Maintaining Kitchen Cabinets
Posted on: September 17, 2022
Maintaining Kitchen Cabinets: 7 Expert Tips
Kitchen cabinets aren’t the cheapest items in the kitchen; in fact, while investing in one, we actively look for something durable because we want it worth the investment. Yet, with daily use, the cabinets are likely to become dull with years of oil and grease accumulation.
But there are always ways to maintain your kitchen cabinets. Ways to keep it shiny and new can take some time and effort every day. Here are 7 tips from experts that will help you maintain your kitchen –
1. Take some extra time to clean your kitchen cabinet everyday
Pretty sure everyone cleans wipes of easy-to-see dirt off the cabinet when they see it, and occasional cleaning too. But what your kitchen cabinet requires is regular or daily cleaning properly.
Different types of kitchen cabinets require different types of cleaning. For example, if you have designer or patterned cabinets or other parts, then using a brush with a cleaning solution is a must. And if your kitchen have wooden cabinets, you can use a soft and damp cloth to clean them every day. Metal cabinets can be cleaned easily with cleaning spray and wiped off the dirt. It is also important that you don’t forget to clean the handles and hinges.
Regular cleaning ensures that no dirt becomes stubborn the next day or the day after the next day, you will use extra force to clean it.
2. Check if your kitchen cabinet is dust free or not
If you are installing new cabinets, the best thing to do before installation is to keep them dust free. Of course, this doesn’t guarantee that after installation, it will be dust free as well. Even after installation, it is important to keep both the interior and exterior of the cabinets dust free,
But dusting is not an easy job either. One who does this quite often knows how to dust the hard-to-reach spots, but it’s all about being smart. You can avoid dusting and still have dust free cabinet. This simple process involves the use of wax papers. You can use wax paper to line the tops of the cabinets or the interior part of the cupboards. So, whenever the dust forms, it will be collected on the wax paper rather than directly on the cabinet surfaces.
You can easily take on the wax paper, and you will have a dust-free surface. You can redo the process then.
3. Say goodbye to harsh cleaners
The urge to use robust or harsh cleaners when you see stubborn dirt on your kitchen cabinet is strong. But we recommend that you avoid using harsh cleaners. Cabinets, especially those that are made with wood, are finished with varnishes or lacquers, and with continued use of harsh cleaners, they will expose the underlying wood to damage.
And there’s no point in using harsh cleaners anyway. You can do well with some dishwashing liquid to get rid of grimes, even the most stubborn ones. But of course, you will need to be consistent and patient while cleaning it.
4. Install them in a place away from direct sunlight
Cooking in an open space or in natural sunlight might be something you desire. Or sometimes direct sunlight might add an aesthetic to your kitchen, but if you want your kitchen cabinet’s durability intact, then avoiding direct sunlight is the wisest for you.
Direct sunlight is something homeowners want to avoid, especially if your kitchen cabinet is made of wood. Sometimes sunlight can damage the laminated surface or thermal foil, or sometimes it can even damage the paint.
But if you cannot shift your cabinet to a different place from a direct sunlight place, one way is, you can always use some thick drapes to cover your window or doors.
5. Keep your cabinets away from moisture
Moisture, just like sunlight, is another factor that can damage your kitchen cabinets gradually. This moisture can come from the kitchen itself – as cooking creates humidity in the interiors. But sinks, refrigerators, dishwashers, etc., contribute to the moisture as well.
And constant moisture can cause damage to your kitchen cabinets – mostly the finish at first.
If you are looking to avoid moisture, some of the tips you can follow are avoiding damp dishcloth draping over the cabinet doors or not cleaning away moisture or water from the utensils. Apart from these, keeping every component of your kitchen moisture free is something you can consider as long as it is possible.
Most of the time, moisture results in the discoloration of the kitchen cabinet surfaces.
6. Keep your kitchen cabinets away from high temperature
Heat or direct exposure to heat can be harmful to most of the components in your kitchen, and kitchen cabinets are one of them. But kitchens are places where heat emission is unavoidable. Apart from using gas stoves, self-cleaning ovens or chimneys also highly contribute to heat and can damage your cabinet doors.
If you want to avoid these, keep your appliances away from the cabinets. This way, the heat cannot directly affect the cabinets.
7. Have you ever thought of deep cleaning
When we talked about regular cleaning, it was also about normal cleaning. A regular cleaning process will involve something like a soft cloth with soft cleaning solutions, which pretty much does the job. But sometimes, you skip regular cleaning, or you don’t have that kind of time, which is why deep cleaning your kitchen cabinets or your kitchen in general once in a while makes sense.
But don’t forget to prepare your kitchen well before the deep cleaning.
Conclusion
Keeping your kitchen cabinet clean and its durability intact is like a chore, especially with regular cleaning, but it is also important. To make your job easier, invest in some preferred quality cleaning solutions or brushes.
