It is clear that stainless steel appliances are not going away any time soon. I love the way they look-- adding stainless steel appliances will instant modernity to any kitchen, and their reflective surfaces will make smaller kitchens look bigger. But just like with my iPhone, one of the things that I do not enjoy about my stainless steel appliances is how easily they get fingerprint smudges.
A couple of months ago I finally said enough is enough, and went on a mini crusade in search of the best solution for removing fingerprints from stainless steel. I decided to focus on simple solutions using products that I already own, knowing, from experience, that some of the best solutions are the simplest ones.
Surprisingly, most of the things I tried worked fairly well, to similar results, but none of them kept fingerprint marks away for too long. I had to clean my appliances regularly — about once a week %mdash; but if you clean on a regular basis, getting rid of fingerprints from your appliances should not take more than a few minutes.
Here are some tips to keeping your appliances free of fingerprint smudges:
- Clean with mild soap and water, using a soft cloth.
- Clean with white vinegar and a damp soft cloth.
- Clean with soda water.
- Polish with a clean soft cloth and a dab of olive oil or baby oil.
- Polish with a clean soft cloth and lemon juice.
- After cleaning with mild soap and water, polish with a sheepskin cloth.
- After cleaning with mild soap and water, use furniture polish—wipes are the most convenient.
- Clean with Windex or other streak free glass cleaner.
Do you have any more tips? What do you do to keep your stainless steel appliances in tip-top shape?
Image: Heejin Hwang
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I put mineral oil in an oil mister and lightly spray over the appliance. Then I wipe with a microfiber cloth. It does the trick
The dab of oil on a damp paper towel works best for me, especially on the stove and the microwave above the stove where that sticky grease film forms.
my fridge came with instructions about specifically avoiding anything acidic -- like the white vinegar and lemon juice succestions above -- since that could damage the surface. Not sure that advice applies to ALL s.s. appliances, but worth checking your owners manual before testing those approaches!
I use "Stainless Steel Magic" wipes. Once a week I wipe down everything in the kitchen with one of these, they work pretty well. Also will break out a microfiber towel if there's any steaks.
I once saw a Youtube video using a half&half mixture of baby oil and rubbing alcohol - I haven't tried it yet but it looked good to me...
Oil to clean your stainless steel appliance and counters in the kitchen? That sounds disgusting.
I use Windex on my countertop. It get's teh smudges off easily.
Like ljbmonkey wrote, it's best to review a product's u&c manual. That being said, I have 50+ SS appliances in my showroom and I've tried a number of cleaners. I've learned that many of the sprays are overly greasy and "attract" fingerprints.
The best solution I've found is to spray a TINY amount of Zep brand SS cleaner onto a microfiber cloth and then wipe in circular motions. By using a small amount, you won't be required to clean the entire unit, and you'll notice less fingerprints/lint adhering to the surface.
I use Weiman Stainless Steel cleaner and polish and a few paper towels—it works great. The trick is to spray the product on, wipe down the whole surface and then go back with a dry clean cloth and wipe the entire surface again until the surface looks polished. Takes me about a minute to do my large stainless fridge.
I use a tiny bit of Barkeepers Friend (liquid) and a soft cloth, or I spray a solution of Murphy's Oil Soap & water, and wipe with a soft cloth. Both work very well.
I have found that the one and only thing that cleans my stainless steel backsplash perfectly every time is Orange Oil. And it smells amazing.
I have a SS fridge. I tried everything, and everything left streaks and smudges. Then I tried a spritz of plain old water and a SS specific microfiber cloth -- bingo! No streaks, no smudges. If I've got to wipe off something nasty, I use a spritz of diluted Mrs Meyer's Clean Day All Purpose cleaner, wipe, then follow with a spritz of water and the microfiber cloth.
Use a product called Sheila Shine. We own a commercial kitchen installation company and Sheila Shine is all we use to clean and polish SS. Resists fingerprints too.
Funny, I just was just having this conversation. . . the person I was speaking with said that she uses vodka! I have not tried it myself but she said that it works great! She just puts some in a spray bottle and sprays onto a cloth and wipes down her fridge.
Method's glass cleaner and a terry cloth towel. With the "grain" of the stainless steel.
That's it. Easy peasy.
I use Pledge; works wonders, never any streaking and prevents fingerprints.
I use method's stainless cleaner and a microfiber cloth
I like the Sprayway stainless steel cleaner however I have resigned myself to find a less "chemical" option once there are kids in the household.
Some WD-40 on a paper-towel works great!
Windex makes me want to sneeze! Oil works great! And you can use a scouring pad with the grain to remove minor scratches.
I just Googled this topic, and since I had the lemon Pledge out already I decided to try it on my OTR microwave which would not get clean no matter what I did. WOW is all I can say, the fingerprints came on in just a second and it looks brand new!! Just a bit sprayed onto a paper towel was all it took. Thanks to those who suggested it! :D
Several years ago I overshot with a powerful grout cleaner onto our oven warming drawer. It has been discolored despite trying every cleaner I could think of -- just quickly wiped with mineral oil and a soft cloth -- it looks like new!
10 years ago, someone told me to use Endust on my stainless steel. I've been using it ever since. Just takes a small spray and a clean cloth!
I agree about using oil on stainless steel, besides, I don't use stainless sprays because I worry about my pets. I have a Liebherr and they recommend an oil called Neoblank which is very expensive. I think mineral oil would work the same way.
I'm with Thrifty Guy on this one - WD40 on a soft cloth (rather than a paper towel)
Flitz starfiber cloth... just add a bit of water. No chemicals needed..