What Products & Tools Do I Need to Clean a Kitchen?
There’s a term in cooking called “mis en place” which means, everything in its place. Or, everything has been gathered. Part of this, is having a clean kitchen before the cooking starts. Additionally, this term applies to the cleaning itself.
To ensure cleaning success, source the right products and tools. Lack of proper products or tools can lead to burnout, frustration, and simply throwing in the towel before you’ve even begun.
Specifically for kitchen cleaning, the products and tools you’ll need is quite simple. These are tested, tried, and true products that my team and I used at my pro cleaning service for 15+ years to clean thousands of kitchens. Let’s dive in.
All Purpose Spray
A good all purpose spray can be a daily staple for kitchen cleanups in between meals and regular use. It’s not necessarily something that I use in deeper kitchen cleaning unless I need to soak an area such as a really dirty stovetop or the interior of a microwave or fridge to help loosen dirt + debris. Nevertheless, this is a great product to keep readily on hand, to be used frequently.
⭐️ The Tidy People All Purpose Spray
Dish Soap
Dish soap is the BEST deep cleaning product, when diluted with water and used in tandem with cleaning towels. Check out this science of soap article that breaks down WHY this is the most effective approach. I recommend this method to clean the majority of surfaces in the kitchen such as countertops, walls, backsplashes, stovetop, cupboards, dishes, and so on.
🧼 try this eco friendly dish soap by Ecos
Terry Cloth Cleaning Towels
Terry cloth cleaning towels are by far the most superior towel to use when cleaning.
Here’s why: they’re super absorbent, leave little to no residue behind (when used properly), and have little micro scrubbers in the terry cloth loops. They work well as both a wet soapy towel or as a super dry glass cleaning towel. Instead of managing all sorts of different types of towels for cleaning, you really only need this one type. All you need is a towel management system.
🧺 try these terry cloth towels by Simpli-Magic
Baking Soda or Cream Cleanser
If you have a porcelain sink, you’ll need some sort of micro scrubber ingredient that will clean the pores of the sink to help lift dirt + debris. Baking soda or a cream cleanser will have this affect. I recommend squirting dish soap in the basin of the sink and then add a sprinkling of baking soda. Add a little water with a dish brush and scrub.
🌬️ try this baking soda for cleaning, OR,
💦 try this cream cleanser
Dish Brush
A dish brush is used for just this: to scrub/hand wash any dishes or other removable parts to the kitchen such as the microwave plate, etc. A dish brush can also aid in the scrubbing process of a kitchen sink. Especially if you have a porcelain sink, the bristles will help clean the pores of the sink to lift dirt + debris.
🪥 try this natural fiber dish brush set
Mineral Oil
Depending on your kitchen set up, you may or may not need mineral oil. It’s best used as a stainless steel polish.
Before polishing, ensure stainless steel surfaces have been wiped down with a soapy towel. Then, immediately dry and buffer the surface with another fresh, super dry clean towel.
To apply polish, pour the mineral oil on a fresh towel. Then, wipe with the grain of the stainless steel (the same direction as the stainless steel lines). This can also work really well after a stainless steel sink has been scrubbed, rinsed, and buffered dry.
Another use: recondition cutting boards and other wood surfaces in the kitchen that may have lost its moisture.
⭐️ try this mineral oil, which is food grade and safe for surfaces in the kitchen
Glass Cleaner
Using a good glass cleaner at the end of your kitchen cleaning is a nice finishing touch. In addition to cleaning any obvious glass surfaces such as a glass cupboards, mirrors, or entry/exit glass doors, there’s a few other purposes.
Glass cleaner can be used for the fronts of appliances, such as the microwave or the front of the oven. Lastly, it can be used a final spray on the stove top (after it’s been wiped with a soapy towel, then buffered with a dry towel). The glass cleaner will help cut through any remaining grease or film to give you a sparkling clean stovetop.
✨ try the tidy people Glass Cleaner
Hard Floor Vacuum or Broom
Basic, but if you’re just gathering supplies as a new adult and are living in your first space OR if you’re moving into a new home and need to gather supplies, this is a must have. I’ve added broom under this category, as it’s a tool that’s more easily accessible than a hard floor vacuum. But, if you have the means to invest in a floor vacuum, this replaces the function of a broom. It’s more hypoallergenic as it will pick up dust particles vs. a broom that pushes dust particles back up and into the air.
☁️ try the cordless Dyson Gen5 Detect or the Hoover Backpack Vacuum
Floor Cleaner
Lastly, the finishing touch is mopping the floors. Once you vacuum or sweep the floors in the final steps of cleaning the kitchen, you’ll need a super concentrated floor cleaner that will get diluted with water in a bucket.
⚡️ try the tidy people Floor Cleaner which has notes of vetiver and tangerine. Safe for all floor types.
Bucket
Dilute your floor cleaner in a bucket and dip a few terry cloth cleaning towels to hand mop the floors. For more detailed instructions on how to hand mop your floor, check out the Hand Mopping Guide.
🪣 try this 10 quart bucket
Knee Pads
To move with ease, use a pair of knee pads — it can make all the difference! Especially when scrubbing the lower parts of the kitchen, such as the lower cupboards, baseboards, floors, etc.
🌬️ try these super soft knee pads by Troxell
Products List
⭐️ The Tidy People All Purpose Spray
🧼 ecos dish soap
🌬️ baking soda OR cream cleanser
⭐️ food grade mineral oil
✨ The Tidy People Glass Cleaner
⚡️ The Tidy People Floor Cleaner
Tools List
🧺 terry cloth towels by Simpli-Magic
🌬️ super soft knee pads by Troxell
🪥 natural fiber dish brush set
☁️ Dyson Gen5 Detect or the Hoover Backpack Vacuum
🪣 10 quart bucket
