protective gloves!
6. Cleaning the oven
The following method is best for cleaning the oven. First of all, take 1 cup baking soda, add 1 tbsp detergent, and add water until you have a liquid dough consistency. Apply this paste to the grimy surfaces, and leave them for 15 minutes. Then wash the whole oven.
7. Washing the fridge
This tip will help you wash and deodorize the inside of your fridge. Just dilute 2 tbsp baking soda in 33 fl oz water. Dip a soft tissue in this solution, and wipe all of the surfaces with it. The walls are then easily cleaned with a clean wet tissue. Don’t forget to wipe them dry after that.
8. Making the dishes shine
Ground mustard is brilliant at cleaning dishes of grease and limescale. Just pour some mustard on a sponge, and rub it into the dishes and cups. Then wash them under the tap. That’s it — your dishes are as good as new!
9. Cleaning the stove
To cleanse the cooktop of an induction stove, take a toothbrush and toothpaste. Put some toothpaste on the toothbrush, and rub it on the burnt places. Wait for 10-15 minutes, and then wipe the surface with a wet tissue.
10. Making the gas stove look good
A gas stove can be easily cleaned with a piece of simple lye soap. Shred the piece on a grate, and dilute the shreds in warm water to get a sour-cream-like mass. Apply this paste to the stove, and leave it for 15 minutes. Then wipe the stove with warm water.
11. Cleaning burner grates
You can make your burner grates shiny if you drench them in water with a little ammonia for 7-8 hours.
Caution: Don’t forget to wear protective gloves while doing it!
12. Washing the splashback
To get rid of grease marks on the splashback, use a highly concentrated soap solution. It’s equally efficient on both plastic and tile surfaces. The best way is to shred some lye soap into a bowl, dilute the shreds in water, and rub the grimy places with this paste until there’s no more grease on them.
13. Washing window sills
A mix of soda ash and washing powder, 1 tbsp each, will cleanse the window sill from all kinds of stains, grime, and yellow discoloring marks.
14. Cleaning frying pans
To cleanse a ceramic-coated frying pan from soot cover and grease residue both on the inside and the outside, pour water into a broad bowl so that the frying pan is completely covered. Add a couple of tablespoons of detergent gel and a handful of soda ash. Then put the bowl with the pan in it on the stove and boil for half an hour. Wait until the liquid cools down, take out the pan, rinse it under the tap, and carefully wipe it.
15. Sterilizing the sponges
Kitchen sponges get dirty very fast, becoming home to numerous harmful bacteria, which results in their transfer to your dishes after using such a sponge. To prevent this, simply put the wet sponge into the microwave on high power and heat it for 2 minutes. Make sure, though, that there’s no metal contained in the sponge, and let it cool for a couple of minutes before taking it out.
