Despite what you might think, your sink isn’t automatically the cleanest spot in your house. According to a report on NBC’s “Today Show,” the drain alone can contain 500,000 bacteria per square inch.

Here is some advice on how to keep your kitchen sink free of germs and contaminants:

• Wash your hands with warm water and an anti-bacterial hand soap before you begin cleaning.
• Use an anti-bacterial cleanser to clean the sink surface.
• Use hot water to loosen up any easily removable gunk on the sink’s surface.
• It’s a good idea to let the cleansing agent sit on any stains or built-up gunk between two to five minutes.
• Use a scrub pad or the coarse side of a sponge to scrub,
• Rinse your sink to ensure any remaining cleaning chemicals have been removed.
• Continue to keep the drain clean by mixing one tablespoon of bleach and one quart of water and dump it down the sink twice a week, make sure to scrub the basin at the same time.

Sources:

About.com. “How to clean a sink,” http://housekeeping.about.com/od/bathroom1/ht/cleansink.htm; accessed 23 Oct. 2009.

Ask the Builder. “Stainless steel sink care,” http://www.askthebuilder.com/B156_Stainless_Steel_Sink_Care.shtml; accessed 23 Oct. 2009.

Ehow.com. “How to clean dirty kitchen sinks,” http://www.ehow.com/how_2145274_can-clean-dirty-kitchen-sinks.html; accessed 23 Oct. 2009.

University of Florida. “Keeping it clean: Cleaning your sink,” http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/FY792; accessed 23 Oct. 2009.

Today. “Soap up! The 12 germiest places in your life,” http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21423163/; 12 Nov. 2008.