12 Kitchen Cleaning Mistakes That Could Get Toxic

A kitchen should be a place where we can create joy by concocting delicious meals, whether we're sharing them with friends and family, producing them professionally for paying customers, or simply indulging solo. That said, it's also a place that requires a lot of care and attention. Along with bathrooms, kitchens are considered to be the most dangerous rooms in a house. Some of that risk is due to the presence of hot surfaces and sharp items, but poor sanitation is a huge culprit. Failure to thoroughly clean your kitchen can result in the spread of harmful microorganisms that could result in serious illness or even death. Ironically, cleaning is a task that comes with risks of its own.

I'll be the first to admit that I'm not a neat freak or obsessive tidier — the pile of clothes on my bedroom floor is a dead giveaway. I've spent nearly two decades working in the hospitality industry, though, so my standards are far, far higher when it comes to kitchens and dining areas. As a restaurant manager, I've been responsible for the safety and well-being of employees and customers, and making sure professional kitchens could pass a health inspection at a moment's notice. I've also trained staff on how to handle hazardous cleaning chemicals and written countless risk assessments that cover their safe usage. 

It's surprising how many cleaning-associated risks fly under most people's radars. So today, I'm going to highlight the most common kitchen cleaning mistakes that could be harmful to your health.

This may sound like hyperbole, but pretty much every cleaning product you use in your kitchen has the potential to cause damage to your skin, particularly your hands. Most people know that things like bleach and oven cleaner are caustic — meaning they corrode organic tissue — and that you should always wear gloves when handling them. You've also got chemicals like carbolic acid or rubbing alcohol that can have systemic effects and can harm your internal organs from being absorbed through the skin.

However, even your run-of-the-mill dish soap has the potential to cause dermatitis, an irritatingly itchy skin condition. I'm not saying that you should never clean anything without gloves. You're unlikely to have an issue washing a few dishes barehanded unless you have a specific allergy to detergent, but you should definitely don a pair if you're cleaning for a prolonged period of time. 

In terms of material, I highly recommend opting for thick nitrile gloves. These are relatively cheap, water- and puncture-proof, extremely durable, and resistant to pretty much any chemicals you might encounter while cleaning your kitchen. They're also hypoallergenic, unlike latex gloves, so you don't have to worry about having a bad reaction to the material.

Knowing what differentiates detergents, disinfectants, and sanitizers from each other is something I've had drilled into me countless times over my career in the hospitality industry. Here's a simple breakdown.

Detergents, like dish soap, remove dirt and grease but don't kill microbes. Disinfectants kill most bacteria and viruses but have what's called a "contact time." This means that they need to be left wet on a surface for a certain amount of time to do their job before being rinsed off. Sanitizers reduce bacteria to safe levels, but they don't necessarily eliminate viruses or make a surface cleaner.

It's important to know these definitions because you'll often see someone grab any old cleaning spray to wipe down a surface without understanding what it actually does. Using detergent on a surface used to prepare raw meat might make it shine, but the harmful bacteria are still there. Conversely, a sanitizer might kill bacteria in the moment, but it won't actually remove grime, which could then become a breeding ground for more bacteria. When you know the difference, you can check the labels of your cleaning products and know exactly which is the best one for the job.

Although dish soap is typically seen as one of the safer cleaning products in a kitchen, it still has the potential to cause harm. Most dish soaps are detergent-based and intended to remove food debris and grease from kitchenware. You can find some with an antibacterial component, but dishwashing generally relies on thermal sanitation, which is a fancy way of saying hot water kills the germs. Either way, dish soap is not meant to be ingested, so it's crucial to make sure you thoroughly rinse anything you use it on.

Ingesting residual soap can result in gastrointestinal irritation, and children are known to be particularly susceptible to this nasty side effect. Plus, many detergents contain chemicals known as surfactants. These are cleaning agents that, in layman's terms, help trap and remove oily particles and greasy residue. You really don't want them inside you, though, because surfactants can irritate internal mucous membranes — the tissues that line much of our insides — and our lungs. 

As a side note, never use dish soap to wash produce, either, as the residue can stay on the food. I'd even avoid using vegetable wash spray products, as they're not proven completely safe, and the jury's out on their efficacy. Running water is enough to do the trick.

Many household cleaners are pre-diluted down to their ideal strength for home use. This doesn't necessarily mean that they're no longer toxic, but they shouldn't be stronger than required to do their job. It's also not a given — chemicals like bleach often require dilution, and the correct level of dilution can vary depending on whatever it is you're trying to clean, and how deeply you're intending to clean it.

You should be particularly wary if you're buying commercial kitchen products. In my experience, most of these come in a concentrated form. Restaurants will go through far more cleaning chemicals than your average home, so concentrates are generally more cost-effective, save on space, and make it much easier to order in bulk. Concentrates require a specific water-to-cleaner ratio to work properly, so over-dilution means the cleaner might not be effective at removing harmful organisms. Conversely, under-dilution means the chemical is stronger than it should be, which increases the risk of exposure to chemical burns or harmful fumes. The safest solution is to always double-check the label whenever you buy a cleaning product and always follow the instructions provided.

Bleach is well-known for its properties as a potent disinfectant and powerful stain remover. It was first formulated in the 18th century and became hugely popular for its ability to whiten laundry. When its sanitizing abilities became known, people started using it as a cleaning product and, in lower concentrations, for treating non-potable water. The main chemical in bleach is sodium hypochlorite, a strong inorganic oxidizer that kills bacteria, viruses, fungi, and molds by denaturing proteins and disrupting the cell walls of the microbes. That should make its potential toxicity to humans pretty clear.

It should be obvious that you don't want to ingest bleach or have prolonged skin contact with the stuff. However, it can be easy to overlook the fumes it gives off. As bleach cleans, it undergoes a chemical reaction that releases gases as a byproduct, including chlorine gas. At lower concentrations, chlorine gas won't kill you, but you don't want to inhale any if you can avoid it. It can cause headaches and irritate your skin and eyes. 

It'll also affect your respiratory system, making you cough and wheeze. This is why you should make sure your kitchen is well-ventilated whenever you're using bleach — so, get those windows open and turn on your extractor fan if you have one. If you do have to work with bleach in an enclosed space, cover up any bare skin and don an R95-rated face mask to avoid inhaling harmful fumes.

White vinegar is nothing short of a miracle cleaner when you want to make your kitchen shine. You can use vinegar to remove grease from your oven, break down limescale, unclog drains, and make your wine glasses sparkle. Vinegar is great because it's cheap, natural, and non-toxic, and it's an effective cleaning chemical because of its mild acidity. However, the one time you need to be extremely careful with vinegar is when you're also cleaning with bleach.

Remember how I said bleach gives off small amounts of chlorine gas? Well, when it interacts with an acid, like vinegar, it gives off a lot more chlorine gas. Lower concentrations are irritating and moderately harmful, but higher amounts are far more dangerous. Chlorine gas can cause vomiting, burn your eyes, severely damage your lungs, and in bigger concentrations, cause death in as little as 30 minutes. It's so lethal, it was used as a chemical weapon in World War I. 

This is why you should also be incredibly wary when it comes to combining different cleaning chemicals. Some people assume that mixing products together can increase their effectiveness, but I strongly advise against it. Unless you're a trained chemist, you just won't be able to predict the outcome, and the risk of accidentally creating a poisonous gas just isn't worth it.

The other chemical that's prevalent in household cleaning products and is worth being aware of is ammonia. Ammonia isn't as effective at killing microbes as bleach, but it's a superb degreaser. It also evaporates quickly, meaning it doesn't leave streaks. This is why it's often used in glass cleaners, some oven cleaners, and all-purpose cleaners. If you check a product label, it's usually listed as ammonium hydroxide.

Ammonia itself can have some pretty nasty effects in high concentrations, so it's another chemical you should only use in a sufficiently ventilated area. However, there are also a number of other chemical types that it reacts strongly with, producing a range of potentially dangerous or deadly outcomes. If ammonia comes into contact with an oxidizer, like bleach, it produces chloramine gas, which has similar health effects to chlorine gas. You should also be careful if you're cleaning with hydrogen peroxide. If mixed with ammonia, the combo can produce harmful fumes, and the reaction even has the potential to be explosive. 

This isn't to say you should avoid ammonia-based cleaning products. But you should always read the label and be extra cautious if using multiple chemicals at once.

Most of us have been guilty of using a sponge a little longer than we should have. We give it a good rinse under the faucet, squeeze it out, and give it a little sniff next time we go to use it. If it doesn't smell too bad and it's not falling apart, it'll be good to use again. The problem is that, even though sponges or cleaning cloths might look clean, harmful bacteria like E. coli or Salmonella can thrive in the damp material. So, even if it looks and smells okay, there's a good chance you're simply spreading microbes over whatever surface you're supposed to be cleaning.

Realistically, you should be sanitizing your cleaning equipment about once a week to keep it safe for use. There are plenty of easy ways to sanitize sponges and cleaning cloths, including submerging them in boiling water, soaking them in bleach, or zapping them in the microwave. For disposable cleaning items, I suggest replacing them every couple of weeks, particularly if they see heavy use. 

The other item you also need to keep an eye on is steel wool. This stuff can be great for loosening up tough debris, but overuse can cause the fibers to break off. If you don't throw it out early enough, you risk getting tiny pieces of metal on your cookware, which can easily be ingested if you're not careful.

There are a few different hacks for keeping your oven clean, but there's a chance you might find yourself having to use an oven-cleaning chemical product. There's nothing inherently wrong with using oven cleaner, but you need to be aware of the associated risks. Oven-cleaning products usually contain sodium hydroxide — also known as lye — which is a highly caustic chemical that can burn your skin if you're not properly protected.

Although oven cleaners are excellent degreasers, they should never be used on any surface except your oven. They're normally too strong for kitchen countertops, so you risk damaging the surface. They also give off potentially hazardous fumes — it's one thing if the chemical is only being used in your oven, but another if you're spreading the product all around your kitchen. You're also increasing the risk of leaving behind chemical residue, which can contaminate food, meaning there's a chance someone may end up ingesting some of the harmful chemicals. 

It's crucial to remember that, if you do clean your oven with a strong degreasing chemical, you should wear sturdy nitrile gloves. If the product comes in a spray bottle, I strongly suggest donning safety goggles, too.

Storing kitchen cleaning chemicals safely is extremely important. When I managed restaurants, failure to do so could easily result in a failed health inspection. It's easy to say that a lot of the rules around storing chemicals are just common sense, but you'd be surprised at how frequently they're ignored, especially if there's a shortage of convenient space.

You should never store cleaning products next to any food or cooking equipment where leaks or spills could lead to contamination. It's also common to find some chemical residue left on the exterior of product containers, so checking the lid is secure might not be enough protection. You should also be wary of storing chemicals too high up. Hazardous chemicals shouldn't be stored above eye level, particularly heavier containers. A spillage up high makes it far more likely that you'll end up getting something nasty on your face, or in your eyes or mouth, which are arguably the last places you want to be splashed with chemicals. 

Storing chemicals at floor level is the best solution, especially as spills are easier to mop up, but you need to be extra careful if you have small children. Never overlook the importance of safety locks on cleaning cabinets. Lastly, be careful not to store chemicals near a heat source, as this could damage containers or even cause combustion.

It's easy to assume that cleaning chemicals are good forever, but that's not the case. For starters, many products degrade and become less effective over time. For disinfectants, this means they may not be killing harmful bacteria or viruses, and therefore, they're not making surfaces food-safe. Some may even go through changes in their chemical composition over time, becoming more hazardous.

It's also important to remember that not all cleaning products have sanitizing properties. Bacteria, viruses, and mold can still thrive in soaps and detergents if given enough time to grow. There's no telling whether a forgotten bottle of detergent has become a hotbed for dangerous microorganisms. Fortunately, most cleaning products come with a printed expiration date, so be sure to check the label when you're making a purchase and double-check products you've had for a while. If you do find that you're frequently left with out-of-date supplies, consider buying smaller items. It'll save you money in the long run and prevent you from having to waste stuff by throwing it out.

While there's sometimes no substitute for professionally formulated kitchen products, the reality is you can do a significant amount of household cleaning with homemade concoctions. A simple mixture of vinegar and baking soda can be a highly effective all-purpose cleaner that simultaneously removes grime and disinfects surfaces. You can even scent your cleaner with natural ingredients to mask the smell of the vinegar and give your kitchen a wonderfully fresh aroma. However, it's critical that you always label any homemade cleaners to avoid any toxic incidents.

If you're repurposing an old container or spray bottle for your own cleaner, first make sure it's immaculate inside to avoid introducing the old chemical to the new. Then, make sure you remove the current label, so there's no confusion as to what's in there — if you're using a new bottle, you can skip this step. Next, add a new label that clearly states what the cleaner is, its intended use, the date you made it, and whether there are any reactive ingredients that the user should be aware of. 

The last thing you want is to get your products mixed up, especially when there's a risk of creating hazardous gases. The other risk is that someone else could use one without knowing what's inside and may not even realize it's a cleaning product.