Stainless steel is not actually stainless – it can get dirty just like everything else. The term actually has to do with how it won’t corrode at high temperatures. Regardless, if you have stainless steel appliances in your home and want to make sure they stay pristine, read on! You’ll learn some of the best methods to keep those appliances in top condition. Don’t wonder any longer how to clean stainless steel – just get yourself the materials and get to work!

Best Materials for Cleaning Stainless Steel

Sink
Stainless steel sink. Photo by Brett Hondow on Pixabay.

Often, you’ll be able to quickly wipe down your stainless steel appliance with a cloth, but you might need to do more than that if there are numerous spot, streaks, and smudges. Here are some of the best materials to use to clean stainless steel.

Vinegar and Olive Oil

White vinegar is a great way to disinfect and clean a lot of surfaces, but especially stainless steel. You can add it to a spray bottle with some water and squirt it on your appliance. Then, dip a cloth in a small amount of olive oil and finish the appliance off. The olive oil will remove streaks that were still present that weren’t caught by the vinegar, and it’ll make the appliance shine.

Dish Detergent

Dish detergent that has the ability to remove grease is a good option. You can mix it with warm water as if you were about to wash your dishes, but instead, you wipe down the appliance. Be sure to use another cloth once you’ve wiped everything down to remove any water spots.

Club Soda

Club soda has a lot of cleaning properties[https://www.rd.com/list/club-soda-uses/], so it’s practically no surprise that it can clean stainless steel very well. If you run out of detergent, club soda is a good substitution.

Baking Soda

If your stove is stainless steel, you undoubtedly will have plenty of food smudges from cooking on it. Some foods are difficult to clean off, but if you use a baking soda paste, they’ll be off in no time. Simply mix baking soda with warm water until you get a paste, apply it to the caked-on food, let it sit, and then wipe it off.

Visit the Store

If you don’t want to use any homemade solutions, you can visit the store to buy stainless steel wipes or stainless steel cleaner sprays. If you want to be able to conveniently spritz your stove or fridge after use, keep a spray bottle handle.

Tips for Cleaning Stainless Steel

Don’t use ammonia, bleach, or scouring powders on the surface. They’re extremely abrasive substances and they’ll damage the steel or the finish.

Stainless steel is like wood in that it has grain; for best results, always wipe the surface with the grain and do not go against it.

When possible, use a microfiber cloth to wipe down the stainless steel. It’s also recommended that you use multiple cloths – whatever cloth had the cleaning solution should not be the cloth that wipes the solution away!

We’ll Help Clean Stainless Steel

3 Maids can help clean your stainless steel kitchen appliances and make sure everything is picture perfect! Give us a call today and let us clean your kitchen and appliances so they’re practically like new!