Using natural products to clean up around your house is a great way to save and do good for the environment. Corn starch has many good abilities to clean up around you kitchen and other area of the house.

To clean up grease from your counters, simply sprinkle corn starch onto the countertop and allow it to absorb the grease. Wipe it up and then rinse.

You can make a home made cleaner to cleaner your window areas as well as your counter-tops and refrigerator, microwave, etc.

Mix together ~

2 quarts of warm water

Half a cup cornstarch

It really does clean your windows and other kitchen areas.

It is nice to be able to use items that are already in your kitchen when it comes to cleaning. Cornstarch is something most people already have and it has so many uses.

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My mother has a phrase that she lives by: clean as you go. I’ve found this advice to be especially true when it comes to maintaining a clean kitchen.

When I cook a meal for my husband and I, I like to fill the sink with hot, soapy water in anticipation of the impending pile of dishes. Once the meal is served, you put the empty pots and pans into the sink to soak while you eat. As for spills, clean them as soon as they happen; depending on the type of flooring or counter tops you have, getting the stain out later may prove impossible.

After the meal, wash the dishes and put them in the dish rack to dry. You can put them away the next morning. Or, if you’re like me, and you hate doing dishes by hand, this is a good time to load the dishwasher. Dishes left out in the sink tend to attract a surprising array of critters that do not make pleasant house guests.

Finally, wipe the counter down with one of the many sanitizing wipes available at your local supermarket. If you find a lot of crumbs, runaway peas, or escaped popcorn kernels underfoot, give the floor a quick sweep. There’s no need to mop now; save that as a task you perform weekly. After all, it’s likely tomorrow will bring an entirely new mess to the kitchen, especially if you have children.

Keeping your kitchen clean doesn’t have to be exhausting Read the rest of this entry

Due to lack of time or motivation, kitchens are often the first area of our houses to need cleaning. However, it doesn’t have to be this way. There are several tools that are indispensable when cooking and allow you to keep your kitchen spic ‘n’ span while making your cooking experience more efficient and effective.

1. The largest cutting board you can find- by getting the largest cutting board that your kitchen space allows, you minimize contact of ingredients with counter tops, and are able to work with many different ingredients at once. As a chef, quite often having to work on multiple orders at once, to me it’s undeniably clear that a large cutting surface is an underrated chef’s tool. However, don’t get a glass one- it’ll destroy your knife and shatter easily if dropped.

2. Kitchen cloth- always have a wet cloth on hand. This can be used for many things, picking up hot pots, wiping down accidental spills, or wiping off that huge cutting surface. When you’re cooking you also have to regularly clean your knife blade, and wipe your fingers. It is recommended to clean the blade of your knife after every few slices so that nothing is obstructing your cutting path. So don’t forget the wipe!

3. An empty sink- before you begin cooking, always make sure the dishes have been done. If not, you will tend to pile dishes and pots and pans Read the rest of this entry

The best way to keep your kitchen clean when you cook is to make sure everything is in correct order before beginning a new task such as cooking. For me I have to make sure all my dishes are cleaned, the sink is cleared up, the floors is swept and mopped and stove, and fridge and counter tops are all rid of grease, grime and other things. My family in particular my brother in law is the person responsible for how I clean, manage and organize myself in the household. I cannot enter a kitchen where things are out of place, the best approach is to make sure everything is in structured order that way your mind is clear and you feel good about preparing the food you’re about to serve yourself and others.

Therefore, my advice is to clear the clutter from the table, counters and sink that way your food will be prepared in a clean environment and the food would be a lot more enjoyable when you eat. I also suggest you drape a wet rag over your shoulder, this way any spills will be dealt with swiftly without leaving a stubborn stain later to clean. I do this each time I step into my kitchen I may also add make sure your wet garbage and other recyclables is properly compartmentalized before you begin cooking. I have everything prepared on my counter so I do not have to reach to get things or step away Read the rest of this entry

I love to cook, but clean-up is a real drag. Everyone enjoys the meal and then you are left with the mess while they zone out in front of the television. When my family was young I did most of my meal preparation at my mother’s house. She had a very large kitchen and she lived right next to me so it was easier to make meals for two families at her house rather then in my small kitchen.

When you cook for a large family the mess can accumulate quite fast if you are not well organized. The key is to plan what you need and place it within reach while cooking and when ever you have a moment clean the used utensils and put back in its place. This will keep the clutter to a minimum.

My mom used to tell me that I took after my father in the kitchen. She used to tell me that when I cooked I made a mess from one end of the counter to the other and since most of her kitchen was counters the mess truly did cover the entire kitchen. Since my mom was such a neat nick this would be such a frustrating time for her, so over the last twenty years of cooking holiday meals for twenty people or more you learn ways to make clean up easier.

One of the best ways to keep a kitchen clean while Read the rest of this entry

Have you ever wondered how to get your partner into the kitchen to cook with you – or even for you? Or perhaps you would just like some interest and help in choosing the next new kitchen you want. Or do you come from that not-so-rare group of males who want to own their own masculine kitchen?

Well, for all of these scenarios, there is now a solution! A range designed for a man’s kitchen. You may wonder how a ‘man’s kitchen’ can be so different from any other kitchen….

Is equality more prevalent in Europe? Who knows, but it is a German manufacturer who has come up with the man’s kitchen. Poqqenpohl, Germany’s oldest furniture company has partnered with Porsche Designs and come up with sleek and functional cabinets loaded with all kinds of bells and whistles men love.

In their eyes, the man’s kitchen is the ‘event’ room, and as such it has its own audio system and the designers strove for a masculine, no frills look. The result is a modular, spacious and extremely versatile system of frames for what Poqqenpohl believes men will feel is a stunning design concept.

Of course there is a choice of design, although aluminum profiles of different sizes makes up the basic framework of the new look and can be positioned in a variety of ways. Cabinets are designed to be positioned in a variety of different ways, rather like setting up a high tech Read the rest of this entry

Kitchen and Bath Areas
GFCI Electrical Wiring
Remodeling Wiring for Kitchens and Baths

Remodeling Wiring for Kitchens and Baths

Kitchens and Bath areas require special electricity wiring for electrical outlets.
The electrical outlet locations are also much different than in other portions of homes.
What are electrical requirements for kitchen and bath areas?

As electrical requirements change frequently be sure to check with your certified local electrician for any special requirements you and questions for your kitchen or bath remodeling. This a summary of a few of the guidelines from the national electrical code a few years back.

In the kitchen area the NEC requires no more than 6 fee from a given location to be from an outlet which would make the outlets no more than 12 feet apart with special outlet locations in the kitchen area or over counter-tops.

Counter-top receptacles in your kitchen must be served by two or more different circuits. Each kitchen counter space that is wider than 12 inches must have its own outlet, with no point along than countertop being more than 24 inches apart horizontally or 48″ of space between the outlets in the kitchen.

Often electricians run a three wire 240 volt cable from the service panel and provide two new 120 volt circuits. One side of each receptacle is served by one of the  circuits while the other side is served by the other circuit, giving two circuits available at each outlet which gives the term split circuit. Protection for over-current on a split circuit Read the rest of this entry