Caring for your kitchen worktops

It's true what they say; the kitchen is the heart of the home. As such an important space in your house, it's important to know how to care for it properly. Day-to-day, your kitchen goes through a lot! It needs regular attention to keep it looking lovely. Your kitchen worktops in particular need regular care. There are many different types of kitchen worktop out there too, and each will have slightly different requirements. Here's a little guide on the do's and don't of caring for your kitchen worktops.

DO:

Wipe up spills immediately - even if it's just water. Whilst most worktops are designed to withstand water spillages, they aren't designed to be wet for long periods of time. Keep them as dry as possible and avoid direct contact with liquids if you can.
Deal with stains quickly and carefully - the best way to do this will depend on the material of your worktop but generally, applying a paste made out of water and baking soda works well. Rub it in gently with a sponge. This is especially affective on tea and coffee stains. Granite and marble worktops can absorb stains a little more than other surfaces, so you should cover the paste with a plastic wrap and leave overnight before rinsing off.
Keep your worktops free of dust and crumbs. Not only will this look and feel unhygienic, but crumbs can cause scratches.

DON'T:

Use bleach or any acidic products - these harsh chemicals will probably damage your worktops, so it's just not worth the risk. You'll find that gentle soap and water works best to clean surfaces. On quartz worktops you can try anti bacterial cleaning spray on anything more stubborn.
Use a new cleaning product or cleaning solution without doing a patch test first - the last thing you want is that heart-sinking feeling when you realise the product you've just covered your surface in has caused some damage.
Use your kitchen worktop as a chopping board - once you scratch your worktop, it can be really difficult to fix! It can be tempting to cut straight onto the worktop if you can't be bothered to grab your chopping board. Even if you are just doing one slice, that's all it takes to cause some damage.
Place hot pans directly onto your worktop - some materials can withstand mild heat, but hot pans and similar items can damage it. Invest in a hot pad or metal trivet. These are designed to withstand heat and save your worktops from burning.

Whilst these general do's and don'ts will apply to most worktop materials, it's always worth doing a little research into the best way to clean and treat the type of worktop you have in your kitchen. The way you care for wooden worktops is likely to differ to the way you care for granite, for example.

Beautiful kitchen worktops don't always come cheap, so are well worth looking after properly. Be mindful and do a little bit of maintenance everyday and your worktops are sure to look brand new for years to come!

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