January is done and dusted, the days might still be short and dark but spring is approaching at last. And with spring comes the traditional spring clean, a chance to spruce up your home and have a thorough sort out of everything you no longer need or use. When you get to work on spring cleaning your kitchen, here are five easily overlooked jobs that it’s worth making sure you don’t miss.
Dust and clean the tops of cupboards
Chances are you wipe down the insides of your cupboards on a semi regular basis, but when was the last time you got the stepladder out of the garage and cleaned on top? Unless the tops of your cupboards are flush with the ceilings, these surfaces provide a place for dust and grease to accumulate. Take a bowl of warm soapy water and clean them down as one way to improve the air quality in your home and ensure that everything is as fresh as possible.
Completely empty your pantry
The nature of pantry items is that they’re long lasting. Things like tins, jars and dried food can last for years, however it’s still important to go through it all now and again. Take everything out of your pantry, and clean down the surfaces. This gives you a chance to check if anything has leaked or split and you can keep an eye on pest activity. If you need to call mosquito control, buy ant killer or set rodent traps you can do so before thoroughly cleansing afterwards. Consider upgrading your storage containers to sturdy plastic or glass making them more difficult for pests to get into.
Pull out large appliances
If you have large freestanding appliances in your kitchen, pull them out to clean behind them. Food and other detritus can accumulate and rot meaning no matter how clean your kitchen is elsewhere, there’s a lingering smell or feeling of mustiness that you can’t shift. Vacuum behind getting rid of small and large bits of waste and then scrub with detergent to shift grease and finally bleach to kill germs.
Disinfect bins
Emptying the bins is something that all of us have to do regularly to make space, but how often do you disinfect your bins? Even when you use good quality liners, bins can still become smelly and dirty where liquid leaks out or food splashes the sides when people scrape their plates. Disinfect inside and outside of the bin, again you might notice that any lingering smells in the kitchen disappear once you do!
Give your oven a deep clean
Finally, a job no one enjoys but is essential is cleaning the oven. If you notice the kitchen becoming quite smokey each time you cook, it might be where food has previously spilled onto the oven floor. Each time you cook it’s becoming more and more charred and your kitchen gets filled with pungent smoke and smells which can find their way to other areas of the home. If you can’t bear the thought of scrubbing it yourself, there are companies that can come out and offer this service so it’s worth looking into!
Which jobs do you find are easy to miss in the kitchen?
