If Your Kitchen Sink Still Smells After Cleaning, Two Kitchen Staples May Help

Cleaning the kitchen sink can remove food residue and visible grime without getting rid of the smell that remains around the drain. Instead of reaching for another scented spray, a mixture made from baking soda and fresh orange juice offers another option using two ingredients found in many kitchens.

The method calls for two spoonfuls of baking soda mixed with the juice of one orange. Baking soda can help absorb odors and provides mild abrasion for scrubbing, while orange juice contains citric acid that can help loosen some deposits on surfaces that tolerate acids.

Mix Baking Soda With Fresh Orange Juice

Place about two spoonfuls of baking soda in a small bowl, then squeeze in the juice from one orange. The ingredients will fizz as the acid in the juice reacts with the baking soda.

The mixture can be applied around a stainless steel or ceramic sink, including areas where residue collects near the drain. Scrub the surface, then rinse it with water rather than leaving the citrus mixture sitting on the sink.

Orange juice also leaves a citrus scent behind, which makes this method useful when the main problem is a sink that smells stale even after food scraps and visible residue have been removed.

Use It on Surfaces That Can Handle Acid

Orange juice is acidic, so this isn't a mixture to spread across every countertop or sink material. Marble, limestone, travertine, and other acid-sensitive natural stones can become etched or dull after contact with citrus juice.

Use extra care around stone countertops even when the sink itself is stainless steel. Keeping the mixture inside the basin prevents orange juice from reaching the surrounding surface.

Never Combine the Mixture With Bleach

Orange juice should never be mixed with chlorine bleach. Citrus juice contains acids, and combining acidic substances with chlorine bleach can release dangerous chlorine gas.

Rinse away any previous cleaning product before trying the baking soda and orange mixture. The same rule applies to vinegar, lemon juice, citric acid cleaners, and other acidic products when bleach is involved.

For a sink with a lingering odor, the method offers another use for two familiar kitchen ingredients without relying on perfume to cover the smell. Whether squeezing a fresh orange into the cleaning bowl makes sense, however, may depend on how willing you are to sacrifice one from the fruit bowl.