Cleaning kitchen cabinets is a great way to make your entire kitchen feel new! Learn how to clean your cabinets from start to finish!
How to Clean Kitchen Cabinets - 7 Steps to a Cleaner Kitchen
Over time, cabinets tend to collect dirt and debris that compromise the cleanliness of your dishes and cooking utensils. Luckily, cabinets are easy to clean at no cost to you but a couple of hours a year. Grease, dust buildup, mixed spices, and many other things are often the plague that wears the finish cabinets and leaves your dishes less clean than you may like. Thankfully, cabinets are easy to clean and they don’t require any harsh chemicals. Read on to learn more, and shop online kitchen cabinets if your cabinets are too dirty to save!
In this post, you will learn:
- How to clean kitchen cabinets
- What to use to clean kitchen cabinets
- How to organize kitchen cabinets
- How to clean sticky wood cabinets
- How to spot-finish kitchen cabinets
1.
Remove Everything From Your Cabinets
This will likely be the most time-consuming part of cleaning your cabinets aside from putting everything back at the end, however, it is essential to get a nice, clean result. Take your time to remove things in such a way that you can remember where they will go when you are all finished cleaning. If you don’t have too much to remove, then simply stacking your wall cabinet items on the counter is a good start. For your base cabinets, consider using boxes or placing items on your kitchen table with labels. This may be a good time to consider reorganizing your cabinets if you have noticed things would be better suited in a different location. If you decide to get rid of your old cabinets altogether in favor of brand new ones, read our guide on how to remove cabinets.
2.
Clear Away Any Dust or Debris
Crumbs and dust may be present within your cabinets after you’ve cleared their contents. A vacuum with a hose attachment will make short work of removing the particulates. If you do not have a hose attachment, consider using a brush and dustpan or a dust rag to wipe away the debris. Just be prepared to clean any excess that spills out onto your countertops or floor.
3.
Inspect Your Cabinets for Wear
Wear and tear to the finish may occur for older cabinets that have been exposed to grease or liquid without being cleaned. After having cleared out the contents of your cabinets, have a look around for any damages to the finish. Places where the cabinet finish has worn, will appear to be duller in color, feel lower than the rest of the finish, or feel rougher than the finished wood. It may be a good idea to apply a bit of finish to these areas so that the wood does not continue to degrade over time.
4.
Clean Grease or Liquid With Soap and Water
Once the places where you applied finish to your cabinets have dried, you may wipe them with a lightly damp cloth. Adding a small amount of dish soap or light detergent to the cloth may help to remove grease that likes to collect around your stove cabinets or anywhere you may store your cooking oils.
5.
Dry With A Towel
Excess moisture on your cabinets can damage the finish and potentially cause warp or rot over time. After you have cleaned your cabinets be sure to thoroughly dry them with a towel. Consider leaving the doors open and letting your cabinets air dry for good measure.
6.
Organize Your Kitchen
With everything removed from your cabinets, it’s the perfect time to reassess your organization strategy. Think of how you operate in your kitchen and place things closest to where they will be used or replaced after cleaning. For example, try to keep silverware and plates close to your table and cookware close to your range for easy access. This can significantly reduce the time needed to prepare a meal. Accidents are also much less likely to occur in the kitchen when everything you need is close by.
7.
Refill Your Cabinets
Your cabinets are clean, free of debris, dry, and you have an idea of where you want everything to go. Now there is nothing left to do but put everything back into its place and enjoy your newly cleaned cabinets. Most kitchens will probably take less than 2 hours to clean so it’s a good idea to clean your cabinets one to two times a year or more as needed.