6 Things You Should Never Clean With Vinegar

Vinegar is an incredible versatile cleaning staple. It’s also a natural product that’s inexpensive to buy and safe to use.

The potential uses for vinegar around the home are numerous. From cleaning your windows and kitchen sink to removing leftover residue from sticky labels, there’s not much that vinegar can’t do.

But there are a few things that vinegar should never do, and it’s important that you know what they are before the damage is done.

Never clean the following with vinegar:

Stone countertops

Vinegar is acidic, and acid can burn through your granite, marble and soapstone countertops, leaving noticeable damage that will likely be expensive to remedy. Even treated stone countertops can be damaged, with vinegar able to work its way through any sealants that have been applied to the surface, before going on to attack the stone below.

Stone countertops of all types give the appearance of durability but in fact need to be looked after carefully. Knives should never be used directly on stone surfaces, contact with acidic foods such as citrus juices and fizzy drinks should be avoided, and harsh cleaning chemicals are a no-no.

Washing up liquid mixed with water in a spray bottle is an effective and gentle way to keep your countertops clean. You can also apply rubbing alcohol to your kitchen surfaces to disinfect them, leaving the solution to sit for around five minutes before rinsing with warm water and drying with a microfibre cloth. Remember to avoid using abrasive sponges or scourers, as these can dull or even badly scratch natural stone countertops.

Stone floor tiles or flagstones

For all the reasons above, vinegar and other acidic or harsh cleaning solutions should never be used on stone flooring. Ammonia should also be avoided as this will dull the stone surface over time.

Washing up liquid can be just as effective at floor level as it is at cleaning your countertops. Add a generous squirt to a mop bucket, fill with warm water and thoroughly mop your floor. Every few weeks you can use a specialist stone cleaning and polishing agent to keep your stone floor looking like new. If your floor grout is in need of a clean, a bicarbonate of soda and hydrogen peroxide paste scrubbed into the grout with a toothbrush will have it looking like new in no time.

Natural or finished wooden surfaces

Again, it’s the acidic properties of acid that prevents its use on wood surfaces, including wooden flooring. Acid can damage and discolour natural or untreated wood, but even varnished, oiled or waxed wood is susceptible. For example, if vinegar remains in contact with varnish for too long, it will make a previously clear or glossy finish turn hazy. The fact that vinegar is often recommended as a varnish remover is a good indication that it probably shouldn’t be used to clean varnished surfaces!

That said, a solution that’s equal parts white vinegar and olive oil can be applied carefully to oiled or stained wood, as long as the surface is then quickly and thoroughly buffed with a microfibre cloth. The real problems arise when strong vinegar solutions are left in contact with surfaces for longer periods.

Clothes iron

While you can use a vinegar and bicarbonate of soda paste to effectively clean the bottom plate or soleplate of your iron, you should avoid using vinegar to clean the inside of your iron. No surprises why! The acid that makes it effective at breaking down grime in some applications is what makes it unsuited here, as it will damage linings and components, eventually rendering your iron useless.

Assuming you don’t have a self-cleaning iron, the best way to keep the inside of your iron in good condition is to fill it only with distilled water rather than tap water, which will prevent build-up of limescale in the first place. If it’s too late for that you may have to resort to a descaler. Much like vinegar, commercial descalers are also acidic and while the companies manufacturing descalers will advertise their suitability for use in a clothes iron, long-term use could eventually damage the iron.

Dishwashers, washing machines and small appliances

There’s no shortage of bloggers recommending you use white vinegar to clean hard water film and built-up gunk from kitchen appliances, but it’s not a great idea for the same reason we wouldn’t recommend you use it to clean an iron.

Hoses, gaskets, seals and other rubber or plastic components can be damaged by acidic solutions. Even if you go to great lengths to wipe away any remaining vinegar residue, it can sit in nooks and crannies, eating away at seals and other important parts of your appliance. If you want to avoid leaks and the resulting damage to your property, avoid using vinegar and go for bicarbonate of soda instead, sprinkled inside the dishwasher or directly into the washing machine drum. There are also specialist commercial products designed to clean appliances that will be more effective than vinegar, and won’t melt your appliance’s components.

Knives

If you pride yourself on your super sharp, well-maintained knives, cleaning them with vinegar is one of the easiest ways to undo all your good work.

Vinegar can dull sharp blades and even eat into metal surfaces, causing pitting that may then lead to rust. Many of the harsher commercial cleaning products can also do the same and so it’s advised to avoid anything that contains either hydrochloric or sulfuric acid.

Knives can be cleaned using washing up liquid and warm water, and can be sanitised with 70% isopropyl alcohol before being rinsed thoroughly and dried.

Conclusion

So while vinegar has its place in your Carry Maid and can be a versatile cleaning solution, it’s important to be aware of the damage that acidic or otherwise harsh cleaning products can cause.

It’s also worth noting that acid isn’t always effective as a cleaner. For example, alkaline products such as Borax or bicarb soda are much more effective degreasers. Acids however can be effective at removing mineral deposits, rust stains and hard water spots – and are also excellent disinfectants, as long as they’re used on the appropriate surfaces.

Author bio

Ellie Rush is Outreach Executive at The Cleaning Collective and is a Friends superfan, sharing her passion for household cleanliness with Monica Geller. She loves to offer housekeeping hints and tips to her Cleaning Collective friends and is always looking for new ways to clean that do the least harm to the environment.