Have you found it hard to keep your white sink clean and beautiful? Is it getting dirty fast, but washing it with a washcloth doesn’t seem to help? You’re a busy mom, you don’t have time to wash sinks…. I totally get it, I am too. But this is so easy, it hardly feels like work. Plus, you’re left with a shiny, clean sink when you’re done. Let’s get to it!
Sharing is caring!
When we were planning for what our home would look like, I knew I wanted an apron-front, beautifully antique-looking white farmhouse sink. I loved the look of them! They are unique and vintage inspired, beautiful and help to encompass the farmhouse look and feel.
What I didn’t know, though, was how dirty these sinks were going to get. I know that sounds silly, I mean, come on- I bought a white sink and didn’t think it would be dirty? Honestly, no! I just figured it would be like any other stainless steel sink and be forgiving with dirt and food. Boy was I wrong.
The working white sink
Our white sink is a hard-working sink. It’s where we bring in the fresh vegetables from the garden, covered and dirt, to be washed and prepped for eating. This sink is where we wash the chicken eggs, dirty from the winter coop. It is here where I set down my milk pail after milking as I work to put away the milk.
In addition to our white sink being the workhorse of the kitchen, it is beaten each day with our hard (but kind of soft) water. We do have a water softener, but even so, the water here is extremely hard and iron-rich, leaving everything with an orangish glow if we aren’t careful.
The dirt is revealed…
So, I guess I wasn’t really surprised when I started to notice that our white farmhouse sink wasn’t really white anymore. After only about a week of living in our new house, our sink was already showing signs of dirt stains and I started to panic. Is this something we’re just going to have to get used to? Are we going to have a dirty sink all of the time? What are our guests going to think? They won’t want to eat here! What will I ever do?!
Ok, that’s a little exaggerated…but I was actually a little concerned that our choice of a beautiful white farmhouse sink was actually a really stupid one.
That’s when I remembered a wonderful hidden cleaning product I had been introduced to by my mother-in-law, who is a cleaning guru, let me tell you. Really, her house is always spotless and beautiful and perfectly clean. She is the housekeeper idol, if you ask me. Let us all aspire to be as good of a housekeeper as her some day!
Anyway- I remembered a pantry staple that she once told me removed burned on foods from pots. I wondered if it would be able to do the same trick with the deep grime and dirt that wouldn’t just wash off with a regular old wash cloth. Low and behold, it did just the trick!
Baking Soda as a Cleaner
Like I mentioned before, baking soda is an amazing household product as well as baking staple. I use baking soda all of the time for household things besides baking!
Practical Uses for Baking Soda
Here are just some of the ways I use baking soda daily as a household product:
- De-odorizing: When you have kids that prefer to go barefoot, but sometimes have to wear shoes (however, still refuse to wear socks), deodorizing shoes is important. A little sprinkle of baking soda into the shoe goes a long way! It also is great when you’re potty training and you still have some late night accidents…A sprinkle of baking soda on the bed can help to lessen the smell.
- Removing Permanent Marker from Wood: Yes….tried and true. I have little kids who are very creative and expressive and at times like to sneak into the drawer with permanent makers to showcase their creativity. I was pretty upset when our beautiful table was covered in permanent marker marks, but I was so relieved when trusty old baking soda helped me gently remove the marks without wrecking the table finishing at all. Phew. That was a close one!
- Removing Baked On/Burnt On Food: You know those dishes that you let soak ALLLLL WEEK because it doesn’t seem like the food is budging? Yeah, that doesn’t ever happen to me either…. just kidding. It does from time to time. If you find yourself in a bit of a situation, baking soda is your friend. Simply sprinkle it onto the burnt food (without water) and let it sit for a while. Then try scrubbing your pan. I bet it will come off!
- As a Laundry Tool: Baking soda can remove stains from clothing (add 1/2 cup to your wash load or make a paste and rub it onto the stain) and as a fabric softener. Not to mention it can also clean the washing machine itself!
Using Baking Soda to Clean a White Sink
So let’s get to cleaning the sink then, shall we? You might be thinking, “But, Sadie- I don’t have time to clean my sink. I’m a busy mom and that doesn’t sound easy.” Well, friend, you are wrong. I felt the same way as you. I didn’t want to have to clean my sink all of the time….but it’s a really simple process using baking soda and it literally takes me about 5 minutes to get my white sink from drab to fab.
Process:
- In a dry sink, sprinkle baking soda all over the grime and dirt.
- Using a damp rag, rub the baking soda around the sink in a circular motion. Continue this process until the dirt and grime has been soaked and rubbed into the baking soda.
- Give the sink a good rinse, and repeat the process again if needed.
That is literally it. I told you it was simple!
Enjoy that beautiful, clean, white farmhouse sink.
Be sure to save this for later!
Leave a Reply