Kitchen Kritters

Kitchens need to be considered because when they aren’t then there are consequences...and they are not fun ones.  They include fires, fumes, cockroaches and various fluffy creatures, including moulds and bacteria.

So I thought it might be a good time to consider the kitchen of our shared home. 

Starting with the bins, probably the important thing to remember there is that they need to go our weekly (even when Adam is not here on every Monday night before everyone goes to bed) and in the house, the rubbish and garbage and recycles need to be sorted as per the other article you will see earlier.  If everyone helps it is easy.

Bugs and furry things love moisture and they thrive where there is both moisture AND food.  So case in point, the dishes need to be done and the benches cleaned BEFORE you go to bed. 

 For those who were not here during the Hunter escapades, you will not appreciate how many cockroaches or mice can find the joy of the abundance of food scraps on the bench tops, in the dirty dishes left on the benches or sink or on the dirty stove or when someone inadvertently misses putting garbage in the bins. 

 Settling in for Winter

It is the season critters want to be inside to keep warm (for eggs and raising litters).  Once they get a foothold it is not easy, especially at this season, to discourage them until their nightmare plays across your mind several times.  So please tidy up the kitchen when you go for lights out, this includes:

·         Washing your dishes properly and putting them in the dish drain (see below)

·         Wiping off all the bench tops, so there is nothing for critters to feast on

·         Wiping off the splash backs (behind the stove where things splash when you cook) – Windex Window cleaner with ammonia is the best for this and is stored under the sink.  If there is a heap of stuff on the surfaces, try paper towels to wipe the stuff away.

·         If you spill something on the stove while you are cooking, please wipe it up.  I have to give five stars to the Swedish women whose attitude is whoever uses the stove should clean the stove (this goes for the oven and microwave too)

·         Be sure you have not left a feast of stuff in the sink or dishwasher (see below)

·         If you put food away in the cupboards, please close the boxes or bags or put a lid on it.

·         There are some extra plastic and glass storage containers and Ziplock bags it the cupboard above where the toaster is.

·         If you are throwing garbage in the garbage container, please note it has a lid and is sprayed regularly to discourage overnight foraging and that there is a lid on it that should close off any access by critters.  However, if there is heaps of garbage the solution is that either someone has put recycles in the garbage or someone (like who is trying to add something extra to the garbage bin) should carefully take out the full bag and tie it carefully and put in the bin outside, making sure that lid also closes.

If everyone can help with this it will be super.

Washing Dishes !

I have started an article about this a few times, but always imagine everyone already knows how to do dishes...but it is apparent that some still do not know how to wash dishes so everyone in the household is safe from left over bacteria.

I have been just RE-washing the dishes in the dish drain and dish washer, that are dirty, before putting them away, but perhaps we could just learn a better way to wash them in the first place.

Dishwashing Tips:

·         If you only have one or two dishes, fill the dish itself with HOT water and put about a teaspoon of dishwashing liquid into it and wash it right then and there. 

·         Do not let dishes sit overnight, see article on Kitchen Kritters please.

·         Also, more dishwashing soap does not wash the dishes easier or cleaner, it just uses more dishwashing soap (which also adds to our polluting of our water system, so use sufficient amounts.  But really, we use so much soap in the kitchen!

·         Use the Chux Wipe that is there and not the sponge with the handle. 

·         The sponge with the handle is fine for flat surfaces, but is not working when something like cutlery and sharp knives or pots and pans are being washed. 

·         Plus, the sponge is not working well washing the BACKS of plates, bowls and handles of cutlery, which carries heaps of bacteria in the grease that is left there.

·         The sponge on the handle is being filled with soap (and hopefully a little soap and the rest water) and after using, is most frequently found sponge end down in the sink, where the sponge is seeping out the soap.

·         Because the sponge is not stored properly after being used (in the little sink, head end up) it is not drying out and bacteria is growing at a rapid rate in it ( hence the yucky spell in the sponge).

·         The Chux wipe also needs to be fished out of the sink, squeezed of excess water and placed over the dishes to prevent things from landing on the clean dishes in the dish drain.

If you have heaps of dishes, and intend to wash them by hand, goodonya.  Here is the way to do it:

·         Be sure to remove all the garbage from the dishes into the garbage bin (not beside or in front please)

·         Fill a large pan or the sink (the plug is in the window) with HOT water and squeeze in a tablespoon of dish soap, or more, depending on how greasy the dishes are.

·         Separate the dishes by how “intimate” the piece is with your mouth.  Example:  A fork goes into your mouth, where a pan is used to cook the food but you do not typically lick the pan (unless it is chocolate frosting, of course).  So you wash the cutlery first, the glasses second, the plates next, the pots and pans and boards last.

·         Rinse the dishes in HOT water to remove the soap (which if left on can cause diarrhoea and abdominal upset)

·         Arrange the washed and rinsed dishes in the dish drain so it does not tip over and so air can circulate around all the surfaces

·         For bacteria, mould (or Kritters) to grow and multiply they need fuel (food or something to grow on, such as the surface of a sponge) and moisture. 

·         Bacteria and mold die when they dry out.

·         Rinse out the sink to ensure there are no food bits left there

·         Ring out the Chux dish washer and arrange it over the dishes so it drys out and protects the dishes.

Dishwasher

Sorting the Dishes

If you have heaps of dishes the dishwasher can be a time saver, but it takes a good deal of work too.  There are many items that cannot be put in the dishwasher, such as:

·         Plastic containers such as left over or take away food comes in

·         Wooden spoons or other implements/utensils

·         The sharp knives, which are already starting to rust as they have been put in the dishwasher inadvertently already.

·         Large items many times do not fit because they stop the arms inside the dishwasher from turning.

Preparing the Dishes

The dishes DO have to be thoroughly scraped and rinsed to remove food particles as there is no garbage disposal in the dishwasher.

Pots and pans do not usually get clean and I have to scrub them out after the dishes are done, because they need to be cleaned out first. 

Loading the Dishwasher

After they are rinsed, either leave them on the bench top or put them in the dishwasher: 

·         Glasses on the top shelf on the sides

·         Small bowls and large utensils on the top shelf

·         Large plates in the north east quadrant

·         Small plates in the south east quadrant

·         More large plates or pots and pans in the north west quadrant

·         Larger bowls in the south west quadrant

 I hope this has helped you have a more organised and successful approach to not eating out or ordering pizza in!

Little Tips to Help Save Headaches (Especially me)

Little Tips To Save Everyone (especially me) Headache

 Laundry

·         Please do not overfill or under fill the washer or dryer, about two thirds the way full is maximum for the washer (which has about a double capacity over the dryer (so the washing may need to be split into two batches when you dry it)

·         Arrange the clothes evenly in the tub rather than stuff everything on one side

·         The middle cup inside is for fabric softener only not for detergent or additives

·         You typically only need laundry detergent and the softener.  For deeply soiled or where there are odors you would do well to use the additive.

·         There are only THREE buttons you need to use

o   Power on

o   Water level is to automatic

o   Water temperature is COLD – ALL COLD (we use washing detergent that makes up for using hot water very well)

o   Then just hit start or power on

o   Be sure to close the lid too before you wander off

·         About wandering off...we have enough people in the house doing laundry, that if you wander off, be prepared to find your clean clothes piled outside the washer as the next load is washed

Dryer

The dryer is about as basic as it can be, yet if we use it well, it will last a long time.  So here is how:

·         Open the door

·         Check the lint filter (see below)*

·         Put in clothes to HALF fill the cylinder inside

·         Close the door

·         Push in the button on the door

·         Turn the timer to the amount of time you think necessary and it should start

·         If you are not there when your clothes are finished they may be found, as the washing above, outside the dryer while the next person dries their clothes

Extra Bits:

·         Be sure not to pile anything in front of the air vent of the dryer when it is on

·         Be sure to keep the door open while it is running (unless it is quite cold outside (in which case you need to either open the windows (both of them some) and or put on the fan to draw the moisture outside.

·         If it is cold outside and you leave the windows closed and just put on the fan, please leave the door to the dining room open, as moist air is easier and more efficient to warm than dry air

·         If you keep the outside door open, then be sure you lock the inside door when you are not there to watch it.

 * The LINT filter.

The lint filter must be attended to with EACH load.  How?

·         You take the lint filter out of the slot it resides in when you open the door (at the bottom there)

·         You open it carefully (if it breaks while you are cleaning it, you must replace it before the next person needs to dry clothes)

·         You carefully gather the lint into a little wad and you throw it in the bin, not outside the door.  I wonder who you think has to pick it up and put it in the bin when it is all over the back patio? 

·         /me wonders if some may think she is the one person in the household who loves bending down and chasing and gathering the little balls of lint

It is a blessing to me when someone sweeps the floor, but not when they sweep the dirt out the back door, because as with the lint (see above), I have to go out and gather it and put it in the bin.  We have a dust pan and brush to make that a simple task for anyone.

Last Thoughts

When you use the vacuum cleaner, remember that it is not made to pick up sharp or large objects.  It is also meant to be emptied by someone other than me.  If you are so motivated, I will happily show you how easy it is to empty the vacuum cleaner.

I just bought a floor steamer that has a heap of attachments.  If anyone is so motivated to steam a floor or two, let me know.

Finally, I just bought a new microwave for the house.  You don’t need to slam the door (any more than you need to slam the cupboard doors and the refrigerator doors either) and if you are going to use it would you please read the directions if you are intending to cook something a bit complicated.

If you spill food inside the microwave or it spatters all over the place (just put a paper towel over the food and it will not spatter, btw) you need to wipe it up...it is not automatic cleaning, unfortunately.   Sort of like the stove and oven, if you get my meaning.

Thank you for your help with all this.