Incorporating a stainless steel sink to your kitchen provides an industrial take on your fixtures while keeping your decor professional. Though we admire our stainless steel appliances and cookware, keeping a prominent shine and a scratch-free surface is a crucial part of maintaining its charm and productivity. Understanding how to clean stainless steel sinks without damaging them or using harmful products will help you maintain your fixtures.
What Cleaning Supplies To Avoid
Just like with our stainless steel cookware we want to make sure that we’re not using any harsh chemicals or abrasive cleaning supplies that may scratch the surface. Any sponges or brushes that have abrasive bristles or steel material shouldn’t be used when tackling grime on stainless steel. Additionally, chemicals such as bleach shouldn’t touch your sinks either because they will tarnish the stainless steel and make it more susceptible to rusting. Harsh chemicals will also, ironically enough, stain your fixture, so it’s best to just stay away.
How To Clean Stainless Steel Sinks
Various methods have proven effective over the years and here are a few of the ingredients you can try.
Baking Soda
- Baking soda
- Water
- Soft cloth
Baking soda is the holy grail of cleaning products; it can efficiently remove deep-rooted stains on granite and quartz countertops and can be a helpful tool when battling grime in your sink. Make a thick paste of baking soda and water and apply to your sink before scrubbing it away with a soft cloth or rag. The baking soda will lift any stains and you can rinse away any remnants of the paste when you’re all done.
Bar Keepers Friend
- Bar Keepers Friend
- Warm water
- Soft cloth
Your everyday household items that don’t contain any particularly harsh chemicals can be used to clean your stainless steel. Sprinkle some Bar Keepers Friend into your sink and scrub away with warm water and a soft cloth.
Vinegar And Baking Soda
- Baking soda
- Vinegar
- Water
- Soft cloth
This method requires the same steps as merely using baking soda, but you’ll be adding some vinegar before the job is done. Sprinkle baking soda into your sink and scrub away with a soft cloth in circular movements. From there, rinse the sink with vinegar; this ingredient will cause a reaction with the baking soda and you can just let it bubble and fizz. Gently rinse the solution away with a soft cloth and rinse your sink with warm water.
Dishwashing Soap
- Soft cloth
- Dishwashing soap
- Warm water
For tougher stains, you can apply a glob of mild dishwashing soap onto a soft sponge or cloth and scrub away. Rinse the sink out with warm water to polish everything.
All-Purpose Flour
- Soft cloth
- All-purpose flour
- Water
Oh, yes. You can use flour to clean your stainless steel sinks and give it some added shine. Sprinkle some all-purpose flour into your sink and scrub any surface stains with a gentle cloth or sponge. Once you’ve finished your cleaning, rinse everything away with water.
Things To Remember
Cleaning a sink correctly requires a few hidden tricks. One of the most important tips to keep in mind is that you should immediately dry your stainless steel thoroughly after cleaning it to prevent any water spots. You should also scrub in the direction of the grain when you’re cleaning so you don’t leave behind any streaking.
Now that you have the basics at your disposal it’s time to make those stainless steel sinks shine like they did when you first had them installed!
