5 Secrets For a Shiny Sink
Sinks in kitchens and bathrooms alike can too easily become unsightly over time, as food particles and blotches of tea, coffee or juice build up in the kitchen sink while toothpaste blobs and makeup spills – among possibly many other things – accumulate in the bathroom sink.
Hence, you should not only wipe down a sink with a damp cloth or a cleaning wipe daily but also undertake a deeper clean of that sink roughly once a week – following these tips along the way...
Consider what material the sink is made from
You should avoid using abrasive cleaners or scouring pads on a ceramic or porcelain sink, as you could otherwise risk scratching the surface, Better Homes & Gardens warns.
If your sink comprises natural stone, it’d be wise to clean it using just a mild dish detergent and water. You should do likewise with a metal sink, such as a stainless steel, copper or bronze one, and clean it only gently – lest you potentially scratch the material by accident.
Let the cleaning water itself do the work
One reliable hack for thoroughly cleaning a sink involves filling it with a few inches of hot water before adding either some dish detergent or a cup or two of white vinegar.
Leave that water sitting for at least ten minutes and then drain the sink. Subsequently, you could use a dry cloth to wipe off the sink and any water left on it. Vinegar’s acidity enables it to easily cut through lime deposits and soap scum.
Scrub your basin to remove anything still left there
The TikTok-based cleaning influencer Jade Saine advises, as noted by the Express, that you mix baking soda and washing-up liquid together to form a paste. With a paintbrush, you can then apply this paste all over the sink before letting the smeared substance rest for ten minutes.
You should then scrub away this mixture with a damp sponge, like one of our super-absorbent sponge blocks, before washing any remains right down the plughole.
Pay special attention to the sink drain
Food particles and other debris can easily accumulate here, rendering the drain ineffective. That’s why you should set aside time to remove the drain stopper, rid it of any debris clinging there and then rinse the stopper before putting it back where it was.
Doing this can help you to ward off the emergence of unpleasant smells, as these would originate from the increasing growth of bacteria left untouched in the drain.
If water drains slowly, act to unblock the sink
If the water level in your sink only goes down slowly when you are attempting to drain it, the likeliest culprit is something having congealed in the pipes, hindering the easy flow of water through them.
This build-up can also trap food debris, worsening the problem. Therefore, before you end up with a total blockage, you should remove the stopper and, by dangling the end of a wire hanger down those pipes, dislodge as much of the clog in them as possible.