How often should you deep clean your refrigerator?

Your refrigerator is fantastic at prolonging the life of your food and storing your left overs. However, with our busy lives, it can quickly become a source of potential food borne illness if not cleaned regularly. Once the door is closed, out of sight is out of mind. A dirty refrigerator can become a breeding ground for bacteria like salmonella, E. coli and more.

If your refrigerator gets heavy use and regularly has spills inside, it is always best to wipe those up right away. Fresh foods that stay in the refrigerator too long and begin to rot, should also be thrown away promptly and the area at least spot washed to prevent the spread of mold and bacteria. Spot washing will not guarantee removal of all bacteria, so you will still need to remove everything from inside your refrigerator, discarding expired items and then deep cleaning all shelves, drawers, sides, and doors. Experts recommend doing this at least once every 1-2 months. In addition, keeping the seals clean will prolong the life of your refrigerator and ensure the seal keeps the food inside cold, as warmer food temps can accelerate the food spoilage process.

If you have a house cleaning or maid service, many cleaning companies will add on an interior refrigerator cleaning for a modest charge. If you decide to tackle it yourself, you should start by removing everything from the interior. Then, go through all items and toss anything that is expired or has gone bad. Next remove all shelves and drawers so that you can thoroughly wash them with hot, soapy water. After they are clean, be sure to dry them completely before returning them to the interior of your refrigerator. Once your clean shelves and drawers are back in place, you can return the items you are keeping to the interior, taking care to wipe down any sticky bottles or items before returning them to your refrigerator.

The Cleaning People RI house cleaning customers can add on a refrigerator cleaning to any basic or enhanced cleaning service. Interior refrigerator cleaning is always included with our deep house cleaning services.

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