Keeping your kitchen clean and sparkling is the joy of any chef. A clean kitchen will help to boost your cooking confidence and is a welcoming gesture to those you cook food for. That is why it is important to know how to Clean Kitchen Cabinets.
Kitchen cabinets are exposed to a high level of abuse from accidental spills, cooking splatters, and the addition of fingerprints. Yet those hardworking uppers and lowers tend to get short shrift during regular weekly cleaning, so by the time you realize they’ve been neglected, grease, grime, dirt, and smears may have built up considerably.
How often should one clean the kitchen Cabinets?
Cleaning your kitchen cabinets very often will make an easier and quicker the chore will become. Give your kitchen cabinet fronts a wipe down with a damp cloth once or twice every week, but spills or food splashes should be tackled immediately.
Step by step process of how to clean Kitchen Cabinets
Here is how best you can clean your kitchen cabinets. The order does not really matter as long as you match the perfect routine that matches your unique kitchen conditions.
Start with the top of your kitchen cabinets
The top of wall units where the end of the cabinet tends to collect the worst kitchen grime tends to linger, out of everyone’s sight. Clean this area with vinegar and baking soda for a good and sparkling clean up. A combination of sponges, a wet rag or paper towels will do the job perfectly in no time.
Empty the Cabinets
Remove all that is under storage, and place it on your kitchen countertops. if you don’t have enough space in your kitchen layout design, consider creating the space outside the kitchen area. Once cabinets are empty, peel off and discard the old shelf paper if it is worn out and ready to be deposed off. Wipe dust and dust and any cob webbings on the shelves and drawers as well as the things you are taking out of cabinets. Check the foodstuffs for expiry dates and their conditions.
Clean out the interiors
Add liquid –soap or any other detergent to a bowl. mix it with warm water until it is lightly soapy. Use a cloth or sponge, dip it into the water and squeeze the water out to prevent it from spilling, to clean off the grease and grime, Take extra care of the corners and joints. After this fill up a new bowl of clean warm water and rinse dish soap off the cabinets. Dry down the surface with a towel or microfiber cloth.
Clean the fronts
The Kitchen Cabinet Doors and drawers require a gentle approach to cleaning in order to avoid damaging the finish. Try as much as possible to avoid using scrubbing brushes or any other abrasive cleaning tools, and cleaning products like bleach or other harsh chemicals. Try to resist spraying liquids directly onto the doors, these may discolour painted and wooden finishes.
Simply use a clean, damp cloth, working from the top of the door downwards in circular motions. If the door is greasy, a small amount of washing up liquid or PH neutral cleaner in water sprayed onto the cloth should be all it takes to shift it. Then a second wipes down with fresh water to make sure any soap is removed. Finally, wipe once more with a dry, microfiber cloth ensuring the surface is dry and smear-free.
Cleaning the glass and mirrored doors
To clean the glass part Spray glass cleaner or a mix of white vinegar and water onto a cloth or paper towel before wiping over any glass or mirrored panels in your cabinets. Don’t spray directly onto the glass as the liquid can seep into the framework joints, potentially causing damage or discolouration. Polish to a shine with a dry microfiber cloth.
Wipe the handles, knobs and hinges
Don’t forget to give cabinet hardware a wipe over with a damp cloth, using a little diluted liquid soap on any stubborn spots of grease. If metallic hardware is unlacquered – like the antique brass or copper – take care to avoid any cleaning agents that contain lemon or other acidic ingredients as they will quickly discolour the finish. A soft-bristled toothbrush will work well around the joints of hinges.
To finish
Leave the Kitchen cabinets to air dry for an hour or two before refilling them. Place a sheet of greaseproof paper on the base of any cabinets you found particularly hard to clean, such as those hosting treacle, syrup and cooking oils.
The Don’ts of cleaning Kitchen Cabinets
Don’t do the following when cleaning kitchen Cabinets;
Allow too much moisture in the microfiber cloth or soft rag as this can damage your cabinets’ paint or finish. Simply dampen the cloth and never let the cloth get wet enough to drip.
Let the water run through the hinges. Use a dry microfiber cloth to wipe away dust and grime from the metal. If there’s a particularly greasy or grungy spot, spray just a drop or two of cleaning solution onto your cloth, scrub the dirty spot, and then wipe the metal dry.
Forget to clean the glass insets, spray a clean cloth with your vinegar mixture or a commercial glass cleaner and wipe the glass thoroughly on both sides. It’s generally fairly easy to remove dried food splatters, grease, and other kitchen grunge from glass, but you might need to tackle the spot twice to completely eliminate it. Wipe the panels dry once you’ve finished cleaning them.
Skip periodic deep cleaning. At least once a month, go further than cleaning kitchen cabinets’ surfaces. Empty your cabinets entirely, and then wipe down the shelves, inside of drawers, and cabinet interiors along with the outer surfaces of the cabinets, using the same cleaning supplies and procedures as outlined in the steps above.
Before returning items to the cabinets, consider whether they are worth keeping. It is a good habit to get rid of heavily chipped dishes, cracked mugs, plastic storage containers with missing lids, and the other useless odds and ends that tend to accumulate in the deepest recesses of kitchen cabinets.
Check out the types of wood used for making kitchen cabinets next