The Common Cleaning Tool That Makes Cleaning Between The Stove And Counter Easier

The tall, narrow space between the side of your stove and the side of the adjacent cabinet can become a no man's land, where crumbs, dust bunnies, and oil spatters collect, out of the reach of your usual cleaning methods. It's tempting to follow the "out of sight, out of mind" school of thought because cleaning the space without having to pull the stove out seems like an impossible task. But it turns out you do have a common tool in your home that can make the chore much easier. Grab a flat head mop like a basic Swiffer or O-Cedar flat mop, fit it with an unused microfiber pad, and prepare to banish the random stuff that's accumulated between the stove and counter.

The beauty of this type of mop or sweeper is that the head is not fixed. It rotates and flips on its side to reach into odd or narrow spaces, so it can clean way more than floors. If you have a standard sponge mop with a fixed head, it won't work to clean between the stove and counter unless the space is wide enough to fit a standard mop head with the handle parallel to the floor, a matter of three or four inches, depending on the mop. A sponge mop also has uses beyond cleaning the floor, but a flat head mop is much better for cleaning this narrow gap. 

To clean the space between the stove and counter, wet an unused microfiber pad with hot water and attach it to the mop head. Turn the mop sideways, so it's parallel to the floor, and slide it into the gap. Wipe down one side, pull the mop out, rotate it, and slide it back into the space to clean the other side. Rinse the cleaning pad after each pass, or as needed, and when it comes out clean, you're finished. If there's dirt on the floor, push the mop all the way to the wall, set an edge on the floor and pull it forward to drag anything that's dropped through the crack, or use the wand attachment on your vacuum cleaner. For your safety, make sure the oven is cool before you begin and let the area air dry before using the oven.

You probably won't be able to see stains on the side of the stove or counter, but if you're concerned that there might be, make a final pass with ammonia or bleach on the mop head, but never a mixture of both. In a pinch, you can attach a clean, damp microfiber cloth to the end of a flat length of wood or metal, like an old school yardstick, to clean the space. While it may seem crude, it's actually more efficient because you can wash both the counter and stove in one pass. But if you buy or DIY a product or hack that covers the gap between the stove and counter, you'll not have to worry about cleaning this hard-to-reach area frequently.