AIBU to ask how do you clean a kitchen?!

[noctu]

Can't believe I'm asking this, I'm really embarrassed, but here goes.

How do you clean your kitchen?! What products do you use, do you use one of those scrubby sponge things, or the mop up sponge things, or something else? Do you fill the sink with hot water and disinfectant and dip your sponge in there, or do you just spray, wipe, and rinse your chosen implement under the sink?

How on earth are you even meant to use Zoflora? I've tried mixing it with warm water and squirting it on the tops but it just resulted in wet tops which took ages to mop/sponge off and dry, and didn't really feel like a proper clean.

I've heard of so many different ways of cleaning kitchens, I don't think I'm doing it right ... we always seem to have crumbs in the corners, water marks on the hob.

Please don't judge me for asking. I didn't really have a role model growing up to see this for myself.

I run hot water in the sink with some washing up liquid, and I use a microfiber cloth to wipe all the surfaces. Don't use disinfectant spray at all because any meat is cut on chopping boards that go straight in the dishwasher after use. Wouldn't advise using rough cleaning sponges on anything other than the sink (and the hob if it's enamel) because they scratch the surface. Vinegar is good to get the sink shiny again.

I have a kitchen cleaner with orange oil that acts as a degreaser I use on worktops and inside the microwave, I use a damp cloth and the spray and rinse it a couple of times during.

Stainless steel cleaner for the hob and cooker hood.

Specific oven cleaner for that when needed.

Cupboard doors I use an anti viral spray and mircofibre cloth so I dont get any smears.

Floor - method floor cleaner in a spray mop.

Sink - bit of bleach down the plug hole and a stainless steel cleaner.

I clean with cheap blue j-cloths. After they’ve been used I put in washing machine. They last 3 or 4 washes before I bin them.

I also use a green-scratchy for wiping stubborn or sticky things after spraying with a general spray cleaner and leaving for 5 mins.

If I’ve got a bleach spray cleaner I use it on stainless sink as it gets it nice and shiny, but if I haven’t got it, just use the general spray cleaner.

My kitchen cleaning products consist of;

• general anti-bac spray cleaner

-multi-purpose dilutes left cleaner for mopping floor

• j-cloths
• green scratchy
• fake vialeda kitchen mop and bucket

No need for lots of different products in my view. Also always buy cheapest supermarket versions of products or cloths.

I’ve known people with a cloth system called blue for loo, pink for sink and green for clean.....3 different coloured j-cloths for all purposes.

I’ve also known people use the evolutionary cloth method....it starts being used for washing up, then evolves down to cleaning and finally to the loo. Think this was a few years ago!

Quite liked those ideas. The first worked well in houses where several people were all cleaning and it made sure people didn’t use the wrong cloth for the wrong thing.

This is where I struggle to understand what “normal” is! I mean the 2 extremes are easily recognisable but then there’s a huge area in between. I don’t want to live in a mess but don’t want to devote several hours a day to cleaning.

I personally wouldn’t clean my sink every day. I have a dishwasher. Dirty dishes go on the side and then into the dishwasher so the sink stays clear. I also don’t rinse my dishes beforehand as I heard with modern dishwashers you shouldn’t as it messes with the programme. Anything yucky tipped down the sink gets rinsed away. So how often should I clean my sink and with what products? I would get numerous different answers off this thread alone, so actually I can understand why the OP is so unsure. That’s just one example.

Each little job, like cleaning a sink, may only take less than 5 minutes but all these “little” jobs that some people see as daily necessities soon add up to hours!

I clean most of the kitchen with a mix of warm water and washing up liquid. The cloth is damp rather than wet.
Specific cleaner for the hob and for stainless steel.

If the sink is looking a bit stained I put warm water in, a piece of aluminium foil and 2 or 3 dishwasher tabs. Leave for an hour or so and when you let the water out the sink is sparkling.

Don't over think cleaning the kitchen. There are lots of ideas on here which are great but might confuse you a bit if you try to incorporate lots of things. Try some out and see what works for you.
Use the Top Down approach which someone wrote about. Start at the top so the mess (ie. crumbs etc) gets wiped downwards.
If you clean the benches first and then start dusting the cupboard tops or cleaning a shelf in a cupboard which has breadcrumbs on, the dust or the breadcrumbs end up on the benches you have just cleaned (therefore they have to be done again!)

@emilyfrost

Antibac wipes on everything. New wipe for a new “section” or item. Repeat everyday unless requires twice in a day.

You could achieve same thing with anti bac spray and some blue roll/kitchen towels and save a lots of plastic (unless you use plastic free wipes already of course, most people don't)

So how often should I clean my sink and with what products?

Hot water and soap every evening (I always had 1 or two things to handwash anyway at the end of the day)... 😁 sometimes give it a spray with degreaser.

People forget that all that 376 chemicals "needed" to daily "clean" kitchen go into the system then. It's not good. Plus the amount of plastic bottles and wipes etc is quite alarming.

I agree about using cloths that can be washed.

Disposable wipes are a nightmare for the environment.

Keep it simple with 1 or 2 cleaning products ....and nothing wrong with only having washing up liquid and bleach. They can be used for everything. Yes, having 25 specialised products might make some things sparkle a bit more, but no need. Oh some white vinegar costing 50p can be useful but not vital.

White vinegar is a gift directly from gods of shine🙏

😁 And smell. And softness.

general cleaning spray on sides, table, etc - leave for a bit - dust with s fetching fluffy pink thing on a stick - hot water - wet microfiber cloth - wash spray off and bits go on the floor - sweep floor - mop with hot water and floor cleaner - I do this a couple of times a week

Once a month I also do the skirting and oven

You could achieve same thing with anti bac spray and some blue roll/kitchen towels and save a lots of plastic (unless you use plastic free wipes already of course, most people don't)

@SchrodingersImmigrant I could, but I like my antibac wipes. Quick, easy, throw away, cheap, done. I would suspect they aren’t plastic free as I don’t go out of my way to see what they are, I just chuck 3 for £1 packs in my trolley.

My other top tip is to listen to a podcast when cleaning. I put on comedy podcasts or (currently) podcasts about SEN issues and the time flies by without me noticing.

(not quite what you asked but made all the difference to me).

@BlueLobelia

My routine is:

Daily- kitchen spray and sponge. Wipe all work surfaces and any spills. Clean hob with stainless steel spray. Sweep daily and mop maybe every second day.

weekly- fridge cull and wipe; clean microwave and toaster (crumbs and also stainless steel spray). I clean out one draw/cupboard once a week, going around in a clockwise fashion so they all get done every 2 months or so.

clearly that word was meant to be 'drawer'.

I can spell, promise.

@BrimfulOfBaba your DH has it wrong - microfibre cloths are probably worse than kitchen roll! Microfibres from fabrics are a big component of ocean plastic. A normal cotton dishcloth is fine or recycled kitchen roll (which you can compost). If you must use a microfibre cloth, wash it in a bag designed to catch the shed fibres eg guppyfriend (everyone should do this for all synthetic fabrics tbh).

Ah thank you @PattyPan! Will stock up on more cotton cloths and a washbag. I had no idea!

Oh i have never heard of guppyfriend. I'm off to look it up. Thanks!

Sink of hot water and fairy liquid. Give everything a good wipe/wash down.
I use a spray and microfibre cloth on the hob. No streaks or marks.
If there are crumbs etc, i'll sweep them up with a dustpan first or brush them into the floor to be swept up later before wiping the worktop down.
Use whatever's easier for you - be it spray, hot water, cloth, or sponge.

Pink stuff paste & spray with a scrub daddy/ mommy. Followed by a squirt of Fabulosa with a micro fibre cloth.

Follow Mrs hinch on Instagram, she’s got some really good ideas. Zoflora is good for soaking clothes. And I pop w bit down the drain. I always use a dry cloth to wipe crumbs etc then spray and wipe with damp cloth and then dry with dry cloth.

Cloths* not clothes lol

@HOkieCOkie

Follow Mrs hinch on Instagram, she’s got some really good ideas. Zoflora is good for soaking clothes. And I pop w bit down the drain. I always use a dry cloth to wipe crumbs etc then spray and wipe with damp cloth and then dry with dry cloth.

Well it's more of an advertising prpfile now, isn't it...

Also. Why do people soak clothes in zoflora😳

@Ceejly
Thanks for this! I am going to start implementing this. I feel like I have no system for cleaning my kitchen compared to the rest of the house.

Make sure it’s tidy first, washing up done and put away, anything that doesn’t belong in there out of the room.

Do the dry things first, so dust (with a duster with a handle) the corners or ceilings, light fittings, blinds etc. I also do a quick hoover/sweep. Sometimes I clean the windows now but depends how bad they are.

Fill a bowl with hot soapy water and wipe out the microwave and inside of the fridge. Then wipe over the counters, pullling things out (kettles etc)and wiping them over as you go.

Wipe down cupboards and drawer fronts.

Wipe tables/chairs. Front of oven,washer,dryer.

Fill mop bucket.

Clean sink and if you like zoflora chuck a bit down the plug hole.

Mop the floor and you should be done! Might be something I’ve missed but that’s how I do mine, once a week and it takes about 45 minutes but I have a really big kitchen and lots of kids, so very high traffic area for me!

I use a cloth, a Terry cloth one (an old towel cut up) because it can go in the washing machine afterwards. I use method spray, I don't like bleach or disinfectant, it isn't necessary.

I sweep the crumbs up in to my hand and thrown them away, then spray the surfaces, and use the damp cloth to wipe. On the job I then use a dry cloth to dry it, to reduce water marks.

I sweep the floor, spray with method then use a dream mop to mop it.

I wipe the surfaces at least daily. I mop the floor twice a week.