Spring cleaning: kitchen cabinets

Toronto is still in the icy grip of winter, but February is drawing to a close and spring is just around the corner – no better time than now to get a head start on your spring cleaning. Over the winter our homes are generally closed up and tend to gather in all of the dust, pet dander, cobwebs and clutter than we don’t have the wherewithal to tackle when the sun sets at 4pm. However, with the days getting longer and the promise of warmer weather tantalisingly close, it makes sense to start getting your home in order for the summer.

The best place to start your Toronto home spring cleaning is in your kitchen. One of the most heavily used areas of any home is the kitchen and with high traffic, cooking and baking, it is no wonder that after a season of use it can stand a good cleaning.

Start by emptying your cupboards – one at a time, and triaging the contents. Keep only those items that you use on a daily/weekly or monthly basis. The one-off items that you use occasionally when making special dishes should be put away in a store room or garage. Before putting away the contents of the cupboard make sure to clean them first using a grease cutting soap and hot water and dry with a clean cloth. Repeat with each cupboard and then move on to the drawers.

Once the interior of the kitchen is washed, it is time to tackle the exterior of your cabinets. Again, use a good greasing cutting detergent (even citrus essential oils are excellent at grease-cutting) with hot water. Clean each cabinet and wipe dry. For the hardware and fixtures it is best to mix 1 part vinegar to 1 part hot water as it will leave them sparkling and shiny without a film. If you have any glass, you can use the vinegar/water solution and dry with a newspaper for a streak-free finish – but be careful around the edges of the cabinets as the ink from the newsprint can transfer onto the cabinets themselves. Be sure to only use the newsprint to dry glass.

After your cabinets are sparkling, it is time to tackle your appliances. Unless they are built-in to your decor it is best to pull your appliances out of their resting places and clean behind them before next washing their exterior surfaces and then moving to the inside. If your stove doesn’t have a self-cleaning function, you can use commercially available over cleaners. The same holds true with refrigerators and microwaves – although these appliances can also simply be washed using soap and water.

When you have spruced up your kitchen, it will give you the boost you need to tackle every other room in your home – and make cooking that much more enjoyable.