Keep Your Stanley Tumbler Clean With 2 Ingredients And A Good Shake

Stanley tumblers have become a viral trend — and it's easy to see why. The colorful cups keep us hydrated and healthy thanks to their generous volume. There are also tons of hacks for using the insulated Stanley containers, so yours might be doing double duty keeping your hot dogs hot and your ice cream icy. No matter what you put in your Stanley, you'll definitely want to make sure that it's sparkling clean and odor free the next time you grab it from the shelf. 

The tumblers are deep, and some of the models have narrow openings, making it a challenge to get in there with a sponge or brush. Even the spray arm of the best dishwasher might not be able to reach some spots. However, there's a technique (recommended by the Stanley company!) that just requires a few pennies worth of uncooked rice and white vinegar that will keep your vessel in great shape, even if you decide to store spicy burritos in there. The food-safe ingredients are effective, non-toxic, and probably already in your kitchen.

Vinegar is a mild acid that kills bacteria and removes smelly odors, and uncooked rice acts as a mild abrasive that gets the vinegar in contact with the insides. Shaking the duo up in your Stanley tumbler helps ensure that the vinegar gets into all the corners and edges while the rice dislodges any stubborn remnants of creamer, coffee oils, or food particles along the way. Stanley recommends using a quarter cup of uncooked rice mixed with 3 ounces of white vinegar – a very modest investment for all this clean.

Just add the rice and vinegar to your cup, close it securely, and give the whole thing a good strong shake for a minute. Let the filled cup rest for a few minutes to allow the vinegar to do its disinfecting work, and follow that up with one more hardy shake. After you've discarded the used rice, rinse the cup out well with warm water and let it air dry. As a reminder, don't use bleach or other cleansers in your Stanley tumbler, as the company cautions that harsh chemicals could damage the cup's seals. Trust vinegar, that good old-fashioned cleaning hack, to do the job properly.