Ditch Your Basic, Dirty Sponges For A Chain Mail Sponge Instead

If you still clean your dishes, pots, and pans with a basic sponge, then it is time for an upgrade. Despite their popularity, kitchen sponges get gross quickly. Porous, damp kitchen sponges are perfect for bacteria, which means that your old sponge is probably even dirtier than you think. Even if you properly care for a kitchen sponge, you will have to regularly replace it, which can be both costly and wasteful. Plus, some sponges simply do not have enough grit to clean effectively. Rather than having to figure out how to tell if it is time to throw out the kitchen sponge, you can switch to a chain mail sponge or scrubber that will last far longer and leave you with clean dishes.

Chain mail scrubbers are effective and long-lasting cleaning kitchen gadgets that are great for cleaning items like cast iron skillets. They are made of interlinking loops of stainless steel, just as the name implies. Because these scrubbers do not hold water like regular sponges, they do not face the same issues of having bacteria multiply inside. Plus, the stainless steel material means that chain mail scrubbers are highly resistant to rust and durable enough to throw in the dishwasher to get clean. They also often have features like a larger ring to hang the scrubber when it is not in use. Despite being made of metal, they can be surprisingly gentle. However, there are some kitchen items that they should not be used on, which is important to keep in mind.

Chain mail scrubbers are most often used to clean cast iron, but some are also advertised as being able to clean glassware, plates, baking sheets, casserole dishes, stainless steel cookware, and more. While they can be quite versatile, there are items that you should not use a chain mail sponge on because the design and stainless steel make it too abrasive and likely to cause damage. Nonstick pans and delicate items may get scratched due to regular, even gentle, use of a chain mail scrubber, so be cautious about what you clean. Even if the product says it will work on certain types of items, you may want to err on the side of caution and not use it if you are worried.

Cleaning with a chain mail sponge is simple. If you want to know how to care for your cast iron pan, simply remove any food using a paper towel before scrubbing the pan in circular motions. If the cast iron is heavily soiled, you may need to wet it with warm water and possibly apply some soap before using the chain mail. For other items, you can use soap and water like normal, and wash using the chain mail scrubber.

Since you cannot clean all of your kitchen items using a chain mail scrubber, you might want to keep a gentle dishrag or brush on-hand. Luckily, though, you can stop trying to figure out how often you should be replacing your Scrub Daddy by permanently upgrading it to a long-lasting chain mail scrubber.