How to Use Kitchen Sponges and Dishrags
- 1). Fill a sink with warm, soapy water, and wash dishes with a dishrag or sponge. Most people in the United States own a dishwasher, but may still wash some dishes by hand, such as fragile glassware, bulky pots and pans, or very dirty bakeware. Rinse the dishes and allow them to air-dry before putting them away. Add 1 tsp. chlorine bleach to the dishwater to kill germs, especially if someone in your home is ill.
- 2). Wipe down cabinets and countertops with a dishrag or sponge. Spray the counter tops with an all-purpose, household cleaning product if you wish, or use a disinfecting product if you were cutting meat on the counter. Clean this area last, or use paper towels to wipe up juices from raw meat. Otherwise, you may contaminate the dishrag or sponge and spread bacteria to other parts of the kitchen.
- 3). Wipe appliances as well, such as the dishwasher, refrigerator and stove. Occasionally clean appliances with glass cleaner and paper towels or soft cloths to remove streaks.
- 4). Rinse the dishrag or sponge, and place it to dry at the kitchen sink. Wash the dishrag in a washing machine every day to remove harmful bacteria. Place the sponge in a microwave oven daily, and heat it for one minute to kill bacteria. Other methods of disinfecting sponges include washing them in the dishwasher, and soaking them in a chlorine bleach solution, but heating them in the microwave destroys the most bacteria, according to the University of Arkansas. Use care when removing sponges from the microwave, because they will be very hot.
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