Spring has sprung! There’s nothing like opening your windows and smelling the freshly blooming flowers or being able to enjoy the outdoors without thick layers. With the start of a new season, it’s the perfect time to freshen up your kitchen. Here are some of our top tips for spring cleaning your kitchen so that it can feel as fresh as the air outdoors. Let’s jump on into it!
#1. Check Your Food For Expired Or Rotting Items
You’ll want to clean your fridge, freezer, and pantry as part of spring cleaning your kitchen anyway. If you’re doing a deep clean of these food storage areas, you’ll already be removing your food to do this, so it’s easy to check expiration dates and whether or not something has gone bad while doing this.
If you don’t have the time to do a deep clean, you can still do this. Plus, it will make it easier to clean your fridge/freezer/pantry when you do have the time if there isn’t expired food or food that has gone bad taking up shelf space.
Once you’ve gotten rid of anything bad or expired, consider whether or not you’ll actually use what you have. If you have things you can’t see yourself using, donate them to a food shelter. For everything else, put the items that will expire sooner at the front of your shelves so that you remember to use them before diving into the newer items.
#2. Declutter Your Kitchen
Most articles about spring cleaning your kitchen focus on the actual cleaning process. However, in order to clean your kitchen, you need to have your things tidied in order to be able to do a thorough cleaning anyway. A tidy kitchen is much easier to clean than one with clutter all over it. Thus, before you start spring cleaning your kitchen, declutter it.
If you have anything that you don’t use, you can donate or sell it. If you have anything that doesn’t work, you can see whether or not it can be repaired. If not, you can get rid of it. You may consider putting any small appliances that you don’t often use in a cabinet so that they aren’t taking up countertop space, like your toaster or panini press or what have you.
It can be easy to place items that belong elsewhere down in your kitchen and forget about them. While you’re spring cleaning your kitchen, keep a bin nearby for anything that should go somewhere else.
This is also a good time to organize your kitchen and ensure everything is in its appropriate place. If you have the time to clean, you can take things out and then organize them after you’ve cleaned. However, if you don’t have the time for cleaning, simply organizing can make a world of difference.
#3. Clean All Surfaces From Top To Bottom
We say top to bottom when spring cleaning your kitchen because if you were to clean your floors first and then the tops of your cabinets, the dust and debris from the tops of your cabinets could fall onto your freshly cleaned floor and make you need to clean it all over again. Don’t make more work for yourself!
You can start with the tops of your cabinets and then work your way downwards through cabinet shelves, countertops, and then finally your floors. Remove items from surfaces before you clean them, and then you can clean off the items before you put them back. If you have any surfaces that need a special type of cleaner, like marble countertops, ensure that you clean them appropriately.
Don’t forget about places like your backsplash and walls. Vacuum, wipe down, and polish as needed. You may need a small brush, like an old toothbrush, to really get into small, tough-to-clean places, like the garbage disposal splash guard.
#4. Clean Your Appliances
When spring cleaning your kitchen, don’t forget about your appliances! This includes your refrigerator coils and the drawer at the bottom of your oven. If you have a self-cleaning oven, you can run it.
You may need to unplug your appliances before you attempt to clean them for safety purposes, as with your toaster. For other appliances, you may need to run some water and vinegar or lemon juice through them to loosen up stuck-on grease and freshen them up, like your coffee maker or microwave.
Follow guidelines for each appliance. The manuals that come with your appliances will tell you how to maintain them, so you can refer back to them if needed.
These are but 4 steps to follow when spring cleaning your kitchen. Kitchen Kneads is here to help you with your kitchen needs. Contact us today to learn about the products and cooking classes we have available so that you can make the most of your kitchen once it’s nice and clean!
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