Getting Serious About Kitchen Cleanliness:
Step-by-Step Instructions
For the majority of families, it is the kitchen that serves as the central point of the house. It’s where families gather for family discussions, meals, homework assignments for school art and craft projects, and so on. However, as per Dr. Charles Gerba, a microbiologist and professor of virology at the University of Arizona, the kitchen is also the source of the home’s germs. “Between prepping and cleaning, the kitchen is a veritable incubator for bacteria,” Gerba says. Gerba.
Have you ever taken the time to make sure you washed the kitchen sink faucet or oven, refrigerator, or garbage can? “During food prep, be aware that bacteria in food and touching it can spread it to other surfaces and potentially cause illness,” experts in infectious disease Susan Rehm, MD. The most common bacteria that are found in the kitchen include E.coli as well as salmonella, shigella, and campylobacter. Norovirus and hepatitis B.
“E.coli can survive for hours on a surface, salmonella can survive for about four hours and hepatitis A can survive for months,” says Dr. Rehm. Be serious about cleaning your kitchen and eliminate illness-causing bacteria and germs by following the step-by-step cleaning procedure below. It is designed to be used for bi-weekly or weekly clean-ups (depending on how often you make use of it in your kitchen):
1). Clean up the clutter off the counters in your kitchen
It’s difficult to properly remove items from countertops in the kitchen that shouldn’t be on the counters in the beginning. Begin in one corner of your kitchen and take away all items that don’t belong to your countertops. Do not waste time by taking things in order now. Clear them from the counter. It is possible to put them back where they belong once the counters are clean or after your kitchen is cleaned.
2). Clean up any leftover dirty dishes
Take out the dishwasher and empty the dish drainer. If you’ve got dishware or pans that need to be cleaned, it’s best to clean them immediately. When your dishwasher appears to be stuffed or nearly full of dirty dishes, you should run it prior to continuing cleaning. Clean every dish that is lying around, even the water bottles that are likely to sit on the counter in front of the sink.
3). Clean the tops of the cabinets and refrigerator.
Whatever room of your home you’re working, taking care to clean from the top down is a good idea. Since dust and dirt are scattered and fall on the surface below, then you’ll need to clean it down. For the kitchen area, you may start by cleaning any overhead lighting fixtures or ceiling fans. After that, you can clean the upper part of your fridge as well as the cabinets’ tops.
4). Clean small appliances
The next step is to clean any small appliances that see frequent use, like the microwave oven, your toaster, oven, an electric can opener, a panini maker, and a stand mixer, among others. Begin with the interiors, such as emptying food particles from the oven or toaster and running a cycle of vinegar and water in your machine. Even water that is clean in a humid, warm area, such as a coffee maker, could provide the perfect habitat for yeast, bacteria, and mold to thrive.
Steam the interior of your microwave using vinegar and then wipe it clean. If you have an electric can opener, wipe the blade clean with a disinfectant and then dry it completely to stop the growth of bacteria. Then, wipe down the exterior of each appliance. Utilize a microfiber towel that has been dampened with white vinegar mixture or a little of all-purpose cleanser. Avoid using the solution on stainless steel since it can dull the shine.
Small appliances should be cleaned following each use. Every week, you should disassemble and thoroughly clean small appliances. Certain components can be put in the dishwasher, while other components should be cleaned in hot soapy water and then rinsed with hot water before being completely dried.
5). Clean any items that remain on your counter
Apart from small appliances that are regularly used, you could have a tray filled with cooking oils as well as a cutting board or a crock full of cooking equipment in your kitchen counters. Make sure that the items are cleaned. Give your trays a thorough dusting, or wash them down. You can also wipe off containers and bottles. It’s also a good time to clean your dish rack and then throw your drying mat into the washing machine.
Cutting boards help make food preparation much easier and also ensure that our kitchen countertops are safe. However, with every cut, small nicks and scratches are created that could contain bacteria. Cutting boards must be cleaned each time they are used with hot soapy water. Cleanse thoroughly using hot water and dry using a clean cloth. Cutting boards made of glass or plastic can be put in the dishwasher to get a thorough cleaning.
6). Scrub outside the oven and stove.
A thorough oven cleaning could be something that should be tackled in the future; however, cleaning the exterior will go an enormous way to creating an attractive kitchen with a spa-like appearance. If you’ve got gas cooktops, you can remove the grills (you might be able to give them a good wash if they’re dirty) and clean the surface under the surface with a multi-purpose cleaner.
If you are using electric burners, you can clean them using dilute dish soap and then wipe the area below using an all-purpose cleanser. If you are using an electric glass stove, wash the entire thing with soapy water that is warm. When the surface is clean, wash the sides of the oven using an all-purpose cleanser, white vinegar or dish soap dilute.
Make sure you have the knobs as well as the display. The knobs on the oven are frequently handled by filthy hands after we have handled various food items. The first step is to take the knobs away and let them sit inside a container of vinegar. If you are unable to remove the knobs, then spray them with the solution thoroughly.
Then, clean the entire surface using an abrasive, even the displays. Make sure you scrub the area in the area where knobs usually sit. After that, remove the knobs and clean them well. Then, let them dry and then put them on the appliance.
7). Wipe your countertops clean.
After your dishes have been cleaned and put away, You’ve dusted, and the small appliances are shining clean now is the now time to clean your countertops with an excellent scrub. There’s a lot going on in your kitchen, from cutting and cooking food as well as cooking and storage spills, and cross-contaminations may occur frequently.
Begin by removing everything from your counters that are permanently there. Remove crumbs stuck between countertops and the oven using an oven scraper as needed. Cleanse your counters thoroughly using a little cleaner suitable to your counter and a microfiber towel. Dry with a soft cloth to make your counters shine. Repeat this process for each counter.
8). Make sure you thoroughly clean your sink
Although there’s plenty of water flowing through the kitchen sink, there’s a good chance that microbes are lurking on the surface, particularly in the crevices that are where the sink and counter meet. As per NSF National Sanitation Foundation International (NSF), the NSF found that 45% of all kitchen sinks examined contained E. Coli or some kind that was coliform. “
Feces contain more bacteria found in the sink than in a flushed toilet.” Dr. Gerba said on Today. “That’s the reason dogs drink water from the toilet. They are wiser than to drink from the bathroom sinks,” he joked.
The kitchen sink needs to be cleaned following every meal and washing dishes, or at the very least once a day, and remember to wash the faucet’s handles or handles, as well as the counters near the sink. Make use of a sink cleaner which contains a disinfectant and a clean, dry towel or disposable.
Then, fill the sink with hot water, and add bleach to the water. It should sit for 10 minutes before draining. Don’t forget to clean the backsplashes. If your garbage disposal is on, now is the best time to mix baking soda together with warm water or a lemon peel into the disposal to clean the drain.
9). Get rid of the fridge
Even with the frigid temperatures, some dangerous bacteria could thrive in your refrigerator. The majority of fruits and vegetables remain fresher longer if they’re not cleaned prior to storing. Thus you can put them in the drawer where they go, covered by pesticides and bacteria. Naturally, you wash them prior to preparing and serving them to your loved ones, but the germs and bacteria remain inside the drawers of crispers.
The same happens to the meat that is kept raw in refrigerators. Leaks from packaging and the accumulation of fluids in the drawers as well as around the edges of shelves. Even packaged items such as milk or butter tubs were handled and stored several times before making it into your refrigerator. To eliminate the bacteria known as coliforms as well as mold and yeast that could be found there, clean the shelves or drawers in your refrigerator. Then clean the surfaces with mild detergent and warm or hot water.