How to Green Clean Your Microwave (and Garbage Disposal!)
Guest post by Sommer Poquette

As a mom, I love my microwave, mostly because it can heat up dinner for my family in a jiffy. Sure, I acknowledge those who say there are risks when you use a microwave, but I also don’t stand in front of it and stare into the heat waves. I’m simply popping in leftovers for dinner or warming up a black cup of coffee from this morning for a mid-afternoon pick me up. The coffee may taste like tar, but the microwave does the trick and the tar is piping hot!

What I don’t like about the microwave is cleaning it. No matter how many times I tell my husband and children to “please cover that bowl of spaghetti with a napkin,” they forget. After one week, my nice clean microwave looks like a pizza bomb went off inside of it. Often times, I’m not sure what the caked-on hard splatter is. There are even times when I wonder if my children are doing this on purpose to see what they can make pop, explode and stick to the microwave door—good fun just to make mom’s life miserable.

I’ve come to terms with the fact that I’ll be cleaning a dirty microwave for the rest of my life. And I’m guessing you’re reading this because you’re in the same boat as me. Fear not—I’ve got a solution!

To make this job easier with little-to-no scrubbing and absolutely no smelly chemical cleaners, here is how to easily and naturally clean that dirty, gross microwave.

What you need:

1 cup of white vinegar
1 sliced lemon
1 cup of water
1 tablespoon of baking soda

Directions:

*Combine the white vinegar, water and sliced lemon into a microwavable bowl.
*Heat on high for 5 minutes—this steams the microwave and loosens up the gunk that
is stuck onto your microwave walls, door and ceiling.
*After the 5 minutes is up, sprinkle the 1 tablespoon of baking soda onto a wet sponge,
paper towel or dish rag and wipe the inside of your microwave.
*You’ll notice the microwave smells good and the grime is wiping right off with ease.
*Now with a clean wet cloth, wipe the inside of your microwave one more time.
*It will be sparkling clean and smell good too!

Don’t throw out your vinegar, water and lemons!

They can also be used again to clean your garbage disposal—a two-for-one cleaning tip!

How to Green Clean Your Microwave (and Garbage Disposal!)

After you’ve finished making your microwave sparkly clean again, pour 2 tablespoons of baking soda into your garbage disposable, 1 cup of ice and the vinegar, water and lemon mixture. Run hot water into the garbage disposal and turn it on. You’re sharpening your blades and cleaning the inside of your garbage disposal at the same time!

Now you can sit down and enjoy a piping hot cup of coffee, because your microwave is clean and so is your garbage disposal. Plus, your kitchen will have a fresh lemon scent as an extra bonus. Just don’t let anyone else into your kitchen, or it’s time to proceed back to step one!

About the author
Sommer Poquette is a green and clean mom who writes green-cleaning tips for The Home Depot. Sommer’s easy-to-use tips will help keep your microwave in top shape using everyday household items. You can view Home Depot’s selection of microwaves online.

Have you made and used natural, green cleaners in your home?
What are your tips for “green cleaning” your microwave and garbage disposal?
Share your suggestions, thoughts and comments with us.

Photo Credit: Sommer Poquette

 

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