Have you ever wondered, "When was the last time I cleaned that kitchen sponge?" or "How dirty is that sponge, really?" I use my kitchen sponge to wash dishes and wipe down the counters, and a couple years ago I hit upon my method to keep it from becoming a smelly mess when I forget to clean it.My solution is to use two new sponges: one sponge goes in the dishwasher right away (in one of the silverware compartments), and the other goes behind the sink. Then every time I empty the dishwasher, I switch the sponge on the sink with the one in the dishwasher, so the sponge gets washed at least once a day. Without a sponge to pull out of the dishwasher, I forget to wash the sponge in the sink; but when I have to pull the sponge out of the dishwasher, it reminds me to put the "old" one in the dishwasher to be cleaned.
When they get old, I start again with two new sponges. That works for me, I hope it works for you!
9 comments:
what a great idea! i am going to try it... thanks!!!!
great solution to my sponge problem! i prefer a sponge to a dish 'rag' but don't like thinking that they are a place for germs to fester and grow. great tip!!!
Loving this ttip! Thank you.
I do that too, although I'm more of a "use the sponge once" kind of person. So I have several sponges, and they go next to the dirty dishes waiting to be loaded when they've been used.
I totally love this idea. Thanks for the super tip! I always put my dish brushes in the dishwasher, but I never thought about putting sponges in there.
Martie
Great tip! I usually microwave my sponge for 2 minutes each night, but I love the 2-sponge idea!
Great idea...if only we had a dishwasher!
Remember that the water has to get to a certain temperature to kill that bacteria most dishwashers do not have sanitation cycles.
"Use a cellulose sponge with no metal parts. To kill 99% of bacteria on the sponge, rinse it to remove detergent and other chemicals, soak it fully with
water, and place it in a microwave oven. Heat for two minutes at 1,000 watts. Remove hot sponge carefully. Repeat daily. Replace the sponge every week or so."
source:
FACS Page Vol. 11 No. 2 October,2007
www.oznet.ksu.edu/gove/_EzWeb/Newsletters/320090.pdf
Thanks for all your kind comments. Sunshine, I'm counting on the soap in the dishwasher and the washing action of the water to make the sponge clean. I also have a "hot wash" cycle and a "heated dry" cycle, but I'm mostly counting on the soap.
I've used the microwave method before and the sponge often still smells afterwards, but it always passes the smell test after the dishwasher.
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