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Kitchen drains can be a pain to clean because they are where food scraps, oil, and waste can accumulate and smell.
However, if kitchen drains are not cleaned, they can cause food poisoning and bad odors. Here, we will introduce how to clean kitchen drains, recommended detergents, and points to prevent stains.
Don’t Leave Your Kitchen Drains Dirty!
We explain why kitchen drains are sloppy, slimy, dirty, and smelly, the causes of stains, the disadvantages of neglecting them, and recommended detergents.
Types of Stains
Kitchen drain stains are caused by food scraps, grease from cooking, and detergent scraps.
Food scraps are prone to bacteria growth, and the stains quickly become slimy.
Oil stains also stick to the drains, and when they harden, they can stick to the drains and cause blockages.
Even the detergent used to wash these stains mixes with the dirt and becomes a stain called soap scum, causing the drain to become dirty.
What Happens if Dirt is Left Untreated?
As mentioned above, the kitchen is a moist place with great food scraps, which can be a breeding ground for bacteria.
In the summer, just allowing food scraps to accumulate in the drain for two or three days can quickly lead to decay, resulting in pinkish slime.
If the drain is dirty, the water that bounces off it when food is washed can get on it and cause food poisoning.
If kitchen drains are left unattended, the odor can be particularly bad, so it is essential to clean them frequently.
Alkaline detergent is recommended for kitchen drain stains.
Many kitchen stains are acidic, so cleaning with an alkaline detergent is recommended.
However, water stains are alkaline stains, so use acidic detergents.
This applies to baking soda, sesqui-carbonate soda, oxygen bleach, and chlorine bleach.
How to Clean Kitchen Drains
This is a step-by-step guide on how to clean kitchen drains. How far do you have to go to clean them? Some may think, “How far do I have to go?” Please do it at least once weekly using the method we introduce.
(1) Ventilate
When cleaning kitchen drains, it is necessary to use chlorine bleach such as Haiter or remove the drain trap.
Since bad odors may be emitted during this process, turn on the exhaust fan at the beginning.
(2) Clean the drainage plate and trash receptacle
There are two ways to clean them, so please use whichever detergent you prefer.
First, remove the drainage plate and throw away the garbage accumulated in the garbage receptacle.
Method using baking soda and citric acid
Wet the drain plate, trash receptacle, and drain trap with water, and sprinkle baking soda evenly over them.
Sprinkle citric acid on top so that baking soda to citric acid is about 1:1 or 2:1.
Sprinkle a small amount of water over the area to make it fizz, and let it sit for about an hour.
Rinse with water and scrub off areas that have not been cleaned with a toothbrush or sponge.
Finally, make sure to rinse off the water thoroughly so that no detergent remains.
How to use Haiter
Spray Haiter on the drain plate, waste basket, and drain trap.
Leave it for the time indicated (5 minutes for kitchen foam Haiter).
Rinse thoroughly with water to ensure that no detergent remains.
(3) Cleaning Drains
Use either baking soda, citric acid, or Haiter to clean drains.
The method is the same as (2), but be careful if you have already used citric acid.
Chlorine bleach such as Haiter and acid detergents such as citric acid is very dangerous because they produce toxic fumes when mixed.
To prevent the citric acid from remaining in the water, flush the drain thoroughly before using Haiter or clean the drain on a new day.
(4) Clean the drainpipe
Dirty drainpipes can also cause foul odors from drains, so it is necessary to use a detergent to wash these items.
(5) Run plenty of hot water at 60°C
Finally, pour plenty of hot water down the drain and drainpipe.
Hot water dissolves oil and detergents, so fill the sink to the brim with hot water with the intention of thoroughly washing away any remaining dirt.
Fill the drain with a towel or something to prevent the hot water from running down the drain, and fill the sink with 60°C hot water.
When the sink is filled to the brim, pull it out and flush it down the drain. Hot water above 60°C can damage drainpipes made of plastic material.
Also, the protein will harden, causing dirt to stick to the drain and clog it, so please keep the water temperature to a minimum!
If Your Kitchen Drains Are Dirty and Smelly, It’s Time to Replace Them
If your kitchen drains are dirty, clogged, and smelly, it may be time to consider replacing the drain trap.
Duskin’s drain trap replacement service replaces the plastic traps and waste receptacles with stainless steel traps that are resistant to stains and easier to clean.
You were no more sticking your hands into dirty drains to clean them!
Tips for Preventing Kitchen Drains From Getting Dirty
Here are four tips for preventing kitchen drains.
Simple things you can do every day to prevent your drains from getting dirty, so you can always have a clean kitchen!
Put aluminum foil in the waste basket.
Charging rolled-up aluminum foil in the waste receptacle generates metal ions, preventing the drains from becoming slime-covered.
Roll up aluminum foil to the size of a marble and place about three pieces in the basket.
The key is to roll the aluminum foil softly, not tightly.
It is time to replace the foil if you notice slime or a bad smell. Roll it up and put it in again!
Throw out the garbage every day
Throw away food scraps accumulated in the waste receptacle basket daily.
Especially in the summer, bacteria can quickly multiply, and you may smell a bad odor overnight.
Just keeping this area clean every day will make a big difference in the cleanliness of your kitchen.
Use a drain net or something similar to make it easier to clean.
Run hot water at the end of washing dishes
Running hot water at 60°C (140°F) down the drain after washing dishes is also effective.
Use the hot water to thoroughly remove the day’s dirt from the drains to the drainpipes.
If you have water bottles or other items to soak, fill the sink with hot water, dissolve OxyClean (oxygen bleach), and leave it to soak.
That will clean the dishes, the sink, the drain, and the drainpipe!
Clean Regularly
When we researched how often to clean kitchen drains, we found that everyone cleans them once a week and every three days in the summer to keep them clean.
We cook many dishes with oil, and if we clean the drains once a week, they get dirty and take a long time to clean, so we wash all the drains daily.
Thanks to this, the drains and sinks are all squeaky clean and shiny, just like the dishes.
If you have five minutes to spare after washing dishes, I recommend that you clean them while you are at it.
Even though I clean every day, I run a drain cleaner down the drain once a week to clean it.
Let’s regularly clean in a way that fits your lifestyle and is easy to do, and keep your drains clean!
Conclusion
Kitchen drains tend to become slimy and sludgy and smell bad, making cleaning a chore. However, with the methods we have introduced, you can clean them without getting your hands dirty!
If you clean not only the drains but also the drainpipes, you can keep them clean even in places you can’t see!
Kitchens are where bacteria can quickly multiply, so chlorine-based detergents are often used. Still, you can clean them cleanly enough with natural detergents that are friendly to people and the environment, so try using baking soda, citric acid, or bio-based detergents.
Please refer to the tips for keeping kitchen drains clean, and always have a clean kitchen to do your chores with a good feeling!
