Maintaining a clean environment is the first and most important step in living a healthy lifestyle. The next step is maintaining a clean, balanced diet that also keeps your insides in good shape. Your refrigerator, however, is one of the most crucial items to keep clean if you want to maintain all of these good habits.
A refrigerator that is frequently used to keep fresh goods, prepared food, and various sauces should ideally undergo a thorough cleaning every two months. Food-borne infections must be avoided in addition to keeping your food fresher. According to studies, filthy refrigerators are a major contributor to food-related illnesses because they serve as a breeding ground for harmful bacteria including salmonella, E. coli, and listeria.
Importance of keeping your fridge clean
The primary goal of keeping your refrigerator clean is to stop the spread of bacteria that can result in illnesses like food poisoning. Without consuming the food that is now in storage, we tend to accumulate groceries. As a result, the old fruits and vegetables begin to rot and create a breeding ground for bacteria.
The same thing occurs when curry or sauce spills in the refrigerator and is not promptly cleaned up. It is crucial to maintain your refrigerator since it forms the foundation of your entire kitchen, which in turn forms the foundation of your entire home.
It is only natural to spill milk and other liquids, such as sauces and curries, very frequently if you fill your refrigerator with fresh food every week. In that scenario, it is advisable to wash your fridge with warm, soapy water at least once a month. But if you don’t do any of these things regularly, clean your fridge at least every two months.
Why you should clean your fridge regularly
- Removing moldy food: If your food is starting to mold, that is a warning sign that you haven’t been consuming it or paying attention to it. Maintaining a clean fridge for you and your family is essential since the growing mold in your refrigerator can spread to other goods positioned next to or below it.
- Saving money: You can readily notice your weekly intake of food when taking stock if your refrigerator is clean. This will assist you in reducing the number of goods you purchase and prevent you from purchasing more than what your family would use.
- Making Space: Cleaning out your refrigerator can not only help you save money, but it will also free up some room. Who are we fooling here? We all know you won’t eat the meatloaf from last week, which has since changed color, and the chicken has been frozen for at least six months.
- Good maintenance: You are taking care of your healthy diet and the cleanliness of your household when you maintain your refrigerator. Defrosting your refrigerator at least once a year is a great recommendation for all refrigerator owners. A wonderful strategy to maintain your machine functioning properly is to defrost your manual-defrost freezer once a year, or if the frost buildup covers a significant region and reaches 1/4 inch. A properly maintained refrigerator can prevent food from decaying, contaminating other foods, and eventually saving you the trip to the doctor. Food gone bad can make you sick.
- Removing bad odor from the fridge: Sliced lemons, baking soda, and other remedies for terrible refrigerator odors are useful, but they only provide a short-term fix for the mold that is growing in the back of your refrigerator. If you share a space with others, try not to be the one to cause the fridge to smell like something has been decaying for a while.
- Lengthening lifespan: We all tend to put off taking good care of the big appliances in our homes until we can no longer. Think of it as taking good care of your automobile. You change the oil regularly and drive safely to prevent unnecessary damage and to maintain your car’s long-term health. Your refrigerator can survive up to 15 years if you take good care of it.
- Prevent mold growth inside your fridge: If mold on your food isn’t terrifying enough, mold can also find its way onto the shelves of your refrigerator and produce foul odors that may be difficult to locate. Cleaning your fridge every few months (or as needed) will help prevent bacteria growth and spreading to people, as contaminated food can spread quickly from your fridge to your hands.
Tips for cleaning your fridge
- If you’re going to clean something properly, every drawer that can be removed must be done first.
- You absolutely must contact a professional if your refrigerator is leaking.
- Dry the refrigerator fully before adding two tablespoons of bicarbonate of soda and a quarter of warm water.
- Use of predicament should be avoided because it could crack the glass and melt the plastic section of the refrigerator.
- To maintain an honest seal, even be sure to clean the door gasket. If you keep the fridge in bad shape, you might run into issues.
- It will be beneficial to vacuum-clean the refrigerator’s interior if debris gets inside it.
- Every 4 to 5 years, you should bring it to a professional so they can fix any issues with the refrigerator.
- Do you wish to clean every piece of the refrigerator’s interior? Then mix water and bicarbonate to get a homogenous solution. Use a handkerchief, sponge, or soft cloth to apply it.
Final Words
One of the necessary household appliances in every home is a refrigerator. If you regularly clean it, it will endure a long time. It is advised that you carry out this process at least once a month to maintain everything tidy.
Others prefer to maintain it neat, so they give the refrigerator a general maintenance clean once a week. Whichever way you choose, make sure your refrigerator remains clean and healthy for a better environment and to keep up the best performance of the refrigerator.
