Searching for kitchen cleaning hacks that’ll help you maintain your kitchen clean? Try these easy cleaning hacks that really work!
In my experience, kitchens are the most difficult rooms to keep clean. Well, at least in my house it is, haha. When you’ve got two teenagers constantly snacking and everyday messes made from cooking and life, it can get dirty quickly. So, over the years, I have tried so many kitchen cleaning hacks in hopes of finding hacks that’ll help keep our home clean easier and less time-consuming.
And I found many that I swear by and have made keeping our kitchen clean much more manageable and/or cut the time we spend cleaning it. So if you are a mom like me and can relate, or you’re just here to find cleaning hacks that can make your life easier, I have rounded up some of the top cleaning hacks that are absolutely worth trying.
This post shows you 15+ kitchen cleaning hacks that really work.
Table of Contents
The Best Kitchen Cleaning Hacks You Need To Try
Here is a roundup of the best kitchen cleaning hacks that I have personally found helpful over the years and that actually work.
1. Have all your kitchen cleaning supplies handy in a caddy or basket.
Having all your cleaning kitchen supplies handy and ready to go will make cleaning your kitchen easier. This way, you don’t have to go out and buy or search around your house for any cleaning supplies when preparing to clean. This will also save you time. And you won’t risk losing motivation to clean while trying to gather all your cleaning supplies.
2. Use a bin specifically for thawing meat in your fridge.
This is a must in every fridge! First, it gives you a designated thawing area in your fridge, so you don’t have to worry about making space for it when you need it. And second, it ensures you don’t have any leaking and cross-contamination on your other food or refrigerator surfaces. You can also use a bowl, but I find these large bins from The Container Store much more effective and secure. And they are super easy to wash too!
3. Avoid oil spills and keep your cooking oil on a tray to keep it off your counters.
Whether you keep your oil or oils in the original container or transfer it into a different one, there is no avoiding the spillage. Use a tray to hold your oil to make cleaning up oil spillage easier. And this will help prevent damage to your counter or cabinet shelves. And it’ll also save you time when cleaning your kitchen. All you’ll have to do is give the tray a quick wash rather than spend precious time trying to scrub oil off your counters.
4. Vacuum every nook and cranny before cleaning.
Get every nook and cranny dust and crumbs free by vacuuming with a narrow vacuum attachment that can get into the smallest corners. By vacuuming first, it’ll be much easier to clean the rest of your kitchen. Vacuum from top to bottom.
5. Grab a trash bag and collect everything that is trash before cleaning.
One of my favorite kitchen cleaning hacks is to start by collecting all the trash first. By first collecting the trash, it makes cleaning less daunting and less overwhelming. You’ll see a huge difference from just collecting all the obvious trash and getting it all out of the way.
6. Clean dirty grout with a steamer.
An easy way to clean the dirty grout without damaging it is to clean it with a steam cleaner. I got one a couple of years ago. And it is the easiest way to clean grout. And not only will this clean your grout, but it will also disinfect it. A definite must-try!
This is the steamer I have. But to be honest, I don’t love the brush it comes with. It got ugly quickly. But I bought a new handheld brush from the dollar store to use in its place and it works great. I have a highlight on my Instagram called “cleaning tips and hacks” where you can see the steamer in action. 😉
7. Clean under the stove without moving it with a narrow vacuum attachment.
Prevent the bottom of your stove from getting gross between deep cleans by vacuuming under the stove weekly. You don’t have to move it. You can use a narrow vacuum attachment to get under the stove and collect any crumbs, dust, etc. If you don’t have a vacuum, you can use a Swiffer too.
8. Fill a bag with vinegar and use it to remove the grimy buildup on your faucet.
When was the last time you cleaned your kitchen faucet? If you haven’t in a while, there is probably a good amount of buildup on the bottom of your faucet spout. And it can be tricky to get it all out. However, an easy way to get all that buildup off is with vinegar, a zip lock, and a rubber band.
All you need to do is fill the bag with vinegar, secure it with a rubber band to the faucet, and let it soak for at least 30 minutes. This will remove all the buildup from the faucet spout and you should be able to wipe clean any remaining buildup.
Check this post for more details.
9. Use a bowl with vinegar to clean the microwave fast.
No matter how much you try to prevent food from dripping or splashing all over the inside of the microwave, it’s a constant mess in there. But don’t worry!
A super easy way to clean the stuck-on food from the microwave is to use a cup of vinegar in a microwave-safe bowl and place it in the microwave. Set the microwave for 5 minutes, then let it cool down for 2-3 minutes. Once cooled down, use a rag to wipe your microwave clean. Everything will come off like butter! No scrubbing is necessary at all!
10. Use liners on your fridge shelves to catch spills and make cleaning easier.
I like using liners in the refrigerator. Because no matter how much you try to avoid it, food/drinks always end up being spilled inside and get into the crevices of the shelves, etc.
Getting those crevices clean can be time-consuming and tedious. So utilizing liners will help keep those crevices clean. And all you have to do is pull out the liners and wash them or replace them as needed. Trust me, try this! This helps keep your fridge cleaner longer and makes deep cleaning it so easy and saves you so much time.
11. Bring the shine back to your stainless steel sink with Bar Keepers Friend.
My favorite easy way to bring back shine to my stainless steel is by rubbing with Bar Keepers Friends.
Check this post out for more details on how to clean your stainless steel sink and get it to shine.
12. Use a dishwasher tab and hot water solution to clean grease from kitchen walls and cabinets.
Greece from cooking gets on cabinet doors and other surfaces around your kitchen. And unfortunately, it can be hard to remove it depending on how long it’s been since you cleaned it.
Use a dishwasher tab with hot water to remove the grease. The easiest way to do this is to fill your sink with about a gallon of hot water, then throw it in the dishwasher tab. Let the dishwasher tab dissolve and mix it up. Once your water is ready, use a rag to clean the surfaces that are covered in grease. Rinse and repeat until clean.
13. Keep a container of disinfecting wipes on your counter or under the sink to disinfect after cooking.
Make disinfecting your kitchen counters and other surfaces easy by keeping disinfecting wipes handy. I keep ours right next to the kitchen sink. This way, if any surface needs a quick disinfecting (especially after cooking), they are easily accessible as needed.
And since the original container the wipes come in is an eyesore, I got this wipe dispenser container that matches the rest of our kitchen. The only issue I had with this wipe dispenser container is that it comes with a sticker on the lid that leaves sticker residue when you try to take it off. However, I took it off entirely with nail polish remover and cotton swabs. Once I removed most of the sticker residue, I used a wipe to wipe it clean.
14. Use a laundry mesh bag to wash small items in your dishwasher, such as straws, kids’ spoons, etc.
When running your dishwasher, do you end up with small items at the bottom of your dishwasher? Not only can this ruin those items, but it can also ruin your dishwasher. Prevent this from happening again by using mesh bags that can hold these small miscellaneous items safely while still getting cleaned in your dishwasher.
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15. Remove the smell from the trash bin with a cup of hot water and 1 tsp of bleach.
Have a stinky garbage bin and can’t get the smell out? Take your trash bin outside and pour a cup of hot water with a tsp of bleach. Let it sit for at least 15 minutes, then throw the water out. Once empty, scrub the entire bin with a drop or two of dish soap and a scrubber. Lastly, rinse it out and let it air dry.
16. Keep counters clear.
Keep those counters clear! I mainly do this because I prefer having as little as possible on my counters. However, another reason I recommend keeping as little as possible out on your counters is that appliances get dirty faster when out on the counters rather than stored inside cabinets.
When appliances are out, they get covered in dust and grease from cooking. Which makes having to clean them a more frequent chore. Assign an easily accessible space for your most used appliances inside your cabinets and only pull them out when needed.
17. Get all the crumbs out of the toaster with a (new) toothbrush.
The toaster is the type of appliance that is not only hard to clean but is also often forgotten and not cleaned at all. But there is a super easy way to clean your toaster. And it won’t take long at all!
The quick and easy way I like to clean our toaster is by shaking it off over the trash bin. And once all the loose crumbs are out, I use a clean toothbrush that I keep specifically for this purpose and carefully brush off the remaining crumbs from inside the toaster. Lastly, I pull the tray from underneath the toaster and wash that with a bit of soap and water. Once washed, I give it a quick dry, put it back in its slot, and the toaster is ready to go!
18. Label leftovers with the date it was cooked, so you know when it’s time to toss them out if you haven’t eaten them yet.
One thing about leftovers is that if you don’t eat or throw them out before they go bad, they stink up the fridge. How can you avoid this? Label your leftovers with the date the food was cooked. This will help you remember when you cooked it and whether it’s good to eat. And it will also help ensure you toss it out if you don’t eat it before it goes bad.
Kitchen Cleaning Hacks | Q&A:
What is the fastest way to clean a dirty kitchen?
In what order should you clean a dirty kitchen? Over the years, I have found that no matter how dirty the kitchen is, cleaning the kitchen in the order below is the fastest way to clean it.
- Put miscellaneous items away where they belong.
- Collect all the dishes inside the sink.
- Collect all the trash in a trash bag. Including from the refrigerator and pantry.
- Vacuum from top to bottom.
- Wipe all surfaces.
- Wash dishes.
- Vacuum floors.
- Mop
What should I clean first in my kitchen?
The first thing you should clean in your kitchen is vacuuming all surfaces and nooks and crannies. This will make cleaning up the rest of the kitchen much easier and faster.
This post was all about kitchen cleaning hacks that actually work.
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