Any recommendations on a good wood cabinet cleaner? In the past I used Murphys Oil but it appears it’s not effective removing greasy grime from a cabinet.
[OP]
Contributor
Any recommendations on a good wood cabinet cleaner? In the past I used Murphys Oil but it appears it’s not effective removing greasy grime from a cabinet.
Rich
"If everyone is thinking alike, someone isn't thinking."
- General George Patton Jr
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Maybe Dawn dishwashing liquid?
Hobbyist
[OP]
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Thats what google said. It is hood enough for clean oil tarred birds!!
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A little Dawn in warm water works very well for most things. Dampen a sponge or soft cotton cloth and gently wipe the surfaces. Do not rub hard or in one spot excessively, or you will get a shiny spot that will stand out even if it does remove the grease. For really heavy grease, mineral spirits often works better, but test it on an inconspicuous area first (always a good idea with anything, actually) to make sure it doesn't remove the finish.
John
Contributor
We have a rental house that had 45 years of greasy buildup on the cabinets. The house was in terrible shape to the point that it was considered a teardown. My Wife tried many things, and found that Krud Kutter and microfiber cloths did the best job. They look like new now, and no refinishing was required. I don't think she missed trying many commercial things. I even tried Lacquer thinner on a test spot and it didn't do much.
edited to add: Pam says she used a white Scotchbrite pad to start with to remove most of it, and the microfiber cloths to get the last of it.
Last edited by Tom M King; 03-20-2023 at 7:01 PM.
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We used some LA's Totally Awesome cleaner and it seemed to work pretty good, kinda stinky though.
Confidence: The feeling you experience before you fully understand the situation
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Pam tried Awesome too. She says it was second best behind Krud Kutter. It's the same chemical in 409 that some people developed nerve damage from working with it during the Exxon Valdez cleanup. This kitchen has such a greasy film on it that I think it protected everything. Once it came off, it really does look like it was just installed recently, and was built in 1974. I was about to the point that I thought I would just rip it all out and build a new set of cabinets. It's still nothing special, but people don't rent this place for the kitchen.
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Originally Posted by Tom M King
Krud Kutter is a great product, highly recommended. Used it this morning to clean many walnut cabinets
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The application instructions for Original Krud Kutter recommend against using it on varnished surfaces.
John
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These old cabinets I'm pretty sure were lacquer coated. Good catch on varnish. It did absolutely no harm to the cabinets or Formica countertops.
Contributor
That's interesting, Tom. If the stuff might harm varnish I would think it would be even more likely to harm NC lacquer. Maybe your cabinets used a catalyzed lacquer. Not sure if they were doing it back then, but it's common these days when used on kitchen cabinets.
Not much bothers Formica. Amazingly durable stuff.
John
Contributor
John, thank you for posting that, I was not aware and I will keep that in mind when using on relevant surfaces.
Contributor
Here's that kitchen after it was cleaned. The ceiling was water stained sheetrock. I did a quick fix on the ceiling and a coat of Kilz. We'll rent it like this a couple of Summers before I rip it all out and make it into something more high end vacation renters recognize as a kitchen these days. The to-do list won't get it put on this Summer, and maybe not even next Summer.
So far, it hasn't hurt bookings. I think the wood is just Basswood, and probably made by a local cabinet shop in 1974. It's hard to describe how disgusting it was.
I did replace the yellow floral linoleum with LVP to match the rest of the house that I redid the floor in. At least it's clean now. I think most people who rent for a week eat out most of the time anyway.
Last edited by Tom M King; 03-21-2023 at 10:37 PM.
Contributor
That looks better than a lot of people's primary residence, Tom, and the Krud Kutter looks like it didn't hurt the finish at all.
John
Contributor
It looks okay, but there is not much counter space to work on. We thought about changing the countertops to granite, so it wouldn't be quite so dated, but it really needs a whole redesign. It'll be useable for a couple of years though. Pam fixed scratches with mixtures of RestorAfinish. I didn't do much of any of it, but she has a lot of hours in it.
The white refrigerator was already there with the other black appliances. It went back to work after I got the dead mouse out of the fan and replaced the burned up fan motor. Krud Kutter cleaned it back up to like new too.
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