When is the last time you cleaned your refrigerator? It's one of the most commonly used appliances in your kitchen, after all it holds all your food and beverages. Food gets spilled, leftovers get forgotten and half bottles of condiments start to take over every shelf. And according toreaders digest, we don't clean our fridge nearly enough.
They say most of the cleaning should be done daily if not weekly. We discussed exactly what you're supposed to be cleaning how often and some tips to make it easier. We've also shared some of the deep cleaning tips from readers digestbelow.
Deep cleaning tips
It’s a good idea to deep clean your fridge at least every couple of months. Here are a few tips to help the project along.
- Treat your fridge as you would a messy closet—which means the first step isemptying it entirelyto fully assess what can stay and what must go. You should absolutely toss these13 foods you should never, ever eat past the expiration date. If you’re worried about spoiling, you can throw the most perishable items in an ice cooler or even in the freezer while you work.
- Wipe down the trays and drawerswith a sponge and soapy water. Any parts that are removable can be scrubbed in the sink. For particularly sticky messes, try using a magic eraser. When everything is clean, do a final wipe down with a spray bottle full of diluted vinegar. It will disinfect without adding any harmful chemicals to your food storage area.
- Put the food backin the fridge. Go through every item and discard anything past the expiration date or any leftovers containers that you can no longer identify. (Yuck!) Wipe down bottles and jars to remove any residue before returning them. By the way,here’s the right way to organize your fridge.
- Clean the dust coils.Over time, the condenser coils on your fridge can collect dust and debris and will keep your fridge from running efficiently. The coils are usually located under the refrigerator behind the base grille, on the back of the refrigerator or on the top of the refrigerator. Unplug the unit, and use a coil brush or a vacuum attachment to wipe away dust, dirt and pet hair. A coil brush is a long, flexible bristled brush that can fit into small hard-to-reach crevices, and can be purchased at any hardware store.
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