Stainless Steel Sinks
Moms View Message Board: General Discussion: Archive April 2004:
Stainless Steel Sinks
I'm cleaning my kitchen and my sink is really dirty looking. I have a stainless steel sink. I cleaned it, but I can't get it to look really shiny. I tried babyoil, but it doesn't last long, about a couple of days. Does anyone have anything that they use to keep their sinks SHINY and PRETTY.
I do it the Fly Lady way... It really works, I have an old stainless steel sink.
Shiny Sink 101
Many members have asked "How do I clean my sink until it shines?". So, just for you, we have posted FlyLady's "Shiny Sink 101" essay. Here's to a great shine!
Note: Follow this procedure the first time you shine your sink. You do NOT need to follow this method everyday. Just keep up the shine with a little window cleaner.
Dear Friends,
I want you to smile from ear to ear when you gaze upon your shiny sink.
I have heard every excuse in the world. Even old sinks can look new again with a little elbow grease.
Here is how you do it:
BE SURE AND RINSE WELL BETWEEN EACH STEP OF THE WAY!
Take all the dishes out of the sink.
Run some very hot water into the sink. Fill to the rim. Only do one side at a time. Then, pour a cup of household bleach into the hot water. Let it sit for 1 hour. Now, pull the plug with a pair of tongs. If you don't have tongs, then scoop some of the water out of the sink into the other sink and use your hand to pull the plug (wear gloves and don't get the bleach-water on your clothes).
Rinse your sink well.
Use some cleanser (Comet, Ajax, or Baking Soda) and scrub your sink. Ensure you rinse ALL of the cleanser from the sink.
Take a sharp edge and clean around the rim of the sink, just like you would clean dirt out from under your fingernails.
Clean around the faucets too. You may need an old toothbrush or dental floss.
Now, get out your window cleaner, I use Windex, and give it a good shine.
If you still don't like the way it looks, then you could try some car wax. Just know in your heart that you have cleaned it very well now and it doesn't have to be perfect. Our perfectionism is what got us in this situation in the first place.
Every time you run water in your sink, take your clean dishtowel and dry it out (I lay out a clean one, every night with my before bedtime routine). Before you know it, you will be doing this everytime you leave your kitchen. The rest of the family will too. No more water spots. You will have a clean and shiny sink.
Don't have a fit if someone doesn't take as much pride in your sink as you do. It is very easy to fix. You have already done the hard part. You will never have to go through this process again. Daily maintenance will keep it looking this way all the time. Nasty hurtful word are not as easy to repair. Just be sure and tell your family what you are trying to do. They will think you have gone crazy.
If you don't have a dishwasher, don't worry. A dishwasher is just a dirty dish disposal. Clean out a place under your sink and put a dishpan in there. Teach your family, that instead of putting their dirty dishes and glasses in the sink, place them into the dish pan. Get into the habit of putting your dishes away as soon as they have been washed and are dry. No more leaving the dish drying rack on the counter or in the sink. Put it away under the sink when you have finished. If your old one is nasty, you may want to soak it in the sink full of bleach water at the same time you soak the sink or go buy a new set.
To insure that your family remembers this, put a note in the sink. It will get their attention and remind them where to put the dishes. Be patient! They have never been taught either. It is going to take some practice.
Now if you have a stainless steel sink, I recommend all of the above directions with one extra instruction added: after you soak your sink, rinse well, and use SOS pads to scrub it. This will buff the finish. It will look like new.
If you still can't get it to shine after the Windex, put a light coat of lemon oil or olive oil on it. I mean just a tiny bit on a cloth and rub it. This will make you smile. Some people have had very good results from Bar Keepers Friend.
Go Shine Your Sink!
FlyLady
An easier trick I found was a little bit of dishwasher detergent and an old cloth plus a little elbow grease bleached the dingy spots right out of my sink. Vinegar also can add a shine afterwards.
Or my contractor/builder recommends standard stainless steel sink cleaner.
Kaboom or Lime Away. Spray, leave, wipe and shine. Then you can use something called Stainless Steel Magic. I have a stainless sink and stove and oven, so I go through a lot of it.
Also, wipe up the water each time the top of your sink gets wet, and the shine will last longer.
When I moved into this house the sink looked older than it's 30 years. Now, it looks brand new. Happy cleaning.
Ame
My mother is fanatical about drying her stainless steel sink after she is done using it! It does look nice, though, even the one in the house where she lived over 20 years.
I use Brillo on the old sink on the third floor. It sparkles like new.
Thank you ladies I am going to try all of what you said and see what works best. I tried to find a stainless steel cleaner at the Super Target by my house and I couldn't find one. Is there a name of a cleaner that does this or does it say stainless steel cleaner on the bottle?
I use Stainless Steel Magic, made by Magic American Corporation. www.magicamerican.com I got it at Bed, Bath & Beyond. Also, if you have hard water, get Kaboom or Lime Away to clean the mineral deposits.
I tried the Fly Lady way posted above. My stainless steel sink is BEAUTIFUL now!!! We just bought this house about 7 months ago and have never been happy about the look of my sink. Now it looks like new! The people who lived here before us lived here 27 years and the house is much older than that. I don't think anyone had cleaned it in ages.
It did take quite a bit of elbow grease, even with the SOS pads but it was well worth it!!
Mara, you're in the same boat I'm in. We bought our house in '86. The original part of the house was built in 1902 or earlier,no one knows.
Anyway, our sink look really sad until I tried this! You wouldn't believe this but with fly lady, I don't even use the dishwasher. I think it takes too long (we have 5 people in our family and a lot of dishes). With a clean sink, I don't mind doing the dishes.
I'm glad that worked for you. I really wouldn't have the initiative to scrub the sink. I admire your ambition. My philosophy is the less elbow grease the better. That's why I like cleaners that work, so you don't have to.
I'm really glad you're happy with your sink now. Somehow it makes the whole kitchen look immaculate when your sink just gleams!
Ame
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