Here's How Often Y'all Should Actually Clean Your Refrigerator

Young woman cleaning refrigerator with sponge and spray at home Andrey_Popov/Shutterstock

Would you be embarrassed to show someone the inside of your fridge? When was the last time you lot checked the coils? Find out how often y'all should clean your fridge—and our all-time tips for getting the task done.

As 1 of the most commonly used appliances in your kitchen, the fridge takes a beating. Food gets spilled, leftovers get forgotten and half bottles of condiments start to take over every shelf. Read on to find out how often you should clean your fridge, plus our all-time tips for a pristine icebox.

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What to Make clean Daily/Weekly

  • To avoid yucky surfaces and bad smells, wipe downwardly the trays and drawers of the fridge at to the lowest degree weekly. It'south a good idea to make it the habit of removing old nutrient and wiping down the interior of your fridge before grocery shopping each week. If your fridge still smells funky, endeavour these deodorizing tips.
  • Attempt to clean up spills daily. Any splashes or drips should be wiped with a damp cloth or sponge as before long as they happen; otherwise you're left with viscid residue that's just going to become harder to remove the longer it sits.
  • Make clean the exterior of your fridge every couple of days. Use your favorite cleaner to remove finger smudges and other spots, paying close attention to the door handles.

What to Clean Occasionally

  • The top of the refrigerator. This area sometimes becomes a dumping ground for random items and a dust bunny haven.
  • Underneath the refrigerator. At least once every couple of months, have someone help yous pull the fridge away from the wall. You'll be surprised to see how muddied the flooring can go that'southward hidden underneath your unit. Requite it a skilful sweep and mop earlier putting the fridge back in place.
  • The door seals. The rubber door seals collect crumbs and spills. Wipe the area with a washcloth dampened with hot water and dish lather, then dry thoroughly.

Deep Cleaning Tips

It's a good thought to deep make clean your fridge at least every couple of months. Here are a few tips to aid the projection forth.

  1. Treat your fridge as you would a messy closet—which means the get-go footstep is emptying information technology entirely to fully assess what tin can stay and what must go. (Apply this guide to check expiration dates.) If you're worried almost spoiling, you can throw the most perishable items in a water ice libation or fifty-fifty in the freezer while yous piece of work.
  2. Wipe downwards the trays and drawers with a sponge and soapy water. Any parts that are removable can be scrubbed in the sink. For particularly viscid messes, endeavour using a magic eraser. When everything is make clean, do a final wipe down with a spray bottle total of diluted vinegar. Information technology will disinfect without adding any harmful chemicals to your food storage surface area.
  3. Put the nutrient dorsum in the refrigerator. Go through every item and discard anything by the expiration date, or any leftovers containers that you can no longer identify. (Yuck!) Wipe down bottles and jars to remove any residue before returning them. By the way, here's how to organize your fridge the right style.
  4. Clean the dust coils. Over time, the condenser coils on your refrigerator can collect grit and debris and will continue your fridge from running efficiently. The coils are usually located under the fridge backside the base grille, on the back of the refrigerator or on the peak of the refrigerator. Unplug the unit of measurement, and use a coil brush or a vacuum attachment to wipe away dust, dirt and pet pilus. A gyre brush is a long, flexible bristled castor that can fit into small difficult-to-reach crevices, and can exist purchased at any hardware shop.

Next: Make sure you're non shortening the life of your fridge.

Originally Published: July 26, 2019