Sticky hands, cooking disasters, grease spills, and food splashes are a recipe for dirty, grimy, and sticky kitchen cabinets.
Sticky grease on kitchen cabinets can be frustrating to deal with as a homeowner.
After all, they can ruin the look of a perfectly decent, elegant kitchen. It’s why you need to clean your kitchen cabinets regularly to make sure they remain clean and grease-free.
Let’s take a look at some sure-fire cleaning methods to clean the grime and grease off your kitchen cabinets!
5 Ways to Clean Sticky Kitchen Cabinets
Even though we all want our kitchen cabinets to remain spotless, we can’t always find the right products to clean them.
Some cabinets, especially wooden ones, are susceptible to damage if you use the wrong products to clean them.
It’s why you need safe and effective products to rid your cabinets of grease, food splashes, and grime.
Here are some tried and tested safe ways to clean sticky kitchen cabinets:
1. Using a Concoction of Hot Water and White Vinegar
White vinegar is an acidic solution with natural degreasing properties, making it an ideal kitchen cabinet cleaner.
Meanwhile, the heat emanating from the hot water helps break down the grime and grease that stubbornly sticks to your cabinets.
So, let’s see how you can use this solution to clean your cabinets:
Things You Will Need
- White vinegar
- Hot water
- Spray bottle
- Soft cloth
- Paper towels (optional)
Steps to Follow
- Fill your spray bottle with 50% water and 50% white vinegar and shake the bottle vigorously.
- Spray the prepared solution onto your wooden kitchen cabinets and let it sit on them for 3 to 5 minutes.
- Use a damp cloth soaked in regular water to wipe the solution from the cabinets.
- Use a paper towel to dab the surface dry or allow the clean cabinets to air dry.
It’s inarguably one of the easiest, quickest, and most affordable solutions to clean sticky, greasy kitchen cabinets.
So, make sure you try it out before investing in expensive, time-consuming solutions.
2. Using a Paste of White Vinegar and Salt
If you combine white vinegar with salt, you will have another effective and affordable cleaning solution on your hands.
Vinegar will help break down the grease accumulated on the cabinet. Meanwhile, salt will act as a natural scrubber in dislodging the grime and grease.
Things You Will Need
- White vinegar
- Table salt
- A small bowl for mixing
- Soft cloth
- An old toothbrush
Steps to Follow
- Put the salt and vinegar in your mixing bowl and combine them until they develop a paste-like consistency.
- Dip your old toothbrush into the paste, and cover the bristles liberally.
- Carefully use the toothbrush to scrub your dirty cabinets until the grease and grime come off them.
- Wipe the surface with a damp cloth to remove the paste and reveal your spotless kitchen cabinets.
It’s a great solution to clean stubborn kitchen grease off your cabinets as it dislodges the buildup effectively.
3. Using Baking Soda and Lemon Juice Solution
Lemon juice and baking soda are both popularly used in DIY cleaning solutions.
Even though baking soda isn’t abrasive, it can help dislodge grease and remove stains from your dirty kitchen cabinets.
The acidity of the lemon also helps to cut through the stubborn grease, food debris, and grime buildup on your cabinets.
Things You Will Need
- Baking soda
- Lemon juice
- Soft sponge
- Mixing bowl
- Spray bottle
- Warm water
- Microfiber cloth
- Clean cloth
Steps to Follow
- Combine two parts of warm water, one part of baking soda, and the juice of one lemon in your spray bottle. Make sure to mix the ingredients thoroughly.
- Spray the prepared solution onto the sticky surface and let it sit for five minutes.
- Dip a soft sponge in warm water and apply it to the cabinets to gently scrub the solution away.
- Use a clean, damp cloth to wipe the cabinets clean. It will help you pick up any grease and grime residue.
- Use a dry microfiber cloth to buff the cabinets dry, getting rid of any leftover dirt or moisture in the process.
The best part about using this solution to clean your cabinets is the fresh, citrusy aroma that will fill your kitchen.
Not only will your cabinets look spotless, but your kitchen will feel refreshing as well!
4. Using a High-Quality Citrus Oil Multipurpose Cleaner
Citrus oil is a natural cleaning product that you can easily find in a store’s aisle dedicated to cleaning products.
It’s an effective solution for grease removal. It also has a naturally pleasant fragrance without the use of harmful additives or artificial perfumes.
Things You Will Need
- Hot water
- Citrus oil multipurpose cleaner
- Two soft cloths
Steps to Follow
- Spray the citrus oil cleaner onto your grimy, sticky kitchen cabinets and let it sit on the surface for about 5 minutes.
- Use a cloth dipped in hot water to remove the solution and the grease from the cabinets.
- Use the leftover cloth to wipe the cabinets and remove any leftover debris.
- Let the kitchen cabinets air dry or use a paper towel to dry them.
If you prefer using specialized cleaning products over a DIY solution, you must go for this simple and effective cleaning method.
5. Using Dish Soap and Warm Water
When it comes to cutting grease buildup, dish soap can work wonders as well.
It can remove the grease quite easily from your cabinets, leaving them free of stains and buildup.
Things You Will Need
- Warm water
- High-quality dish soap
- Mixing bowl
- Paper towels
- Cleaning sponge
- Dry cloth
Steps to Follow
- Put some warm water in a bowl and mix a few drops of your liquid dish soap. Make sure the water gets nice and bubbly.
- Dip the cleaning sponge in the soapy water and wring it dry.
- Gently scrub the kitchen cabinets with the soapy sponge, making sure to wipe in the direction of the wood grain.
- If the grease stains are too stubborn, apply some dish soap directly to the surface and scrub it clean.
- Soak a cloth in clean water, wring it, and then run it over the cabinets, catching any remaining grease and cleaning solution as you go.
- Air-dry the kitchen cabinets or pat them dry with paper towels.
With a little elbow grease, you can use this effective cleaning solution to clean your dirty, sticky kitchen cabinets.
They will look as good as new in no time!
3 Must-Have Cabinet Cleaning Products
Even though natural cleaners, such as baking soda and white vinegar, can easily remove grease from wood kitchen cabinets, you might benefit from investing in some high-quality cleaning products.
Here are some grease-removing cleaning products that tend to work wonders on dirty kitchen cabinets:
Castile Soap
Castile soaps are versatile, 100% vegan vegetable-based soaps that cut through grease exceptionally well.
You just need a little bit of warm water with this synthetic-free, nontoxic, biodegradable soap that’s available in liquid and bar form.
Citronella Oil Soap
This soap is infused with citronella oil and is a safe-to-use product that you can use to clean wood and cut grease from different surfaces, including wooden kitchen cabinets.
This soap gets rid of grease effectively while providing the cabinets with a natural shine.
Linseed Oil
Even though technically it’s not a cleaning agent, linseed oil is excellent for finishing your kitchen cabinets with a brilliant sheen.
It will protect them from grease, grime, and other stains in the future. Boiled linseed oil is a popular variant as it dries faster and lasts longer.
Finest Degreaser Solutions for Cleaning Kitchen Cabinets before Painting
If you want to clean your kitchen cabinets before painting them, make sure to use an effective degreasing product.
Otherwise, if your cabinets have even a small grease buildup in some places, the paint coat will not go over smoothly. It can ruin the new look of your cabinets.
Thankfully, there are a wide array of natural and DIY degreaser solutions that you can use. Here are some popular and effective degreasing solutions you can consider using:
- Baking soda and lemon juice
- Warm water with a high-quality dish-washing soap
- White vinegar with hot water
- Specialized wood cleaner for wooden cabinets
When used with a sturdy sponge and a fine microfiber cloth, the aforementioned ways will work wonderfully at eradicating grease before you paint your cabinets.
The Bottom Line
Greasy, grimy, dirty, and sticky kitchen cabinets aren’t just unsightly. The accumulation of grease and other debris can eat away at the life of your cabinets. It’s why you need to clean them properly every once in a while to prevent these pollutants from accumulating on them.
Whether you opt for a DIY cleaning solution or go for specialized cleaning products, the aforementioned methods to clean sticky kitchen cabinets will work equally well.
These cleaning solutions don’t take up a lot of time either. You can try them out and see which one works best for your cabinets.
Whichever solution and method you end up choosing, we wish you luck in your cleaning endeavors!
Other articles you may also like:
