Not Baking Soda or Vinegar: She Tested 5 Ways to Clean Her Stainless Steel Sink, and One Clearly Worked Best
Stainless steel may have “stainless” in the name, but the bottom of this kitchen sink had developed a brownish film that regular cleaning was not removing. Instead of covering the whole basin with one cleaner, different sections became test areas for several methods.
Home creator Christine from Full of Great Ideas compared five options: a Magic Eraser, baking soda paste, Dawn dish soap mixed with peroxide, stainless steel powder cleaner, and white vinegar with dish soap. Some barely changed the staining, while another removed it but introduced a new problem.
Magic Eraser produced the result that stood out. Baking soda did little, Dawn and peroxide left staining behind, and the powder cleaner worked but created fine scratches. Vinegar and dish soap came closer, giving her one more comparison before she chose what to use across the rest of the sink.
The Magic Eraser Left a Visible Line Across the Steel
A damp Magic Eraser went across one section at the bottom of the sink, where the difference appeared before the rest of the basin had been touched. The cleaned section lost much of the brownish cast, leaving a visible line between it and the surrounding steel.
The stain also transferred onto the white eraser with little scrubbing. Christine had used this method on the sink before, though she notes that her stainless steel was already scratched and could not say whether the eraser might mark a new finish.
Baking Soda Left Much of the Staining Behind
Baking soda was tested on another section by adding enough water to form a paste, then working it across the steel with a kitchen sponge. It was one of the more familiar household options in the test, but the result did not match what the eraser had done.
Much of the discoloration remained after scrubbing, and the contrast became easier to see with both sections beside the drain. The Magic Eraser side looked cleaner, while the baking soda had made little change to the staining she was trying to remove.
Dawn and Peroxide Didn’t Solve the Staining Either
Another section got one part Dawn dish soap mixed with two parts peroxide, a combination that had worked for Christine on dirty grout. She scrubbed the mixture into the sink expecting a similar result, but the brownish staining remained visible on the steel.
That made the recipe useful as a comparison rather than a solution for this sink. A mixture that had worked on another surface did not produce the same result here.
Stainless Steel Cleaner Removed the Stains but Added Fine Scratches
A powder cleaner made for stainless steel cookware produced a stronger change. The discoloration came off, but close inspection showed fine scratches where the powder had been scrubbed into the sink.
That trade-off took it out of contention despite how much staining it removed. The sink already had scratches before the test, but the new marks were visible enough for Christine to rule out the powder when comparing the methods.
Four Methods Could Be Compared Around the Same Drain
Dividing the basin into test areas made the results easier to see together. Magic Eraser, baking soda, Dawn and peroxide, and stainless steel powder cleaner had each been used on a different section around the drain rather than tested one after another across the whole sink.
The powder cleaner had removed discoloration but scratched the surface, while baking soda and Dawn with peroxide left more of the staining behind. The Magic Eraser section showed the strongest result without the same fine scratches attributed to the powder cleaner.
Vinegar and Dish Soap Became the Fifth Test
White vinegar was tested next, but not on its own. Christine poured it onto a kitchen sponge, added a drop of dish soap, then scrubbed another stained section that remained after the earlier comparisons.
The combination removed a noticeable amount of discoloration and performed better than several of the other household methods. It still did not clean the section as well as the Magic Eraser in her test, leaving vinegar and dish soap behind the method she had started with.
One Method Ended Up Cleaning the Rest of the Sink
With all five methods tested, Christine returned to the Magic Eraser for the rest of the basin. The comparison had also exposed an important difference between getting a stain off and getting a result worth using: the powder cleaner could remove discoloration, but the fine scratches made that result less useful.
The Magic Eraser became her choice because of what she saw on this already-worn sink, not because every other method failed. Vinegar and dish soap came closest, while baking soda and Dawn with peroxide left more of the brownish cast behind.
Which would you have reached for first on a stained stainless steel sink—baking soda, vinegar and dish soap, or a Magic Eraser?
Image credits go to @fullofgreatideas.