The kitchen is one of those rooms in your home that can easily get out of hand if not regularly cleaned and maintained. Ironically, it’s also one of the rooms that is most often neglected. While it’s not always easy, a few tricks can go a long way to stay on top and keep your house looking and smelling good. Here are six kitchen cleaning hacks to make your life easier.
It may seem obvious, but the best way to keep a kitchen clean and tidy is to always clean as you go. Don’t let all of the cleaning pile up throughout the day with breakfast, lunch, and dinner; instead, do a little at a time during those free moments.
For example, throw away scraps and wash off the chopping board once you have everything in the pan cooking. And, once you’ve finished mixing the batter and it’s cooking in the oven, think about cleaning the bowl and the whisk. It’s always easier (and less stressful) to clean a few items after dinner than a whole sink full.
On a similar note, as soon as a spill happens jump on it quickly with an easy wipe-up rather than letting it harden and become more difficult to remove later.
In addition to visual uncleanliness, bad smells can affect your kitchen as well as your whole house if left unattended. The last thing you want is a bad smell when your guests first walk in.
They may not seem obvious to you if you’ve been around the bad smells for a while, so it’s a solid hack to make sure you’re always taking care of places that have the potential to release odors. Take out the trash frequently, clean your sinks, clear your garbage disposal, and ensure there is no food or mess left on the counters.
Garbage disposals, in particular, can hold a lot of old food and begin to smell quite bad over time. An easy way to keep the garbage disposal clean is to make lemon ice cubes. Fill an ice tray with lemon juice, water, and salt, then simply pop these down the garbage disposal, turning it on with water while it's actively running. Not only will this help to clear food debris in the drain, but it will also sharpen the garbage disposal blades and leave them smelling fresh!
Our next hack is one of maintenance. Set aside an hour each week to go through the pantry and fridge and check for any food items that are expiring. Taking care of these on the front end will keep your kitchen clean and smelling good in the long run – this way, old food that goes bad can’t hide and unknowingly spread a bad smell across the rest.
Organization of your kitchen comes in many forms and will surely make your life easier. By organizing cabinets, pantries, and the refrigerator, your kitchen will be more efficient and allow you to find the food and ingredients you’re looking for more easily.
Less time spent looking for things means more time you can spend cleaning as you go! Also, you’ll find that everything will feel less cluttered, and you will seemingly have more space than before. Finally, organization will help you know exactly what you have and don’t have, making your grocery runs more effective and keeping you from empty-handed trouble in the middle of cooking dinner.
Another top cleaning hack is to pay attention to all surfaces and regularly clean them. Most people assume this refers to just countertops and sinks, but it’s easy to forget about the surfaces of jars, bottles, containers, and cooktops! It may seem minor, but keeping up on these areas will prevent mold and bacteria from accumulating and will keep your kitchen smelling and feeling clean.
Cooktops are a special beast in that it’s always smart to clean them as soon as any spillage occurs. Waiting for spills to dry by the heat of the stove will make cooktops incredibly hard to clean, so it’s best to wipe them down right away.
These kitchen cleaning hacks will undoubtedly help to keep your kitchen smelling and looking good, but they only just scratch the surface of what can and should be done. Seeking extra help through regular house cleaning services is an effective and affordable way to keep on top of this necessary chore, saving you precious time in your busy life and providing other positive impacts on your well-being. For professional cleaning services in Johnstown, contact the house cleaning experts at Yost Cleaning today!