Why Your Kitchen Needs A Deep Cleaning Now and Again

 

The kitchen is probably the hardest working room in our homes. It’s hard to think of another space that gets as much traffic—not to mention grease and food particles!

 

It’s fairly easy to know when your stove needs wiping or your kitchen sink needs a scrub. After all, there are visual clues right in front of you that serve as a constant reminder! But, how often have you gone and cleaned out your dishwasher? Or your coffee machine? Or even scrubbed out your oven?  

 

These spaces are frequently neglected and can lead to broken appliances, bacteria, and even fires.

 

It is essential that you learn how to deep clean kitchen appliances and other surfaces to keep them in good functioning order and your home safe.

 

How Often Should I Deep Clean My Kitchen

 

Deep cleaning your kitchen may not be your favorite way to spend an afternoon, but it is a necessary and important task to maintain and take care of your home.  

 

While your toaster may not need cleaning out as frequently as your fridge, I recommend getting yourself on a schedule.

 

You could set aside an hour or two on the same day every month, and make deep cleaning the kitchen part of your cleaning routine. 

 

Or since it can be difficult to remember to do this, I have a Spring Clean Anytime Calendar that will walk you through, not only your kitchen but the rest of your house as well. 

 

I made the calendar because I know how easy it is to forget about those places we should deep clean and how easy it is to continually put it off. 

 

 

What to Deep Clean in the Kitchen

 

Again, keep in mind these items on this list will exclude your daily kitchen cleaning tasks. Those tasks are the ones to do day in and day out.  

 

Want a practical and simple weekly cleaning checklist? Grab mine here.  

 

Oven Cleaning Hacks

 

First up on our list of items to deep clean in the kitchen is our oven. The oven may not be used as frequently as the stove, but when you do use it, there is a high probability that something might fall onto the oven floor and char. 

 

Over a few times, the oven can circulate a burning, charred smell that ruins entire meals—or even start a fire!   Unfortunately, so many people have built up cleaning an oven to a difficult, complicated thing. So many tips and articles I read involved soaking the oven for a minimum of eight hours…if not an entire day or two!

 

 

It isn’t realistic for me (or most moms) to have my oven out of commission that long, so I shied away from doing the chore—for years.  

 

I’m happy to report that I devised a way to deep clean the oven quickly, with no soaking and no waiting. It’s simple and easy to do! If you have been putting this off, make sure to read my post about how to deep clean an oven fast.  

 

How to Clean Kitchen Cabinets

 

There’s definitely an easy way to learn how to clean kitchen cabinets. But let’s talk about the why first.  

 

Day in and day out, three or more times a day, your cabinets are pulled open, dug through and shut. This can lead to disorganized cabinets as well as plenty of smudges and food stains on the doors.   

 

If you notice your cabinets becoming disorderly, take the time to empty them out, one by one, and declutter what you don’t need in your kitchen. 

 

While everything is out of the cabinet, give it a thorough wiping with a microfiber cloth with soap and warm water.  

 

Lastly, use the microfiber to wipe down the cabinet doors and remove all those little stains and smudges.

 

How to Organize a Pantry and Clean it Thoroughly

 

Similarly, there is great value in cleaning out and organizing your pantry each month.  

 

Not only will it help keep your kitchen clean and orderly, but it will also ensure your food doesn’t expire and go to waste. This is part of being a good steward and appreciating the food that God has blessed you with!

 

 

Remove all items for your pantry and group like items together on your counters. Then give it a wipe down with cleaner.  

 

When placing the food back in, take note of what you have and place the items that are expiring sooner up towards the front. Then, come up with a plan for using them in your meal planning. This will save you a lot of money on groceries. 

 

How to Clean Your Dishwasher

 

Another spot bacteria can easily accumulate is in the dishwasher. Think about all those food particles sitting there at the bottom!  

 

Luckily, cleaning your dishwasher thoroughly is fairly easy and quick. In fact, I wrote an entire post about it: How to Clean Your Dishwasher.  

 

 

How to Clean a Coffee Maker

 

There are so many different coffee makers out there, and so your best bet is to refer to the manufacturer’s guidelines.

 

However, here are a few of the best practices for several coffee makers.

 

How to Clean a Coffee Machine

 

We all love our daily cup of coffee, well except me, I don’t drink it, but my husband does.

 

Did you know that coffee makers are pretty disgusting? All that warm water and moisture in an enclosed space can lead to mold—particularly if you don’t give it a deep cleaning often. Here’s how to keep it clean:

 

1. Empty the water from the machine. Make sure it is turned off and unplugged.
2. Clean the outside of the machine with a cloth and warm water. Make sure to pay close attention to corners and crevices, as this where mold can grow.
3. Fill the water chamber with a 50-50 mixture of white vinegar and water.
4. Brew the vinegar mix and leave it to soak the pot for an hour.
5. Fill the machine back up with water, and run another cycle to remove any vinegar scent or taste.

 

How to Clean a Keurig

 

1. Empty the water canister, then turn the machine off and unplug it.
2. Take apart all the small pieces, such as the lid and stand for the mug.
3. Clean the outside of the machine with a damp microfiber cloth. Make sure to get all the little crooks and crannies, including where the pod sits.
4. Fill the water reservoir with a combination of 1:1 white vinegar and water. Run the brew cycle (without a pot inserted) as many times as it takes to empty the contents.
5. Then fill the water reservoir with water and run the machine without a pod several more times to make sure the vinegar taste is gone.

 

Why white vinegar? The white vinegar will help descale the machine and remove particles inside the system. Curious what else white vinegar can do? Read this post all about how to clean with vinegar! Spoiler alert: it can do a lot, especially when paired with baking soda.  

 

With a little elbow grease and timing, you’ll be able to easily deep clean these kitchen essentials and keep your home in tip-top shape.

 

Thank You! Need More Support?

 

Thank you so much for stopping by. I hope you’ll stick around and read some more.

 

Here are some more tips I have for keeping your house clean. 

 

My main passion is helping women build systems and routines that make homemaking simple. I find this possible through simplifying life, decluttering, and building routines that work for your household.

 

If you love all of that or want to learn more you should jump on my email list. I’ll send you a bunch of info on how I take care of my house, free access to my printables library, and a weekly newsletter with challenges and tips. Hope to see you there. 

 

Either way, thanks again, and come back any time. 🙂