Kitchen Tip: Black Appliances

by on Jan 01, 2008 in recipes & kitchen tips

Over at Tammy’s Recipes today, we are asking a kitchen question. What a fun idea! I am in need of suggestions for keeping my black appliances clean. I have a black sink and stove top that are helpless in keeping clean. They show every bit of dirt, but especially water stains. Is there no options? I believe they are made out of porcelain, if that helps anything. My stove top also accumulates a hard black substance around the gas burners that is crusted in and I can’t scrub off for the life of me. I have tried a scratchy and many different cleaning products, but to no avail. Any thoughts for keeping it shining?

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Post Author

This post was written by who has written 937 posts on Passionate Homemaking.

Lindsay Edmonds is first a lover of Jesus, wife, mother of three, homemaker, and writer. She is the editor of Passionate Homemaking since its beginning four years ago. She loves inspiring women around the world toward simple, natural, and intentional living for the glory of God.

26 Responses to “Kitchen Tip: Black Appliances”

  1. mrs Corn Jan 16, 2012 at 9:25 am #

    We moved into a house which we are renting and not to sound mean, but the stove and sinks and fridge all were in horrid condition, smelling and looking. All apliances are black while the sink is white.
    For black appliances, I found that the following process works best, mixing equal parts white vinegar and hot water and pouring onto the black crud. Let soak for 30 minutes, then sprinkle with baking soda and scrub with a micro fiber cloth, I had to use a razor blade for the worst spots, but the prior process worked for the most of it.
    This process worked well for the sinks and oven as well.
    For the odors on the fridge and freezer, I used the same vinegar solution and scrubbed it well, then dissolved baking soda in ot water and re wiped all the areas.
    I now simply wipe my stove top with a damp microfiner rag each day after cooking and to keep the sink from getting dingy I put a few drops of olive oil on a microfiber rag and wipe the sink till shiney each evening before bed. Hope this helps:)

    Reply
  2. Kay Jul 06, 2011 at 7:36 pm #

    Just had the repair man over as my brand new Samsung black refrigerator arrived scratched. He indicated that the only thing that will not scratch it is a soft, CLEAN cloth, such as a microfiber cloth with water. If you should get something sticky on it put either mayonaise or peanut butter on the spot and let it sit for up to 20 minutes or so and wipe off. Never use Windex as it will leave a residue over time. Never use paper towel as it scratches over time just as it will scratch eye glasses. Very sorry I purchased black as I wanted a textured black and could not find. I think it is a ploy by the appliance manufacturers so that the consumer needs to replace their refrigerator more often as the finish will not hold up.

    Reply
  3. Jennafer Mar 14, 2011 at 5:35 pm #

    I have a black stove top and the best way to get it streak free is to use a high quality microfiber cloth.

    Reply
    • Barb Giagnorio Sep 29, 2011 at 6:24 am #

      Eco friendly array of microfiber cloths and so much more. They have a paste and scrubbing cloth that is excellent on black. You can contact me if you would like more information.

      Reply
      • carolyn Jan 21, 2012 at 3:39 pm #

        Where did you find the paste and scrubbing cloth? What is the brand name? I have used the microfibre cloth and white vinegar and water but still have some spots that will not come off. They kinda look like water spots but nothing takes them off.

        Reply
  4. ann Jan 10, 2011 at 4:30 pm #

    I have black applianes my dishwasher gets water marks, i take a soapy warn rag wash it rinse it dried it, then i take a soft cloth on one end i put a little baby oil wipe the dishwasher with the baby oil and then use the clean end of cloth to go over drieing, clean and what a shine.

    Reply
  5. Judy Pierce Dec 02, 2010 at 5:32 pm #

    I got a special cleaner for my stove when I bought it. When I ran out I used Bon-Ami cleaner as it is non scratching. I also use a green scrubber that is non scratching. It takes off all the brown gunk cooked around the burners. Works great. Then use vinegar and water equal parts and spray then wipe down with a microfiber cloth. Great shine.

    Reply
  6. Kandra Sep 02, 2009 at 7:16 pm #

    Its really easy to leave black appliances streak free and clean! All you have to do is get some windex ( has to be name brand though, it really does work the best) and dry paper towls..treat it like its a mirror and it will be super clean, germ free, and streak free!

    Reply
  7. Rhonda Boyce Aug 14, 2009 at 7:32 pm #

    I clean my soild cooktop with the magic eraser sponges. It works great and is so easy!

    Reply
  8. Jennifer D Jun 26, 2009 at 7:30 am #

    For our glass-top/ceramic stove I do the following:
    Sprinkle the stovetop with baking soda, spray with a little water or vinegar/water mix, let sit for a minute or two, then scrub with a vegetable scrubber. The baking soda is a mild abrasive and, when mixed with the vegetable scrubber, can take the worst burnt on stuff off. The baking soda is key – vegetable scrubbers alone don’t seem to work.

    However, if you are talking about a shiny finish that easily scratches, which I doubt since you mentioned using scrubbies, I would use a razor blade to get it off, much like you would for something (i.e. paint) stuck on glass.

    As for the sink, a little spray of vinegar/water mix (50% each) and a microfibre cloth go a long way. So does that baking soda and vegetable scrubber method for tougher spots.

    Reply
    • Mo Aug 07, 2011 at 11:58 am #

      When I had a ceramic hob I cleaned it using a wet paste of biological soap powder (laundry detergent). Leave overnight and cleaning is easy the next morning.

      Reply
  9. LM Mar 23, 2009 at 4:50 pm #

    We have black appliances (Not my choosing-came with the house we purchased) and (I identify with each story I’ve read here) we have such a hard time maintaining the black appliances water stain free and dust free no matter how often we clean them. Thank you so much for posting your cleaning tips. The windex and (or) water-vinegar mix will be the first I will try. Can’t wait to see the appliances nice and shiny again. I’ll keep you posted about the results~ :-)

    Reply
  10. Deena Barton Feb 10, 2009 at 6:39 pm #

    Hi, I, too, have black appliances that I just love and have used many products, but none compare to club soda (I add a few drops of tea tree oil) and it is the best glass cleaner (eyeglasses too), appliance cleaner, mirrors, tv screens, computer monitors (of course spray onto cloth not electronics) and chrome. I also use microfiber cloths and I cannot be more thrilled!
    Blessings
    Deena

    Reply
  11. I Love Cooktops Oct 17, 2008 at 4:22 pm #

    I agree with Siemens. The only thing to keep black kitchen appliances, sinks, refrigerators is windex, water, and a dry rag.

    Reply
  12. Siemens Kitchen Appliance Fan Aug 05, 2008 at 5:33 pm #

    Lately, I’ve been using windex, water, and a dry rag to clean my black kitchen cooktop, sink, and refrigerator….seems to be the only thing that works!

    Reply
    • Kate Jan 19, 2009 at 11:18 am #

      That’s what we use too! Works like a charm!

      Reply
  13. Cherity May 13, 2008 at 12:44 pm #

    Lindsay,
    Just read this post…a little late I know! Anyway, my grandmother got a flat top stove before I did and she showed me that you can remove the cooked on “crud” by using a razor blade. I usually use a paste of baking soda and diluted castile soap with the razor as extra protecting from scratching. Just be careful to keep the razor flat to the surface to avoid scratching it. I only do this about once a month, unless I make a huge mess that I can’t scrub off. Hope this helps!

    Reply
  14. Tia Jan 05, 2008 at 1:53 am #

    Babychaser, I believe her stove is black (came that way) by choice. Not because something was left on there.

    Reply
    • Tia Jan 05, 2008 at 5:19 pm #

      Nevermind…maybe Lindsay can remove my post! I re-read her post and she mentions a hard black build-up.

      Have you tried making a paste of Comet and a little water and allowing it to sit on the hard stuff?

      Reply
  15. Babychaser Jan 04, 2008 at 8:46 pm #

    I don’t know if this will help you or not as the situations are a little different… My stove doesn’t get black on it, but it does get a brownish “stain” like something that I can never wash off. I’d have to guess it’s from liquid spilling from a pan and cooking on (my stove top is white with gas ranges).

    Anyway, I had given up on ever seeing it beautiful again until the day I accidentally left a stick of butter on the stove to “soften”. Forgot it was there and preheated my oven… before I knew it there was liquid butter (that’s soft right?) all over my stove top. I was not a happy camper as I imagined this would not be easy to clean up.

    Turns out a stack of papertowels later that it cleaned up rather easily… and took all the cooked on stuff with it! That was unexpected. It’s a long story… but if my problem resembles yours, perhaps melted butter would help. :)

    Reply
  16. Mandie Jan 02, 2008 at 4:09 pm #

    I have all black appliances and they have the shiny finish not the matte finish. There are a couple tips I have…the first, don’t use abrasive cloths including paper towels. They can actually put small clear coat scratches. These scratches, I’m finding, are inevitable, but the harder dish cloth fabrics and such make it worse. Second, once a month or so, I take a black tinted car polish and polish them (you can get this stuff anywhere including hardware stores. I think I got my last bottle at walmart). This helps repel the dirt and makes them look like new. In between waxing, I just use a soft damp cloth to wipe them down and another soft cloth to get rid of streakiness. Hope that helps!!

    Reply
    • Mo Aug 07, 2011 at 12:02 pm #

      Hi Mandie, I was just about to use neutral car wax on my black appliances, I think I will wait until I buy black car wax.

      To date I’ve been using neat vinegar and microfibre cloth.

      Reply
  17. Samara Root Jan 02, 2008 at 9:44 am #

    Hi Lindsay,
    My Mom has a flat, glass-top stovetop…if this is what you have…the stovetop we got came with a special scraper blade, because the black burned-on stuff will only come off with a blade in my experience. They ought to sell that type of thing at Home Depot or some such store. The blade scrapes the burned food off but not the glass.

    Good luck!

    Reply
  18. Tia Jan 01, 2008 at 5:10 pm #

    I use Windex on my stove w/then wiping w/a paper towel, after wiping it down w/a soapy rag. I don’t like streaks or water marks. And this works like a charm! I know have stainless steel appliances, but I use to have black appliances.

    Reply
  19. karol Jan 01, 2008 at 3:32 pm #

    I too have a black stove and I have found spraying it with a mix of a few drops of white vinegar w/water makes it sparkle. I keep a spray bottle w/vinegar and water on my sink and use it for everything!

    Reply
  20. Amanda Jan 01, 2008 at 3:13 pm #

    I don’t have black appliances, however I hear that microfiber cloths is supposed to work great on black appliances. Just google Microfiber cloths and I’m sure many websites will pop up where you can order some from :)

    Reply

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