A 5-Step Guide To Thoroughly Clean Your Fridge (With Vinegar!)

Thoroughly cleaning a fridge is not an easy job. Stubborn grease stains, smelly residue, or frozen food bits require a lot of elbow grease. Thankfully, there’s no need to cover your fridge with harmful chemicals; white vinegar will be your best ally, and here you’ll learn how to use it.

Step #1. Unplug your fridge

To clean your fridge, you’ll have to keep its door open for extended periods. So, avoid paying extra on your electricity bill, and disconnect your appliance before beginning.

Also, unplugging your appliance is a crucial step for freezer cleaning since it needs to defrost.

Tip: If you can’t reach the plug, another option is to turn off the circuit breaker serving your refrigerator.

Step #2. Empty your appliance

Once your fridge is out of power, take out everything from it: food, containers, shelves, crispers, you name it. Although you may want to save time by cleaning shelves and compartments without removing them, it’s not a good idea—they won’t let you freely wipe the appliance walls.

Check for expired or spoiled items to discard them as you go. Also, keep in mind that you’ll take 30 to 45 minutes to clean your fridge, depending on how dirty it is. So, if you need to keep something cool (frozen food, for example), put it inside a cooler with ice until you finish.

Step #3. Clean fridge and freezer

What better way to clean your fridge than using products from your kitchen? As white vinegar is edible, there’s no danger if you use it where you store food. Besides, vinegar helps you to remove bad odors too!

First, mix equal parts vinegar and warm water in a spray bottle and sprinkle all over the interior walls. The acid in the vinegar will start to dissolve the stains, so wait five minutes while it works. 

After time’s up, wipe the walls with a warm-dampened microfiber cloth and use a medium-bristle toothbrush to remove dirt from hard-to-reach crevices. Finally, rinse the walls thoroughly with a clean, dampened cloth.

How to remove stubborn spots: Mix half a cup of baking soda and the necessary amount of water to make a paste you can spread over the stains. Let it sit there for five minutes, and then wipe.

Step #4. Clean the removable parts

Cleaning shelves and crispers after the rest of the fridge ensures they won’t get damaged. Sudden temperature changes (like using warm water on cold surfaces) could shatter the removable parts, especially if they are made of glass.

Clean the parts (one by one) in your sink using the same vinegar recipe you used in your fridge. Wipe the stains with your trusty kitchen sponge (use the scrubbing pad if necessary) and rinse with warm running water.

Step #5. Reassemble the fridge

After you’re done, you can put everything in its rightful place again. A tidy fridge will help you prevent future messes. So, take this opportunity to organize your containers neatly. Once ready, plug in your appliance again, and you’ll be done!

Don’t you have the time to clean your fridge? We can help you!

At Custom Cleaning Of The Palm Beaches, we offer the best cleaning packages so you can enjoy a tidy house. Our standard and deep cleaning services include an inside-outside fridge cleaning service that will leave your appliance spotless. Book an appointment now!