On my kitchen cleaning checklist, the jobs are sorted by how often they come round. A few happen every day, a longer scrub comes each week, appliance care once a month and a deep clean with the seasons. Writing it down keeps the small jobs from piling into one miserable Saturday.
A kitchen cleaning checklist is a written list of kitchen jobs, grouped by how often each one needs doing. On mine, the food-safety rules come from Health Canada and HealthLink BC, the appliance intervals from each maker, and the grease warnings from fire-prevention advice.
I'm Michael Ruhr from Merit Home Furniture in Duncan, and this is the list I'd give anyone setting up a kitchen on Vancouver Island. The kitchen appliances Merit sells are carried at our Campbell River and Port Alberni stores, so a few of their listings appear where they help.
What goes on a kitchen cleaning checklist?
A kitchen cleaning checklist covers four rhythms: food safety daily, grime weekly, appliances monthly, and the forgotten corners each season.
| How often | The jobs |
|---|---|
| Daily | Dishes, counters wiped then sanitized, cutting boards washed, a fresh dishcloth |
| Weekly | Sink and taps, stovetop, microwave, fridge shelves, handles, floor, bins |
| Monthly | Hood filters, dishwasher, fridge and freezer temperatures, oven spills, small appliances |
| Seasonal | Behind appliances, cabinet interiors, pantry, walls, light fixtures, old cleaners out |
Daily kitchen cleaning checklist
The daily kitchen cleaning checklist mostly happens straight after cooking. Health Canada asks for hands washed with warm, soapy water for at least 20 seconds, especially around raw meat, poultry, fish or seafood.
- Wash or load the dishes before bed.
- Wipe the counters with hot soapy water, then sanitize wherever raw meat or fish has been.
- Wash the cutting boards, keeping one for produce and another for raw meat, poultry and fish, as Health Canada recommends.
- Put out a fresh dishcloth. Health Canada suggests paper towels, or dishcloths changed daily, and steers people away from sponges because they're harder to keep bacteria-free.
That dishcloth rule is the one I'd tape inside a cupboard door. A cloth that mopped up chicken juice at lunch has no business drying the cutting board at dinner.
Cleaning vs sanitizing: the Health Canada rules for counters and boards
Cleaning and sanitizing are two separate steps. Cleaning lifts food and grease off with hot soapy water. Sanitizing comes second, with a kitchen sanitizer or a weak bleach solution, for the bacteria soap leaves behind.
How much bleach goes in a kitchen sanitizing solution?
Two public health sources give different mixes, and both put the product label first.
| Source | Sanitizing mix |
|---|---|
| Health Canada (food safety) | 5 mL bleach to 750 mL of water, or a kitchen sanitizer as directed, then rinse |
| HealthLink BC | 2 mL bleach per litre of water, using unscented household bleach |
Health Canada's advisory says to mix only what the job needs and not keep leftovers, since it's easy to forget what's in the bottle.
Never mix bleach with ammonia, glass cleaner, toilet bowl cleaner or vinegar. Health Canada warns that bleach reacts with ammonia and acids to make toxic gases such as chloramine. In October and November 2020, chloramine reports to Canadian Poison Centres ran at more than double the level of the same months in 2019. If you think someone has been harmed by fumes or a cleaner, Health Canada says to call a poison centre or a health care provider right away.
Weekly kitchen cleaning checklist
The weekly kitchen cleaning checklist goes after the grime that builds up between wipe-downs.
- Scrub the sink, drain basket and taps.
- Clean under the stovetop grates or coils. Quebec's fire-prevention page names the drip containers under coil elements as a regular job.
- Wipe the microwave inside and out.
- Clear old leftovers and wipe the fridge shelves. Health Canada wants raw meat on the bottom shelf in sealed containers.
- Wipe fridge and oven handles, cabinet pulls and light switches.
- Wash the bins, then sweep and mop.
- Wash the tea towels. Health Canada also says to wash reusable grocery bags frequently.
Monthly kitchen cleaning checklist: one line per appliance
The monthly kitchen cleaning checklist is mostly appliance care, one line each, with the maker's interval where one is published. The owner's manual for your model comes first. Which appliances count as major and which are extras is a list of its own.
| Appliance | The job, and how often |
|---|---|
| Range hood | Wash the grease filters. Broan's Glacier guide says to clean them frequently and change the recirculation filters on a ductless setup every 3 to 6 months, sooner with frying or wok cooking. |
| Dishwasher | Rinse the filter and clean the tub. KitchenAid says dishwashers should be cleaned approximately every 30 days. |
| Refrigerator | Check it holds 4°C (40°F) or lower, Health Canada's setting, and wipe the gaskets. |
| Freezer | Check for -18°C (0°F) or lower, also Health Canada's figure. |
| Oven | Wipe spills early. Quebec's guidance warns against self-clean when heavy residue sits on the oven floor, since it could ignite. |
| Microwave | Steam a bowl of water, then wipe the ceiling. |
| Glass cooktop | The cooktop maker's cleaner and a non-scratch pad. |
| Stainless fronts | A damp microfibre cloth, with the grain. |
| Small appliances | Empty the toaster crumb tray, as National Defence's fire advice says, and descale the kettle. |
A fridge water filter runs on its own clock. The EveryDrop Filter 4 we list carries the maker's interval of every 6 months or 200 gallons (757 L). It's $49.99 before applicable taxes at our Campbell River store, beside the other replacement fridge filters we sell.
KitchenAid describes two filter styles: one twists out to rinse under the tap, and a maintenance-free one has a cup to empty. The KitchenAid KDFS224SWH, $1,099.99 before applicable taxes at Campbell River and Port Alberni, has triple filtration. To compare filter styles, every dishwasher Merit lists is in one place.
Range hood grease filters and kitchen fire safety
Range hood filters catch grease rising off the stove, and a loaded filter is a fire risk. The Quebec government's fire-prevention guidance says a build-up of grease is a fire hazard. National Defence's kitchen fire advice also says to inspect the hood for grease and clean it regularly.
Broan's guide for its Glacier hoods says the grease filters are dishwasher safe, with a non-phosphate detergent for all-metal ones. The recirculation filters in a ductless hood get replaced, not washed.
The Broan Glacier GLA1303SS has 2 dishwasher-safe micro mesh filters. It's $249.00 to $269.00 before applicable taxes, by finish, at Campbell River and Port Alberni. The ONEX 30 in. insert hood at Port Alberni, $549.99 before applicable taxes, uses dishwasher-safe baffle filters instead. Of the 179 range hoods on our site, 43 are carried at Campbell River or Port Alberni. The rest are special orders, all listed with our under-cabinet, insert and other hoods.
If a pan catches fire, Quebec's guidance sets out the order:
- Lid on. Slide a properly sized lid over the pan. Never put water on an oil fire or carry the pan.
- Heat off. Turn off the elements, the oven and the hood if you can.
- Call anyway. Phone the fire department even if the flames look out, because fire may have reached the hood duct.
- Leave if it spreads. Get everyone out and call 911.
Seasonal kitchen cleaning checklist: spring and after the holidays
The seasonal kitchen cleaning checklist is the deep clean. Spring is the classic time, with the windows open, and early January is the other, once holiday cooking has greased the hood and filled the fridge.
- Empty the fridge, wash the drawers and sort the freezer.
- Ease the fridge and range out where the cord and any gas line allow, and clean behind them.
- Wipe the cabinet interiors and pantry, and check dates on spices and tins.
- Wash the cabinet fronts, backsplash and the tops of the upper cabinets.
- Clean the light fixtures and the window over the sink.
- Do a full oven clean, and change the fridge water filter if it's due.
- Clear out old cleaners and dead small appliances.
That last job has a local answer. The Cowichan Valley Regional District offers free collection at its Recycling Centres for many household hazardous waste items. Its accepted list includes all plug-in or battery-operated products, so a dead kettle qualifies. Household cleaners aren't named on that list, so check them in the CVRD's Cowichan Recyclopedia. The CVRD asks that hazardous liquids never go down the drain, since neither sewers nor septic systems remove them.
Cleaning kitchen counters and cabinets by material
Counters and cabinets get the gentlest cleaning in the kitchen, because the wrong product marks them for good. Their makers sometimes rule out the bleach above, and I'd go with the maker of the surface.
| Surface | What the maker says |
|---|---|
| Quartz (Caesarstone) | Mild detergent and warm water. No oven or grill cleaners, dishwasher detergent, strong acids, alkalis or oxidizers. |
| Laminate (Wilsonart) | Dish soap and warm water daily. Bleach contact should not exceed two minutes, since prolonged exposure discolours it. |
| Wood and painted cabinets (Decor) | Dish soap in warm water, dried straight away. No bleach, ammonia, wax, silicone or scouring pads. |
Decor Cabinet Company, a maker in Morden, Manitoba, adds that dishcloths and sponges carry grease onto cabinets, and that kettle steam belongs away from the upper cabinets. Damp air works on wood finishes, which our guide to humidity and solid wood on the Island explains.
Tips for sticking to a kitchen cleaning checklist
A kitchen cleaning checklist works when starting is easy, and a list taped inside a cupboard door gets used.
Kitchen cleaning supplies to keep handy
- Paper towels and a stack of clean dishcloths
- Dish soap, which handles most of the kitchen
- Unscented bleach or a labelled kitchen sanitizer
- Microfibre cloths, a soft brush and a non-scratch pad
- Rubber gloves and goggles for bleach, as Health Canada's advisory suggests
Health Canada also wants household chemicals out of children's sight and reach, so a high shelf beats the cupboard under the sink. Beyond that, wipe as you go, as Decor asks for splatters near the sink and stove.
Where kitchen cleaning routines go wrong
- Mixing bleach with glass cleaner, toilet bowl cleaner or vinegar, which can release toxic gas.
- Using bleach on a counter whose maker rules it out, or leaving it sitting on laminate.
- Scouring pads, steel wool or magic erasers on cabinet finishes.
- Self-cleaning an oven caked with residue.
- Keeping one sponge going for weeks.
- Keeping leftover bleach mix for another day.
- Pouring old cleaners down the drain.
A cleaning routine can't fix a failing appliance. A dishwasher that leaves grit after a filter clean needs a service call, and who fixes what under each maker's warranty is written up separately.
Where the kitchen cleaning advice comes from
- Health Canada, Food safety and you, checked November 2026.
- Health Canada, Reduce your risk from toxic gases: Never mix bleach with other cleaning products, checked November 2026.
- HealthLink BC, Food safety: Easy ways to make food safer (HealthLinkBC File 59a), checked November 2026.
- Gouvernement du Québec, Protecting against fire hazards when cooking, checked November 2026.
- National Defence, The Maple Leaf, Fire safety in the kitchen, checked November 2026.
- Broan-NuTone, Glacier BCSD1 range hood installation and care guide, checked November 2026.
- KitchenAid product help, Cleaning the dishwasher filter, checked November 2026.
- Caesarstone, Care and maintenance for quartz and mineral surfaces, checked November 2026.
- Wilsonart, Surface maintenance guidelines: cleaners and disinfectants, checked November 2026.
- Decor Cabinet Company, General cabinet care, checked November 2026.
- Decor Cabinet Company, About us, checked November 2026.
- Cowichan Valley Regional District, Household hazardous waste, checked November 2026.
- Merit Home Furniture's live listings for the Broan Glacier GLA1303SS, ONEX OIN230, KitchenAid KDFS224SWH and EveryDrop Filter 4, and the range hood collection count, read November 1, 2026.
Asking about kitchen hoods, dishwashers and filters at Merit
I write from Duncan. Merit's appliances go through our Campbell River store at 1300 A Homewood Rd and our Port Alberni store at 2935 Third Ave. A call before the drive tells you which hoods and dishwashers are set up to see.
I can't quote appliance delivery terms in a guide, so ask the store on the call. A special-order appliance that neither store carries goes through the line on its product page, (250) 746-5527.
Call Campbell River, (250) 286-0868. Call Port Alberni, (250) 724-6644.
Every hood, dishwasher and filter named here sits in Merit's full appliance listings, and the rest of what I've written on kitchens is with my other kitchen appliance guides.