When you think about it, you practically spend as much time in your kitchen as you do your bedroom -- and it can get just as messy. Follow our easy plan to keep it looking more fab than frat-house.
Clean Weekly:
- Appliance faces: Use a mild cleaner or make a paste of baking soda and water to clean. Dissolve grease on the stovetop with a sponge soaked in white vinegar.
- Microwave: Soak the turntable in sudsy water while you wipe up interior splatters. Or try a steam clean: Fill a microwave-safe glass with 2 cups of water and either 1 teaspoon of vanilla or a few slices of lemon. Run on high for 5 minutes and wipe the sweet-smelling interior clean with a paper towel. Here's some more expert advice on cleaning your microwave.
- Countertops: Spray on an all-purpose cleaner (or run disposable wipes over the surface) and let it sit 10 minutes.
- Sink: Pour down several quarts of boiling water to flush out grease. Follow with 1 cup of white vinegar and scrub the basin with baking soda.
- Floors: Wash tile or stone floors with 1 cup vinegar and 1 gallon of water. For icky grout, mix 1 Tbl. bleach and 2 cups warm water. Scrub with an old toothbrush.
Clean Monthly:
- Oven: If you don't have a self-clean oven, sprinkle salt on the residue while the oven is still warm. When it cools, scrape it up with a spatula and wipe clean with a cloth. Got stuck-on crud? Use a nylon scrubby sponge dipped in soapy hot water.
- Fridge: Wash the interior with a solution of baking soda and warm water, about 1/2 cup of baking soda for every gallon of water. Clean the drain pan and vacuum underneath the refrigerator. Read more fridge-cleaining tips here.
- Garbage can: Hose it down with hot water; then spray with a disinfectant.
- Cabinets: Wipe them down with 1/2 cup white vinegar or a solution of 1/4 cup liquid oil soap and 1 gallon of warm water.
- Dishwasher: Run a complete cycle with an empty machine (just detergent) for a clean, deodorized space.
Nestperts Jerri Farris, author of Home Improvement 101, and Donna Smallin, author of Cleaning Plain & Simple
-- Grace Jidoun
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