How often should you clean dishwashing tools

Keep bacteria away by ensuring regular washes or changes of your sponges and cloths.

Regular house cleaning is important to keeping your home clean and bacteria free.

Whether you hire a cleaner to clean or go the DIY route, one area that shouldn’t be overlooked is the kitchen — in particular, the instruments used to clean dishes and appliances.

Most of us associate dishwashing products and tools with cleanliness in the home, but a failure to replace old tools can actually spread bacteria, reduce cleanliness and negatively impact the overall health of you and your family members.

Failing to properly clean and regularly replace your dishwashing tools can result in very serious problems, it's important to practice maintenance and more frequent replacement of these tools to ensure a healthy and clean environment.

Here's a quick reference guide on how often you should clean or replace the tools you use to clean your dishes.

Daily Tips to Keep Your Kitchen Clean

Whether hiring a house cleaning professional or doing it yourself, consider these tips to keep your kitchen tidy.

Sponge

One of the most common culprits of bacteria buildup is the kitchen sponge. Determining when to replace your sponges will depend on how often you use them to wash the dishes. If you wash the dishes at least once a day, then you should replace your sponge at least once a month.

In keeping with this frequency, try to replace sponges after 30 uses. To maintain cleanliness in between replacements, you can place your sponge in the dishwasher with your other dishes each time you run the cycle. If you don't have a dishwasher, you can wash your sponge in hot water and bleach to kill any residual bacteria.

Cloth

Cloths or dishcloths should also be replaced about every month or after about 30 uses. Sponges are often considered to be more susceptible to bacteria, but dishcloths can be just as bad. They both share similarly moist and warm environments that are ideal for bacterial growth.

There is no hygienic reason to choose a dishcloth over a sponge, though it’s easier to clean a dishcloth than replace a sponge. To clean dishcloths, simply wash them in the washing machine.

Be sure to use bleach and hot water for the ultimate effect. You can also eliminate bacteria through heat exposure by hanging dishcloths in the sun to dry or by running them through the dryer.

More cleaning tips to make your household chores easier: Wash your cleaning cloths on the hottest washer and dryer settings.

Brush

Of the dishwashing tools mentioned, brushes are actually the most hygienic choice. Brushes are easier to clean and have faster drying times, which makes them less appealing environments for bacteria. Clean them by tossing the dishwasher-safe models in the dishwasher.

You also can soak the bristles of the brush in vinegar for a couple of hours and then rinse it off with hot water. This will help loosen any remaining debris and kill any leftover bacteria.

Clean your cleaning supplies

Applying these simple cleaning techniques and replacing your dishwashing tools according to the advice given will result in a happier and healthier environment for your kitchen.

At Yenza we use your cleaning tools - hence there is not cross contamination of cleaning supplies or bacteria or disease.

Keep Your Cleaning Supplies Clean

Even the tidiest of households hide dirty little secrets.

Need help with the housekeeping? Or just need help with a regular cleaner ... flow our links to find out how we can help.

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