Take a good look at your kitchen….. does it need:
…to be majorly decluttered? – Then you may need to take several days in this room.
…to be degreased? If you are using natural cleaners, adding a good mild dish soap will work wonders.
…to have structural work done? Can you clean the are and apply paint or get it ready to paint?
…to be emptied out and started over?
You must choose what you need to do in your kitchen today. Do you have time to devote to this project? Maybe you should not get in to a really deep, deep cleaning of the kitchen today. You could divide the Kitchen Cleaning instructions into two or even three days!
Perhaps you should do a medium clean and follow the Kitchen Room Cleaning System instructions which follow in this post.
Deep cleaning the kitchen isn’t often a fun job, but you just have to find your happy place and get in the groove …. and get cleaning!
First Things First:
* Take out trash.
* Pick up countertops
*Take everything out of the kitchen that doesn’t go in the kitchen… use the 4 bags/boxes/baskets that you used in the Master Bedroom!
* Take down curtains – wash
* Take up rugs – wash
The kitchen can become a catch-all if you’re not careful. If your family has a habit of depositing things in the kitchen, and you’re OK with that, try to have a receptacle for all their stuff. Baskets are great for keys, change, pocket contents.
Mail really clutters up kitchen counter tops! Try using a box or basket to hold mail, both outgoing and incoming.
Move out furniture and take everything off your countertops that you possibly can. You can use laundry baskets or boxes to hold everything.
Two two big areas to clean in most kitchens are the refrigerator and the oven.
Here are steps to cleaning out the refrigerator.
* Make a sink or large tub of hot soapy water.
* Empty the frig.
* Throw away outdated, old food.
* Pull out shelves and drawers that can be taken out.
* Wash all the shelves and drawers with your hot soapy water (WARNING: Don’t put a cold glass shelf or glass drawer in warm or hot water!!! Don’t ask….)
* Wipe down the inside of the frig with your natural cleaner or cleaner of choice. Rinse well.
* Wipe down gaskets and outer portions of the door, also clean the vent under the door.
* Replace drawers and shelves.
* Wipe down jars and food containers.
* Replace food.
Cleaning the oven:
Most new ovens have a self-cleaning setting, but there are still a few ovens out there that need to be cleaned manually.
e_How has some detailed instructions on cleaning an oven without using chemicals.
You can purchase chemical cleaners at most grocery stores.
Before cleaning with either method, protect your floor with newspapers, wear plastic kitchen gloves, and don’t breathe in the vapors caused by chemical cleaners.
Cleaning the Kitchen:
Make a sink of hot soapy water or use your chemical cleaner.
Sweep down cobwebs
Get out your rags and start washing down the ceiling if needed, door frames, window frames, baseboards and walls. Wash windows.
Put a load of dishes in to wash while you work, or go ahead and wash all the dishes by hand.
Clean the top of the refrigerator, the stove exhaust hood, all large appliances. Take out the drip pans and put them in a pan of hot soapy water to soak.
Clean off cabinet shelves and inside cabinets. Wash them down.
Wash inside your cabinets while they are empty.
Re-line cabinets if needed.
Replace everything that goes in the cabinets, washing and dusting off as you go.
Wash down the outside of the cabinets, use de-greaser if needed or a wood soap. Dry them and then polish them with lemon oil if they are finished wood. When your cabinets are cleaned it will make the whole kitchen look better!
Wipe down the areas over and behind the stove.
Change your wash water if needed.
Scrub the counter tops.
Wash down all the bottles, canisters, containers, etc. that sit on your counter tops.
Wash and replace the drip pans.
Sweep the floor. Make up your mop water and get to scrubbing.
If your floor needs it, use a scrub brush or other slightly abrasive that will not harm your floor, and clean all around the bottom edges of the cabinets and appliances first. Then mop the rest of the floor.
Can you move the stove and clean under it? That would probably be a good idea.
Now that your kitchen is clean…………
* Put all your curtains and dry rugs back down when the floor is dry. Give the appliances one more look and a polish.
* Rearrange all your counter top things.
* Light yourself some candles, make some tea and enjoy your kitchen!
Kitchen Cleaning System
If you have an older child or teen who helps keep the kitchen clean, just give him/her this list and watch miracles happen!
Take out trash, replace liners.
Take up rugs, shake rugs and hang out to air.
Sweep.
Put away all food items.
Run a sink of hot soapy water.
Use the sink water to wash down counters, cabinets, stove top and all appliances.
Wipe down items that sit on counter tops.
Wipe off the trash can.
Empty water out of sink and scrub the sink and all around the sink it is draining.
Put your cleaning rag in the laundry.
Tidy Idies For The Kitchen
*As you organize, keep in mind you want your kitchen to “flow”. That means you don’t want to be constantly running to and fro in the kitchen when you’re cooking, serving meals, etc.
Try, as much as possible, to group items together according to their use.
For instance, you would probably want to place your coffee cups and drinking glasses in the same cupboard. ~And you would want your coffee cups near the coffee pot!
Create Work Centers in your kitchen, especially if you are in your kitchen a lot. A Baking Center might have these components:
Mixer or Bread maker
Flours
Spices
Salt, baking soda, baking powder, yeast
Measuring cups and spoons
Wooden spoons, rolling pin
It’s not only unsightly to have a lot of clutter on your counter-tops; it also makes cleaning more difficult. Take a long hard look at your counter space and make some decisions concerning clutter and ease of use. You may need to eliminate some items and/or re-organize.
Streamline when possible. Be honest with yourself when it comes to de-cluttering.
Often there are many items in the kitchen that go unused year after year. For instance, how many of your casserole dishes do you really use?
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[...] Harvest Homekeeping ~ The Kitchen You could divide the Kitchen Cleaning instructions into two or even three days! Perhaps you should do a medium clean and follow the Kitchen Room Cleaning System instructions which follow in this post. Deep cleaning the kitchen isn’t … [...]