How Often to Wash Your Coffee Pot — and These 7 Other Kitchen Items
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The to-do list stacks up every day. And there’s just so much to clean. (Seriously, how is the sink filled with dirty dishes again?) So no side-eye here if you skip washing some things that are continually used for the same purpose, like your toaster, microwave, or coffee pot.
Indeed, it’s common to simply rinse those items between uses rather than give them a more thorough washing like you would a knife, pot, or bowl. In other words: They’re not that dirty. (Right?!)
If you’ve ever wondered how often small appliances need to be washed at home, we spoke to health experts for the scoop.
Why It’s Important to Wash Kitchen Items You Use for the Same Purpose Between Uses
Of all the rooms you spend the most time in in your home, the kitchen might be the most highly trafficked. “There’s a lot going on in the kitchen,” says Chrysan Cronin, DrPH, MPH, director and associate professor of public health at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Handling raw food (eggs, meat) creates a cross-contamination risk should you then touch the microwave. Dirty dishes in the sink or on countertops also grow germs, she says. All of that can be transferred around to different spots in the kitchen.
Point is, there’s more going on with these same-purpose appliances than we may realize. “Even though we can’t see them, bacteria and other microbes like fungi (molds and yeasts) and viruses are lurking everywhere in our home environment, especially in the kitchen, and may transfer easily to the hands, food, or kitchen utensils, and eventually make their way to your digestive tract,” Cronin explains. Swallowing germs, like salmonella or E. coli, can cause food poisoning, the symptoms of which include diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
8 Kitchen Items to Make Sure You’re Washing Frequently Enough
From your coffee pot to the air fryer, here’s what you need to know about when to wash these common kitchen items and how.
1. Coffee Pot
Coffee comes out piping hot, so why wouldn’t you just rinse the pot at the end of the day and pop it back into place in the coffeemaker for tomorrow morning? “It’s possible for molds and yeasts to form over time in a high moisture environment that can’t necessarily be removed with just hot water,” says Ellen Shumaker, PhD, director of outreach for Safe Plates at North Carolina State University in Raleigh. “Some of these organisms can lead to allergies or possibly other illnesses,” she explains.
Dr. Shumaker recommends reading and following the manufacturer’s direction on your unit. (If you didn’t keep the instruction booklet, you’ll likely be able to find these recommendations on their website.) For instance, Mr. Coffee (which manufactures drip machines and single-cup coffee makers) notes that the coffee maker should be cleaned after each use, which includes the coffee carafe, any reusable coffee filters, and other removable coffee accessories and parts on your machine. You can do this with water and dish soap or placing anything dishwasher-safe in the dishwasher.
The company also advises deep cleaning the unit monthly to improve coffee quality and taste. Again, the directions for doing so will be on the manufacturer’s website. One example is running a 2:1 solution of water to vinegar through the machine to descale.
Shumaker also recommends emptying out the water reservoir and allowing it to dry after each use, which will keep moisture — and the organisms it grows — at bay.
2. Tea Kettle
The same advice above applies to your tea kettle. You may be simply heating up water in it, but the moisture that remains could potentially cause organisms to grow, says Shumaker. Wash out with soap and water and allow to dry thoroughly after each tea time.
RELATED: 8 Teas to Drink for a Healthier Body and Mind
3. Water Bottle
Just 15 percent of Americans clean their reusable water bottles weekly, according to WaterFilterGuru.com. In research by the website, water bottles had more bacteria compared with a kitchen sink, computer mouse, pet bowl, and toilet seat. (It’s important to keep in mind that this research is not peer-reviewed or published.)
How often you wash these depends on how often you use them, says Schumaker. “Bottles that are refilled more frequently are more likely to be contaminated with bacteria due to touching the dispenser, dripping on the outside of the bottle, or through the owner’s hands,” she says. Also, if you fill it with liquids other than water — sports drinks, iced coffee — sugar residues from these could proliferate bacterial growth.
Wash these, again, in soapy water (or a dishwasher, if dishwasher safe) at the end of the day, and allow to air dry.
4. Dishrag or Sponge
The problem with dishrags and sponges is that they’re often used for multiple purposes. One study, published in 2020 in BMC Public Health, looked at students living in a dormitory and found that people used their sponges to clean countertops, the oven, sink, refrigerator, and spills from the floor. As such, when sponges sopped up a variety of messes, they were rife with bacteria, yeasts, and molds.
Dishrags and sponges “are very likely to become contaminated because they are used so often throughout the kitchen and they provide a moist, porous environment where bacteria that can make us sick love to grow,” says Schumaker.
Wash a dishrag or sponge any time they touch any area that had something raw (a cutting board, counter spill, knives), she advises. Disinfect a sponge by running it through a dishwasher cycle or wetting it and microwaving it for one minute. (Dry sponges can catch fire.) A dishrag can be washed in the hot cycle in a washing machine.
5. Blender and Food Processor
Whether you’re whirling up a fruit smoothie for breakfast or pesto in the food processor for a pasta dinner, the blender and food processor must be washed thoroughly — not rinsed — after each use. The place that we often skip is the outside, which is subject to drips and spills. “Like other appliances, leaving any residual drips or food particles can lead to growth of harmful microbes and can result in cross-contamination with hands or food,” Cronin says.
Disassemble the unit as much as you can to find “hidden” spills and drips, she recommends. Then, clean them out thoroughly and carefully — watch the blade — with warm soapy water and a dishcloth. Also clean the outside of the bowl and the base.
6. Microwave
Ever notice how microwaves tend not to evenly cook food? That’s a clue that the microwave doesn’t always heat things up to hot enough temperatures for decontamination, says Cronin. “Any food remaining inside may be vulnerable to bacterial contamination and may cross-contaminate any subsequent food that’s microwaved,” she says. Preventing splatters and splashes is important, so cover your food before microwaving. Otherwise, wipe down spills when they happen and then wipe the inside and door (don’t forget the handle and buttons!) with a mixture of dish soap and water weekly, Cronin recommends.
7. Air Fryer
The basket of an air fryer is what touches food, so that needs to be cleaned after each use, but so does the air fryer “drawer.” This prevents grease or food crumbs from going rancid within, says Cronin. Plus, she says, “The temperature in the air fryer gets hot, but not always hot enough to kill every microbe, so washing it after using is a must.”
Depending on their size and the manufacturer’s instructions, you may be able to wash the basket and drawer in the dishwasher. If not, clean it out with warm soapy water and a paper towel or clean dishcloth, Cronin recommends.
8. Toaster
Your toaster only holds toast or frozen waffles, so what’s the big deal? It’s the crumbs. “The problem is generally not inside the toaster since the heating coils get hot enough to kill off pathogens,” says Cronin. However, accumulating crumbs present another risk — and that’s they can start burning if there are too many. Plus, there’s always the risk of cross-contamination if you’re, for example, making eggs while popping toast in. She recommends wiping the outside and handle of the toaster after each use to get rid of any food residue or spills and bacteria from hands. Dish soap and water on a paper towel or clean dish cloth will get the job done. As for those crumbs, most toasters nowadays have a crumb tray. Simply unplug your unit, pull out the crumb tray at the bottom of your toaster and empty it into the garbage can. Wash with soap and water, dry, and pop back in. Easy as toast. (That’s the saying, right?)
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