Dish rags and sponges. Smelly sponge or dish rag? Nuke it!
Submitted by inane5
Have you ever accidentally left your sponge or dish rag in the sink under your dirty dishes? By the time you get around to doing dishes, it probably smells awful and is filled with germs. There is an easy way to disinfect your sponge, and all it involves is your microwave!
Rinse the sponge, then squeeze it as dry as you can. Do this twice.
Put the squeeze-dried sponge (still a bit moist) in the microwave and nuke it on high for a minimum of 5 seconds, and a maximum of 10 seconds.
Take the sponge out with extreme care (because it will be hot!) and run cold water through it.
Repeat step 1 and your done. You should have a sweet smelling sponge which is completely disinfected.
Additional tips:
- Always let your sponge dry out between washings (to kill all germs).
- If you use a dishwasher, put your sponges, rags, scouring pads, etc in the dishwasher with the dishes!