In part one we organized the cabinets, drawers, pantry and gave them a good wipe down. In part two-we're going to tackle the rest of the kitchen.
For this project you will need mop, broom , rags, scrubbie, empty spray bottle and plain old dishwashing liquid. Add a little dishwashing liquid (less than you should use to do dishes) to the bottle and dilute with water. Use the same way you would use an all purpose cleaner.
Green or not, dishwashing liquid is really all you need to clean your kitchen. Regardless of what the media tells you, Bleach and Lysol are not cleaning products. They are disinfectants. This is another rant for another day...let's get cleaning shall we?
*note* If you have stainless steel finish appliances NEVER use a scrubbie on them. It will cause noticable scratches. You can shine your stainless fixtures with a little olive oil on a rag.
Oven-if you are lucky enough to have a self cleaning oven, turn it on and let it do it's thing. Usually takes 3-4 hours and I don't recommend doing this on a hot day. If you don't have a self cleaning oven, you have 3 options-green,not green or not getting cleaned. Before using either cleaning option, you have to wipe all the loose crud out of the oven.
Oven cleaner-even the fume free kind is not green. If you are using oven cleaner, it's best to spray the oven the night before. The longer it sits, the easier it is to wipe out.
Green oven cleaning-make a paste out of baking soda and water-unfortunately this doesn't do so well in a spray bottle so you have to apply it by hand. Let it sit overnight.
For really tough baked on ick, use a scrubbie, scraper or butter knife.
Stove-remove drip pans, grates and knobs. Let soak in warm sudsy water. Spray the stovetop and let it sit. Wipe down the hood, front and sides and the immediate floor area of the stove. By now the gunk on the stovetop should have loosened enough to wipe away. If it hasn't, give it a light scrub then respray and let it sit for about 10 minutes.
Counters and countertop appliances-wipe the counters, backsplash, appliances and underneath the appliances. If you didn't do your cabinet fronts when you cleaned out the cabinets, now's the time to give 'em a good wipe down. If you did, at least give the cabinets front a touch up clean.
Wipe down the top, sides, front and floor area surrounding the fridge. While you're at it, remove all those magnets and toss a few...or most...or all.
Clean the stove parts in the sink and replace. Clean the sink area and drain the water.
Sweep & mop floors. Shine sink fixtures with a dry rag.
Congrats! Your kitchen is clean!
