If your appliances worked in overdrive during the holidays, it’s time to do some deep cleaning. Don’t know where to start? Here are the easiest (and best!) ways to clean your dishwasher, microwave and washing machine.
How to clean your dishwasher
If you haven’t cleaned your dishwasher in a while, you might notice a build up on your dishes or a slight stench coming from this heavily-used appliance. Luckily, you can remedy these annoyances with a quick cleaning.
First, pull out the bottom rack and then use a 1:1 ratio of vinegar and water to spray down the inside of your dishwasher. Next, you’ll put some vinegar in a shallow bowl and place that bowl on the top rack of your dishwasher and run a normal cycle.
Move on to cleaning out the filter (a step most people overlook!), by simply running it over hot water and rinsing with some dish soap. Remind yourself to do this type of cleaning once a month.
How to clean your microwave
Vinegar strikes again and can easily be used to clean out your microwave. Clean your microwave without a lot of scrubbing by filling a bowl with about 2 cups of water, 2 tablespoons of vinegar and a little lemon juice.
Set the cook time to about 3-5 minutes (depending on the wattage of your microwave you may need more or less time). Let solution rest for a couple minutes before opening microwave, then simply wipe clean.
How to clean your front-load washing machine
Tired of vinegar? Don’t be! This hard-working cleaning agent works to clean just about every area of your home. If you’ve never cleaned your washer, today’s the day.
First off, clean the rubber gasket with a 1 part vinegar and 3 part water solution. If you notice mold on the gasket (don’t worry, this is very common), let straight vinegar sit on the mold and then add baking soda to make a paste and let sit on the mold for a little longer before scrubbing and rinsing off.
Spray the inside of the washer door with your vinegar solution, make sure to clean out the soap dispenser, and then follow up with a product designed to clean your washing machine while you run the ‘clean washer’ cycle.
