Grease is a sneaky fiend. You deep fry some chicken on a weekday night and wipe down your counters, hob, and cabinets. Fast forward to two weeks later, and you realize your kitchen cabinets are covered in sticky grease.
Removing grease from kitchen cabinets is no easy task, as a washcloth is no match for it. So how to clean sticky grease off kitchen cabinets quickly and easily? This article will show you nifty tricks for cleaning kitchen grease build-up, without damaging the wooden cabinets.
If you want to banish grease from your kitchen and learn what to use to clean kitchen cabinets, this article is for you.
What You Will Need to Remove Kitchen Grease
This list will tell you what to clean kitchen cabinets with, and you can use whichever you have at home.
- Warm water
- Soft sponge and scrubber
- Dishcloth
- Soap
- Baking soda
- Salt
- White vinegar
- Citrus All-Purpose Cleaner
- Diluted Castile soap
The Best Way to Clean Kitchen Cabinets
The best cleaner for wood kitchen cabinets (as well as other materials), is soap and warm water. This makes sense because what removes grease from wood cabinets better than the humble bar of soap?
But why is soap used to remove grease? The soap breaks down the grease and makes it easier to wash away with water. To clean grease this way, soak a sponge in hot or warm water and wipe your cabinets to loosen the grease.
Then, spray down the whole area with warm soapy water. The beauty of this method is that you can use any soap, including liquid dish detergent. Next, use your scrub brush or sponge to clean the grease off your cabinets.
To prevent any residue from remaining, wipe down your cabinet with a lightly damped kitchen towel, and then follow it up drying with a different dish towel.
If you are worried about the soap drying out the wood of your kitchen cabinets, you can also apply some kind of beeswax polish to them. This makes it look new and shiny, prevents the wood from going dry, and even repels grease!
How to Clean Greasy Oak Cabinets
People with oak furniture tend to be quite protective of them. Regular soaps or a commercial kitchen cabinet degreaser can be too strong for them as well. So, how to clean oak kitchen cabinets without damaging them?
The answer is cleaning kitchen cabinets with vinegar. Dilute some vinegar with a little water and spray it onto your cabinets. At the same time, soak a sponge or washcloth with this diluted vinegar as well.
Then scrub or rub the grease off your cabinets with a cloth or sponge. Then spray some more vinegar solution and let it sit for 10-15 minutes. Once the time is up, wipe down the cabinet with a damp cloth or microfiber cloth until all the vinegar is gone.
Last but not the least, dry the cabinet with a dry kitchen towel and you will have a splendid oak cabinet free of grease.
How to Remove Stubborn Grease from Cabinets
If you’ve neglected your kitchen surfaces for a while, chances are there is some serious grease buildup on everything. How to get grease off wood cabinets that have been there for ages? The best cleaner for kitchen cabinets is actually cheap and, in your pantry, right now!
How to clean wood cabinets naturally? Cleaning kitchen cabinets with baking soda is the answer. Here’s what you gotta do:
Loosen up the grease with a warm damp sponge. Then, make a kind of thick paste with baking soda and a little water. Apply this paste onto your cabinets and scrub away with a cloth, sponge, or brush.
You can even add salt if you have an extreme case of grease. The baking soda cuts through the greasy film without damaging the wood. Once you are done, use a damp dishcloth or towel to remove the baking soda paste and use a dry one to finish up.
This is the best kitchen grease cleaner for those on a budget and a great way to use up the bulk of baking soda in your cupboard. You can also use this for your counters, kitchen island, and even stovetop.
Other Ways to Clean Sticky Wooden Kitchen Cabinets
Besides what we’ve mentioned above, there are still a couple of kitchen grease remover options left. If you want to learn how to clean painted kitchen cabinets without damaging the color, diluted Castile soap is the way to go.
Simply dilute the liquid soap with some warm water and spray it across your cabinets. Use a sponge to buff off any buildup and use a damp dishtowel to remove any residue before drying off the surface.
And if you are a one-size-fits-all kind of person, using a multi-purpose cleaner will work just as well. With these sprays, you just spritz some and let them sit for a while, before scrubbing off any pent-up grease.
Preventing Grease Building Upon Your Kitchen Cabinets
Getting rid of grease is difficult and requires getting your hands dirty. Preventing any oil from landing on your cabinets and building is a much easier answer.
To do so, you should invest in a splatter guard or shield, which will prevent the grease from ending up on your counter or cabinets in the first place.
Besides this, you should make it a point to wipe down all your kitchen surfaces with diluted soap once a week, to prevent any errant drops of grease that may end up on your cabinets. This will prevent grease from going sticky and building up over time.
You can also wash your hands often when cooking. This will prevent oil from transferring to different surfaces across your kitchen, slowing down the process of buildup.
Still Got Questions?
This section has answers to questions people often have about cleaning sticky grease off kitchen counters.
01. How Do I Clean Sticky Wood Cabinets?
You can scrub sticky grease from wooden cabinets using soap, vinegar, baking soda, and multipurpose or commercial degreasers.
02. Will Cleaning Grease from Cabinets Remove Their Polished Finishing?
If you use mild cleaners like diluted dish soap or vinegar, you can break down grease without damaging the finishing on your wooden or painted cabinets.
03. Can I Use Murphy Oil Soap to Clean Wooden Cabinets?
Murphy Soap can break down deeply rooted grease and grime, and do so without damaging the wood or polish of the kitchen cabinets.
04. Is It Safe to Use Steel Wool on My Kitchen Cabinets?
You should never use steel wool or strongly abrasive materials to remove grease from your cabinets or kitchen counters. Instead, use a sponge, soft brush, or dishcloth to scrub off the grease.
Last but Not Least
Figuring out how to clean sticky grease off kitchen cabinets is a serious game changer for your housekeeping skills. You can easily remove grease, and prevent it from coming back the next time you want deep-fried quesadillas.
Whether you like commercial soaps or DIY natural cleaners, this article will have something for you. You can also learn to clean grease from waffle makers, as well as clean griddles!
But now let’s hear it from you. What would you use to clean hardwood cabinets in the kitchen and get rid of grease?
