OMG!

amazing post!!!!

Paper towels?
Why not cloth towels?

And I've never used ice before - but wouldn't putting salt on that lemon (or lime, or orange rind) be just as effective?

I've also heard that running eggshells thru the disposal helps keep it clean...

I am not a big fan of harsh chemicals in my home or in the environment. I can't say I know anyone who is. I lost my dear dear feline friend to accidental toilet-bowl-cleaner poisoning last month (husband drizzled some on carpet accidentally, kitty walked through it, licked her paws... you can imagine the rest). Of course we immediately swore off all toilet bowl cleaner and vowed to use up (rather than waste) other chemical cleaners. Method and Mrs. Meyers are alternative brands we love.

When that's all said and done, I will still keep a bottle of Zep industrial cleaner (with extreme caution) for shower mildew, hard water stains, and the nasty beige-brown gunk that stains the kitchen sink drain.

Woah. this is anal to the max.

While I do all of these things, with the exception of the vinegar soaked paper towels (is that for disinfecting?), I never do all of these things at the same time. I save all my citrus fruits leftovers for the garbage disposal, and when the ice in the freezer starts to smell, some of it goes down the garbage disposal, but cleaning your disposal three times with three different cleaning methods at the same time seems like a lot of overkill.

I'm not looking to make cleaning the house harder. But thanks.

The baking soda once a night isn't a bad idea. I live on my own, though, and can see how that would be a problem with more people with different schedules. I can't see myself doing the rest, though. Too much work! Lol.

Uber anal. I can't put that much effort into washing and DRYING something that's going to immediately get wet again.

Jeebus, it seems like you turned a molehill into a mountain. Cleaning a sink is not that hard. Squirt some soap on a cloth and rub it around the sides and bottom. It takes about a minute. srsly. Agreed. Way Too Anal. Unless you're a complete pig, I don't see the need for any of this.

I bleach everything. Tub, toilet, sinks, sponges. But I use baking powder and vinegar to clean the drains.

I think a better title would be "How to clean your kitchen sink if you have OCD."

@LolaDanger: hahaha - yes!

Meh I just squirt some soap and use steel wool.

urbancricket, I'm so sorry for your loss! I, too, use all natural cleaning products to be safe around my two cats, but even tea tree oil can be toxic to cats.

bar-keepers-friend and a sponge a few times a month, some fantastic/409 in the interim, and a spare lemon when we have them in the disposal. works well for us.

Get a magic eraser sponge. Done. It's excellent for shining up the faucet and handles, too.

Steps 7 & 9 are good ideas to freshen up your drain, though.

my dad, plumbing contractor of 30 years, says never pour boiling water down the garbage disposal. it can ruin some of the parts down below. if you have to drain boiling water from something your cooking, you should run cold water in the sink while pouring it out.

More importantly, why are there books next to the sink? That's just terrifying.

"why are there books next to the sink? That's just terrifying."

Really - Are cookbooks more homicidal the closer they are to water?

"never pour boiling water down the garbage disposal. it can ruin some of the parts down below."

I'm curious why?
If all the parts are metal, why would it matter?
Even if the drain pipes are PVC, the water would have to be 387 degrees (well beyond the 212 degree boiling point) for the pipes to begin to deform...

How 'bout just Bonami?

It does seem a tad over the top.

Mind you, it seems to me not very environmental to use such huge amounts of water - it is an incredibly precious resource.

Daily basis cleaning is much more efficient than this. A little dish soap after the dishes are done and a quick rinse. I check the rubber flaps for debris. Once a week I drop a tray of ice cubes in the disposal. Then when company's coming, I pull all the soaps and things off and use my homemade food-safe cleaner on the whole thing. Sometimes I use a toothbrush if there's gunk stuck around the faucet or in the grout. Then I dry it all off with a rag I hang under the sink and I'm done. Even with the toothbrush my special occasion scrub takes 3 minutes.

This method is basically a once a month thing for most people anyway. Like when the mother-in-law is coming for Sunday lunch.

I use water and melamine white pad from 99 cents store.

Do you have alternatives in maybe 3 steps or less?

I am SO glad that the comments to this post are pretty much universally in agreement on the uber-anal OCD nature of that sink-cleaning protocol! That is insane! Poor Ms. Watson is not a well-woman!

All this whack-o santitation stuff has gotten WAAAAAAY out of hand. Stop trying to sterilize the world! We need functional immmune systems to fight of the really nsty buggers!

I'd probably only do this... once in a blue moon?
For more weekly use, I'd have just bleached the dish mat in the sink, cleaning the sink at the same time I'm desanitizing the mat.
Not the way to go if you're avoiding harsh chemicals, but it works in a pinch!

Really? You clean a kitchen sink? Who knew?? I thought running water would do it just fine :o

Who comes up with such routines?! tons of water, soap, perfectly good lemons, vinegar, baking soda, ice and salt to clean a sink? This is so wasteful!

...... after washing the dishes I just run through it with my sponge that has some dish washing soap.... that's all...

Wow. Things have been weird here lately, in the area of nothings posted for the sake of posting, but a 10-step sink cleaning regimen? Got one for brushing teeth or using the toilet?

1. Spray diluted castile soap on.

2. Wipe or scrub.

3. If necessary, sprinkle on a little baking soda.

I'm about to punt AT, because this is ridic. Solid content is great, but this kind of thing is a waste of everyone's time.

@ parsleyhead - I'm a little more concerned about the power outlet so close to water...

@ parsleyhead - I'm a little more concerned about the power outlet so close to water than the books...

I hope the comments inspire said poster to modify this utterly absurd and wasteful cleaning routine that I don't even think Adrian Monk would use. I can't wait to see the porcelain sink and tub post, if there will be one.

And what on earth would be the point of saturating paper towels with vinegar. So the vinegar can dry in the paper towels and simply be wasted? You'd be better off soaking a rag/dish cloth with vinegar and using said dish cloth to actually wipe the sink and then throwing it in the wash. Nevermind that I would do neither. We simply wash the sink with soap and water on a regular basis around here. But we also don't have much meat in this household. And as for paper towels, they simply are not allowed in my house. Ever!

is FlyLady in da house?

I've also heard about not pouring boiling water down pipes - but I think it's in regards to too quickly changing the temperature. The sudden shift from hot to cold can loosen solder and points of connection in metal, and even crack porcelain that is chilled. Thus, the recommendation to run cold water while draining pasta water... But if, for instance, you first ran some hot water to gently warm everything up, I don't think there would be any problem with increasing the temperature to boiling.

Barkeeper's Friend and a sponge. Wipe it out, rinse it out. Done.

I spritz with diluted citrus cleaner (Mr. Clean brand, currently) and "scrub" with my spongesickle (pan cleaner with an abrasive sponge on an handle -- it leaked when I tried to put dish detergent in the hollow handle, so I just use it for the extra reach, now.) Rinse.

If the disposal cover gets grimy, this sponge is small enough to reach and hit the gunk. (I don't worry about scratches on the sink from the sponge -- the forks and knives dumped in there make worse ones. It's a sink, not a wall decoration!)

Almost effortless, and I do it only once a week or when needed in between...

For all the comments that mention this being an over-the-top cleaning method - it's meant to be! This is not a step-by-step for daily sink cleaning, I think we can all figure out how to do that. However, if you care about doing a deep, thorough cleaning now and again, this is an excellent method - one that I do about once every month or so. As someone who quickly cleans her sink weekly with baking soda and uses the lemon trick - it only gets it so clean. You would be surprised how much extra grime is removed with a more thorough cleaning regimen. Perhaps it could have been more clearly stated, but if you reread the post, the first step pertains to "daily cleaning".

KerryNM - Actually, I'm quite well, healthy and happy - but thanks for your concern!

My S.O. usto wash the bottom of the dishes only about 4 years ago I found this out. This year, I found out that he never thought the sink needed washing too. I'm going to show him this post and he can interpret it as he likes. I will give this a look over again when I clean the kitchen this week, will find out how I feel about it after I do it all.

I'm sad about the idea of wasting whole citrus fruits. Can't I use that lime in my gin and tonic before I grind it up in the garbage disposal?

in defense of the post, i just tried this and think it's great, it really only takes a few minutes (aside from letting the vinegar sit)---i never used baking soda to clean my sink before, i did that step 3x before the paste wasn't a grimy brown color (and my sink didn't look dirty at all beforehand, i clean it out routinely with orange cleaner). everything is also very *squeaky* clean now :)

I wish we had these types of sink in the UK, they look far more convienent

The idea with the vinegar soaked towels is to remove the lime scale that builds up in areas that have hard water.

Yes, it looked daunting. And my husband looked at me like I was crazy. But I followed these instructions and my sink looks great. It had gotten grimy, lost its shine and needed some love. It really didn't take that long. Thanks for the step-by-step.

The paper towel is to keep the vinegar in place so you can remove the lime build up from non flat surfaces. Wrap up whatever needs cleaning in the towel and soak it in the vinegar before you go to bed and in the morning the lime washes of with a light scrub of the abrasive side of a plastic sponge. I do it while I brush my teeth and about once a month. I live in an area with very hard water which is why I do it that often. The idea is to do it if you think it is needed i.e. when you cant stand to look at the white build up any longer. This also work in the toilet bowl. Vinegar is an acid but not as strong as other lime cleaners which is why it needs to sit over night. I buy the cheapest vinegar and I use both for cleaning and cooking. You can use linen towels but the vinegar smells very strongly and unless you can throw the towels straight in the wash use paper towel. I only buy toilet paper because I think paper towels are wasteful and it does the trick just as well.

My friend gave me a very cool trick. Pour about an inch or two of hot water in the sink and a splash of vinegar. Wipe the entire sink in the mix and leave it for 5 mins then give the sink a scrub with an abrasive sponge and voila a nice and clean sink for you.

Adrian Monk would think this is WAY over the top. Elyn - it's 5 o'clock somewhere - break out the gin and tonic!

OK...I'm so going to clean my sink...NOW! I don't have the baking soda on hand, but I think my Bar Keeper's Friend will work perfectly as a substitute.

nuts.

Barkeepers friend - its easy, quick, and cheap.

so many commenters are such debbie downers on AT lately. i think it's a good tutorial and a beautifully clean sink :)

I work in a hospital.Our OR doesn't scrub sinks like this.LOL...pointless.Scrub to remove debris.,rinse.Wipe with a disinfectant.Let stand to evaporate.

If you need to scrub you faucets with a toothbrush,then all I can say is that your faucets are unlikely to be kept very clean to begin with.

Drains are the culprits for contamination from sinks.You can scrub your sink until your blue or go blind.Won't do anything to eliminate bacteria.

DRAINS! Keep them clean.Vinegar will do it.Make sure you use enough to fill the drain.Let it sit 10 minutes minimum.Overnight is better.Rinse with scalding hot water.

Scrubbing does not kill germs.Sure...it looks clean.It isn't.Wiping with a disinfectant kills the germs you don't want.

Make sure the cloths etc...you use are disinfected before storing.

Most of the nastiest bugs you think you can only get at the hospital are commonly found in your home.If your not sick or have open wounds,it shouldn't be an issue.

Friction kills most bacteria.Disinfectants used on a clean cloth will keep you from spreading them around.If it's visibly soiled...it is full of germs.Your disinfectant will not work.

Spores........now that's something people need some education about.They are everywhere and they do make you sick.Very sick.

But...then again..if you thought bacteria was hard to clean and deserving of over kill.

If you don't want to print out a checklist and spend two and a half hours cleaning your sink, just do what I do.

Take some dishwasher detergent that has chlorine bleach in it. I know, I know, chlorine bleach is bad, but I keep one bottle of this stuff around and it lasts for over a year.

Squirt a quarter sized amount of it onto a wet sponge - rub the sponge all over the sink. Let it sit for a few minutes, then brush the sink out with s scrub brush and hot water. Use a clean rag and white vinegar to clean the surrounding surfaces.

This technique keeps my ancient porcelain sink white and sparkly.

If you already know how to clean your sink, why are you reading this tutorial?

Anyway, I don't have garbage disposal to clean which make this much faster. After rinsing, washing, applying the baking soda paste, and soaking in vinegar, my little stainless steel sink looks practically new! And it didn't take 2 1/2 hours, it took about 30 minutes including the soaking. And I already had everything I needed ready to go. I won't be doing this daily, but definitely weekly.

Well, I read the comments before reading the post, and I was pleasantly surprised. I had no idea how to get the drain part of a sink clean. I thought it was a pretty helpful post!

ridiculous, if you have a job or a passion outside the kitchen.

The reason for the ice in the garbage disposal is to help keep the blades sharp.

Another tip- douse with vinegar or scrub with a grapefruit and some salt.

If you see tough rust stains, try Bar Keeper's Friend.

Happy cleaning! For more sink tips, tricks, and trends, sink.com.

I'm pretty sure the reason I rarely get sick is that I never disinfect anything, and therefor constantly ingest small amount of bacteria that build up my immune system. By contrast, my friends who walk around with disinfectant in their handbags and are always cleaning their hands with that stuff every time they touch something in the public realm (e.g. handrails in the subway, door handles, tables at Starbucks) get sick all the time. Too much sterility destroys your natural immune system, period.

Well, my fellow posters here will think I have a serious case of OCD but here goes anyway:
I moved into a home with a very dated badly scratched aluminum sinks. I purchased a circular brush at an automotive supply store and inserted it into my electric drill. I went over both sinks with this circular brush and the sinks look brand new. I finished up with vinegar to get the accumulated grime off. and Yes, they are very clean now.

Seriously, folks, do you have to be mean and attack the poster personally? If you don't want to do it, don't. Do we need more nasty comments in this world? Would you say these things to someone's face? Could you be *productive* in your criticisms?

@Caterina9, I completely agree. If you don't want to clean your sink this thoroughly, no one is forcing you to. If you do want to (during spring cleaning, after moving into a new apartment, etc.), this is a great tutorial! I give my sink a quick scrub with dish soap and a scrub brush every time I wash the dishes, but I am still amazed at how much cleaner it looks after the baking soda step alone!

Bar Keepers Friend is all I need.

I would actually appreciate step-by-step instructions on how to clean a porcelain or ceramic sink. There are still a ton of brownstones out there with their original kitchens--no stainless in sight. :)

While I do agree the whole process is a rather bit over the top. I do like the idea in general.
We rent and over the years have come across some shockers of so-called clean rentals.
So I have always been super careful in the first few weeks after we have moved in.
I use a steam cleaner unit to do toilets and bathrooms and hospital strength bleach on kitchen benches and sinks, but much prefer the method outlined here.
I too, am looking forward to ideas to freshen up ceramic units.

I second (or third--didn't keep track) the need for porcelain sink cleaning post. I will even use ALL 10 fricking steps if it gets it clean. Now THERE's a monster worthy of attention. This post does seem a bit over the top. (sorry!)

I like the idea of this kitchen sink cleaning style. Most of the cleaning material we are using here are also the ones we use on other household cleaning.

I like sprinkling baking soda all over the sink, spraying it with a cleaning spray with bleach so it gets disinfected, and scrubbing it down with a sponge. Works extremely well on stainless and on porcelain sinks. And the bathtub. And the bathroom sink. It takes about 2 minutes and baking soda is one of the cheapest cleaners possible. I've also used white vinegar, but I don't think it works as well.

Just use super washing soda-it's great.
http://listenbubb.blogspot.com/2012/06/super-washing-soda.html

That's a bit over the top. I just use a no scratch sponge and liquid dish soap. Once done, rinse sponge clean and throw in microwave for two minutes to disinfect. Once or twice a week I'll use bleach.

Thanks for the great tutorial! If something is worth doing, it's worth doing well.

Several people here mentioned using citrus cleaners. My stainless steel sink came with a large warning label saying not to use any citrus, or citrus containing products, on SS.

HAHAHA good gracious, no.

This does seem excessive for a sink. However, I used someting similar for my wood cutting boards, where bacteria is a more likely health danger. I just use a lemon, salt and boiling water. I pour a little boiling water over the board, then sprinkle it liberally with salt. Then I take half a lemon and scrub-- the lemon juice and salt make a grainy paste. I let it sit on the board for a few minutes, then pour boiling water over it, then rinse and rinse with regular water. My boards are disinfected and have a wonderful smell, especially since I use some of them for rolling dough and pastry. The oil in the lemon is good for the wood. This takes about 5 minutes--I do it as needed, usually about once a week.

Thanks everyone for the hilarious comments. I don't know when I have laughed so hard over cleaning a sink.

Whoa...Ms Manners better add this to the list of no-no discussion topics hahaha politics, religion, how to clean a sink... all sure to vehemently divide your dinner party!!

Sound like grandpa yelling from his porch rocker while shaking his fist ---"too much work"... "not enough germs" ..."too much water" ..."not enough gin" actually I agree with that one... we should rewrite this like that funny rumcake recipe - you know the one where you drink 1/2 the bottle before it's over... Bottoms up, then pour the ice and lime into the disposer and grind away while you pour another and repeat till you don't care if your sink is sterile or not

"The reason for the ice in the garbage disposal is to help keep the blades sharp."

Seriously? DW blades aren't sharp. They're very dull, they just whir really, really fast. They smash stuff up, they don't cut.

Great tips. Most people don't realize how dirty their sinks are. It's pretty appalling what people consider clean. The fact some of you use bleach like it's water is mindblowing... what? Chlorine is a strong corrosive and is terrible for our groundwater... never mind using it around things you eat and wash. If you don't know, get educated, here for example: http://www.educatingwellness.com/natural-health/dangers-of-bleach/

..and in just 1 hour your sink will be clean.
Seriously, you have a lot of spare time.

clean rag + Bon Ami ($.99/can, environmentally friendly) =shiny sink in minutes

I suppose if you've moved into an apartment previously lived in by filthy pigs (apologies to pigs, which are really clean creatures) you might have to do about half of what's been suggested. Other than that, once your sink is clean, a daily light swish-out with either a scrubby or sponge and whatever dish soap you use should do the trick.

(I will admit to sometimes drying my sink after I've done my last rinse/wash at night, just so I can see that lovely shine first thing in the morning. Maybe once a week...)

I really don't get this. What are people doing in their sinks that require such high levels of sanitation? Especially if you have a dishwasher. If warm water and soap is good enough after you use the bathroom, why would you need anything else for the kitchen sink?
I give my sink a good scrubbing once a week or so to see it shine, but it gets plenty of soap and warm water every day.

@UltraDeb -- exactly.

All these antibacterial soaps (and soap is antibacterial without anything being added), hand sanitizers, touchless soap dispensers, etc. are going to kill us. Everytime you use them you make the surviving bacteria stronger.

@Maria Latimer
if you search for "dangers of bleach" that is what you will find. You will not find a balanced argument with pros and cons.

search for "benefits of bleach" and you will find that.

So bleach is good. see this page http://www.ehow.com/info_8743708_benefits-bleach.html

Seriously? I am lucky to have time to do the dishes, let alone spit-shine my sink. Lol

I should have considered using my first husband's toothbrush for this before we split up. That would give me nice memories.

urbancricket: So very sorry for your loss. :(

I'm looking forward to the Apt Therapy post about NOT having a disposal, also known as the Plumber's Best Friend. I asked my plumber about not putting one in, and he tried to convince me that it's actually more economical just to replace the broken one I had with a new one. This endless cycle of disposal replacement (programmed disposal death?) is going to get old, I know/knew, hence the request to the plumber. So I listened, sigh. He said it'd cost about $700 to do all the fixes to take it out and leave it out. More importantly, it denies him the money long term my POS disposals will make him.

Can't we opt out of this disposal racket?

Anyway, ever since I paid my last disposal bill, I decided to go easy on it. I wouldn't grind ice like that for anything! This baby's gotta last me a lot longer than the last one. I basically don't use it but maybe about 4 times a week.

It's a racket!!!

I think you are all a little hypercritical of the woman who wrote the article. First it doesn't sound like she is wasting gallons and gallons of water - face it, we have to use some resources without going to an extreme. I see all her points as very valid and actually have done most similar when cleaning my sink. I think for those that say just put some dish soap and call i good, I am sure your drains smell horrible. Soap buildup?? This is why she doesn't recommend using soap to clean the sink, you must counteract the cleanser you always use to clean effectively.

Absolutely, Bar Keepers Friend for stainless steel sink really gets the sink clean and only takes a few minutes of simple scrubbing and rinsing. Sometimes however, I do like to towel dry after rinsing to give the impression of an obsessive compulsive cleaner.

I just did the rinse/baking soda part of this process and it worked really well. I normally rinse and go over my six month old sink with a soap-filled-scrubbie-thingamajig every day, but it doesn't get off the film that somehow sticks to stainless after a while. A simple light scrub with baking soda/water paste really did the trick to bring back the shine.

Wow I never knew that. I drain my hot water all the time. Thank you for passing that along. I will make sure I have the cold water running from now on.

Another tip always run your garbage disposal using cold water.

I liked the cleaning tips and will be trying it out.

For a tea-stained or just old looking stainless sink liquid DISHWASHER soap (harsh and chemical, yes) very occasionally, makes your sink look bright silver again!! wear rubber gloves, spread over entire surface and let sit for a while, if left overnight it will take a bit of elbow grease to scrub off, 2hrs works well-amazing results. Equally brightening and less toxic is a FULL SCOOP of OxyClean (for Laundry) dissolved in a full sink of hot water and left to sit overnight! WOW! looks new in the morning. Make sure you fill entire sink though, or the sink will be the old dingy colour above the water line! And you can throw in all tea towels and disgusting dish cloths to soak out stains at the same time, incl. any sponges, silverware... anything you want to brighten. homeMADEhome

I have no trouble cleaning the sink, what I long for is self-cleaning cooking pots and pans!

I think is because of the connecting material. I used to run my Disposal with hot water because I didn't know better, and everything became loose until the disposal came apart, I had to pay a plumber to put it together again and he told me what the problem was, I only use cold water when I run it now.

I think this is great for ANYONE moving into a new house/apartment. It should definitely be done before heavy use of the sink just to make sure all the bits from the previous tenants are gone. >.<

It's amazing how so many people seem upset just because someone told them a good way to clean their sink. I'll agree that it may seem a tad 'anal', but damn. Cleaning isn't a horrible thing..

- To everyone who complaining about wiping down the sink after each use.. Read again. They said after cleaning, not each use. I dry it after cleaning it.. Is it so horrible to clean your sink once a night? Is it so hard to wipe down when you're finished with your dishes? May be a bit overboard but why am I going to clean the sink and not get the sparkle of it when it's dry? I don't care if it gets used in ten minutes, it take 3 seconds to dry it once after it's clean.

- Someone asked about the vinegar, it's a great way to get rid of hard water. I recently cleaned my bathtub doors with vinegar, and the smell is a bit much, but it make it sparkle so beautifully.

- But I don't see why so many people are complaining about the 3 ways to clean your disposal.. It's not like you have to do all three all the time. Clean it every few months and whenever you have eggs shells/citrus rinds, throw them into it. The eggs shells are supposed to help the blades, and the rinds keep it smelling fresh. Lemon juice also works in a pinch if it's stinky from a clog or something.

But people seem so offended that someone would actually want a clean sink. They seem to think this person is sitting there daily cleaning the sink like this. I just don't understand the immediate rejection of a good idea just because you don't understand why it would be done.

Also, to the one person who said unless you're a slob you don't need to do this. Well, that's ridiculous. Even with light cleanings daily, you still get an accumulation of gunk, that should be removed periodically. And as I said in the beginning of my comment, it's great for people who are just moving into a place (like I am) who is questionable of what's been in the sink before I moved in.

Big thanks to the OP for taking time out of their day to try and help someone else. :)

PS - Old dryer sheets are great for polishing faucets and handles. Just take it when you're finished with your load of laundry and polish the faucet with it. It makes it so shiny.. ^.^

Ugh.. I apologize in advance for my horrible grammar. I just read over my many typos. I got tired of proof-reading it.. :P

Sometimes, being OCD can be really satisfying. I don't get that way often, but sometimes, I need to and I get real satisfaction from doing stuff like this.

I moved into a new apartment with a porcelain sink and disposal. Because it is porcelain, I didn't follow all of the steps. But, the rubber flaps on the disposal were DISGUSTING, and this really helped. I wish I could post the before and after pictures.

the rubber flaps pop out to clean just turn it inside out scrub with an old toothbrush and a little dish soap, fresh as a daisy.

I strongly advise AGAINST the baking soda routine - if you don't fully dissolve the baking soda, you will be cementing (in effect) your pipes up! And, the plumber you have to call will find the sludge particularly disgusting - they love to show it to you! Do a daily light cleaning, pour some boiling water down when you make tea/coffee, scrub the underside of the disposal flap, maybe do the citrus thing and move on!

OME - how does one "pop out" the flaps?

It should just pop out with a tug.

I had this problem, but thanks to this article, now I can take off this problem thanks, I appreciate it. Great article. And I want share information too. This i found in internet. http://www.janitorialweb.com/clean_the_kitchen.html.

Easier to just use Bon Ami!

I prefer use a little vinegar for clean the bathroom, some I use the lemon. For clean the mirror of the bathroom, I use Microfiber Towel is perfect for clean this type of surces.

The baking soda is excellent for clean, but you have much reason. I write a article about Baking Soda I hope, like you. :D

I used dish soap to clean, then waxed with Turtle Wax paste wax... Really makes it shine and protects the finish... water beads on the sink for a while..

It's not that complicated. I wrote a blog post about it at http://www.thecleaningladyblog.com
All you have to do is clean once with a soft cleanser or baking soda, shine with vinegar/water combo and that is it. See my post. It is easier since maintenance is just spray (vinegar/water), dry and go.