Sounds familiar
. We had 'trained' our cats to stay off the counter. Was bragging about it to the cat sitter when she burst out laughing and set us straight.
Granite countertops and disinfecting
- Thread starter statsman
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Sounds familiar
. We had 'trained' our cats to stay off the counter. Was bragging about it to the cat sitter when she burst out laughing and set us straight.
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When we had our kitchen built, the young wife intentionally had the granite honed to remove the shine. It has never been sealed. We just clean it with soap and water.
Amethyst
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
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No doubt there were infractions, when human backs were turned. I never saw any prints, though. And what I didn't know, couldn't hurt me anyway OP here. I was in HEB this morning when I noticed they had small containers of Clorox wipes (35 count). Right on the front of the bottle it indicates it is safe for Finished Wood, Sealed Granite and Stainless Steel.
When I checked the 5-pack of Clorox wipes I purchased earlier this week from Costco, it indicated on the back of the bundle wrapping the same message. I hadn't caught that before. Not sure how long that has been the case with Clorox wipes.
I haven't seen that message with the Lysol wipes, but I figure at a minimum those are safe for Stainless Steel as their wipes indicate non-porous surfaces.
When I checked the 5-pack of Clorox wipes I purchased earlier this week from Costco, it indicated on the back of the bundle wrapping the same message. I hadn't caught that before. Not sure how long that has been the case with Clorox wipes.
I haven't seen that message with the Lysol wipes, but I figure at a minimum those are safe for Stainless Steel as their wipes indicate non-porous surfaces.
Since you mentioned stainless steel, it is known that bleach will cause pitting. Clorox wipes uses’quats’ not bleach which is OK on Stainless steel.
Having said this, the amount and frequency for home use of bleach will likely be OK. But quats will definitely be OK
troutnut1
Recycles dryer sheets
I never realized that cleaners could be a problem. Our black granite seems indestructible. I just use window cleaner. I assume the naturally occurring radon in the granite will kill any residual bacteria.
SpinDoctorTX
Recycles dryer sheets
Make your own
Mix 3 parts rubbing alc + 1 part filtered water + 8 drops of dawn & put it in a clean spray bottle. I add a little olive or other non-acidic essential oil (like 4 drops) for a nice shine. The mix is cheap to make usually, although I had to pay through the nose for a big bottle of alcohol when I finally ran out. Best of all, it's not full of chemicals harmful to the peeps & pet. I make most of my own cleaning products, since as a chem eng brat (and having worked for a chem co myself for 13 yrs), I do know what harm those ingredients can do.
Mix 3 parts rubbing alc + 1 part filtered water + 8 drops of dawn & put it in a clean spray bottle. I add a little olive or other non-acidic essential oil (like 4 drops) for a nice shine. The mix is cheap to make usually, although I had to pay through the nose for a big bottle of alcohol when I finally ran out. Best of all, it's not full of chemicals harmful to the peeps & pet. I make most of my own cleaning products, since as a chem eng brat (and having worked for a chem co myself for 13 yrs), I do know what harm those ingredients can do.
I'm about halfway through the book An Edge in the Kitchen by Chad Ward, a book (mostly) about kitchen knives. In it, there is a section on cutting boards and sanitizing them. He suggests vinegar works just as well as bleach with none of the bad side effects, the only downside being that it takes a little longer. According to him the vinegar concentration gets stronger as it evaporates and does in the strongest of the little buggers.
I read the surface that is wiped with the Clorox wipe has to stay wet for minutes (3?) to be effective. I don't know how to ensure that without rubbing the surface continuously for the 3 minutes. I think the peroxide ones call for 10 minutes of wetness. I got rid of those. This might sound weird but, daily, I wrap a piece of Costco cling wrap on my high touch SS handles that I figured wouldn't weather lots of disinfecting well. Cheap, easy, and quick.
Telly
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
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I think that's called the Marie Curie effect.
Beachcomber
Recycles dryer sheets
Most granite suppliers recommend annual re-sealing of the counter top.
We went with quartz on our latest kitchen, but it is essentially the same thing.
Also, it is a good idea to have 2 cutting boards, one for raw meats and another for vegetables.
The chemist advice a few posts earlier is a great idea to make your own cleaner! I am a little biased because my dad formulated 409.
We went with quartz on our latest kitchen, but it is essentially the same thing.
Also, it is a good idea to have 2 cutting boards, one for raw meats and another for vegetables.
The chemist advice a few posts earlier is a great idea to make your own cleaner! I am a little biased because my dad formulated 409.
We use a 3 step process which is basically clean, rinse, and dry.
1. Wipe with soap & water or a "stone" cleaner
2. Wipe with clean water
3. Towel dry
So in essence we are rinsing off whatever we used to clean the stone. Our 10 yr old granite, sealed 10 years ago, still looks new.
1. Wipe with soap & water or a "stone" cleaner
2. Wipe with clean water
3. Towel dry
So in essence we are rinsing off whatever we used to clean the stone. Our 10 yr old granite, sealed 10 years ago, still looks new.
littleb
Recycles dryer sheets
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Our granite supplier told us to never use a harsh cleaner on our countertops. He said it would strip the sealant.
Also recommended Pledge Antibacterial multisurface cleaner. We also reseal our granite annually based on his recommendation.
Also recommended Pledge Antibacterial multisurface cleaner. We also reseal our granite annually based on his recommendation.
SpinDoctorTX
Recycles dryer sheets
Queen Becca is in charge here, so she is "allowed" on the island to supervise. I don't prepare or serve food there though, b/c I'm lazy and like to keep the mess in between the trash & the sink.
During gatherings, she mostly hides, so no danger of island investigations then either. Yep. My Dad ended up with glioblastoma & I've always wondered how much of that was influenced by the stinky plants in which he worked. We always lived in homes quite far from those plants for a reason. Better living through chemicals. Well, sometimes.
This is based on what I see in my dentist's office. They put plastic covers on the high touch spots of the equipment (like the light handles) and just replace the covers between patients instead of spending time (was that surface wet long enough?) attempting to clean them.
PointBreeze
Recycles dryer sheets
This is exactly what we do. I add lemon essential oil, though - haven’t noticed a problem at all.
I make all my own cleaning products, too. I use kosher salt for scrubbing, and vinegar water for just about everything else.
?? Diluted Bleach, thats what we've always used or our granite.....
We have stainless counters because I wanted something indestructible and easy to clean. I use soap and water most of the time - but when doing a more thorough clean I use a solution of mostly vinegar, a few drops of dish soap, and a few drops of tea tree oil. I always have a spray bottle of this around. I use the same solution for cleaning the stove, the bathrooms, and the kitchen table.
Darker granites often have less of an issue than the lighter colors. We have one called Verde Butterfly, and it's not porous enough to take a sealant. It didn't stain or etch when we did the oil and lemon test before having it installed, so the fabricators said not to mess with a sealant and it's been looking good for 17 years now. I still wouldn't deliberately use a cleaner with something like vinegar on it though; that stuff can dissolve calcium (remember the elementary school science experiment with chicken bones?) and I'm afraid it might cause pits in the stone surface if left too long. I use ordinary dish soap and water followed by plain water to rinse and then a dry microfiber cloth to shine it up.
I do have a friend with a lovely cream colored granite with small gray swirls in it, and that has to be resealed regularly or it stains. It just depends on the composition of the stone you have.
gamboolman
Recycles dryer sheets
Clorox Bleach Web Site is full of info....
Growing up it was standard practice to put Bleach in the water well, bath water to kill red bugs, seed ticks, and washing off where Poison Ivy had got on us. I was bad allergic to the Poison Ivy and Oak as a kid.... Still am to this day.
Still use bleach to this day.
Growing up it was standard practice to put Bleach in the water well, bath water to kill red bugs, seed ticks, and washing off where Poison Ivy had got on us. I was bad allergic to the Poison Ivy and Oak as a kid.... Still am to this day.
Still use bleach to this day.
Why not just use soap and water? Or just use your granite cleaner? That is what I do.
I mean- it's no big deal. Wet your cloth or paper towel. Mix in some soap. wipe. Done.
Or just spray your granite cleaner and wipe. Not hard.
I mean- it's no big deal. Wet your cloth or paper towel. Mix in some soap. wipe. Done.
Or just spray your granite cleaner and wipe. Not hard.
Clorox Bleach Web Site is full of info....
And there's the requirement for 5 minutes of wetness to disinfect. Just a wipe doesn't get the job done. The surface has to stay wet for 5 minutes. Meeting this requirement with wipes (unless you keep re-wetting the surface) isn't easy.
