Clean and Deodorize Your Wood Cutting Board

Written by Amy Gordon (last updated April 29, 2024)

Wood cutting boards tend to be better than plastic cutting boards because they are less likely to have bacterial buildup. Even though they are better than their plastic cousins, they still face some of the same problems and need to be cleaned regularly.

The best way to clean a wooden board is to use lemon juice. Lemon juice is a natural bleach. It will clean, deodorize, and bleach away stains on your wooden cutting boards. It will also work on any wooden utensil in the kitchen. As an extra benefit, it leaves a fresh lemon scent, one that is much better than any chemical's attempt to imitate.

If you want to try something just a little bit stronger, add some salt to your lemon juice. The amount you put in your mixture is up to you, but with some experimenting, you may find a particular combination that you prefer. Lemon juice and salt together make a perfect cleaning team. The salt adds an abrasive effect to the amazing lemon juice functions mentioned above. Just apply the mixture to the board and scrub it around with a clean cloth. If the stain is particularly stubborn, consider letting the mixture sit for a few minutes. Then you can scrub the stain out much more easily than before.

Be careful as you scrub, however. Although neither salt nor lemon juice will hurt most skin, if either of them get into a wound, you will be in a world of hurt. Since the two are mixed together, it will only make the pain worse.

After you finish scrubbing with either the lemon juice alone or the salt and lemon mix, try wiping a small amount of oil onto the clean wood surface. I would recommend extra virgin olive oil, although it is not necessary. The oil will leave the surface looking sleeker and will help coat it to protect it from stains in the future.

Author Bio

Amy Gordon

Amy Gordon loves keeping things simple, natural, and safe so she can spend more time having fun. Every day she learns new things about making life at home easier and she loves to share it with you! ...

MORE FROM AMY

Dealing with Cigarette Smoke

Smokers, those who live with smokers, and friends of smokers can all have problems dealing with smoke smells. Refusing to ...

Discover More

Clean Your Ashtrays with Ease

Any smoker knows that ashes stick to ashtrays. You can stop this by putting various substances into your ashtrays, ...

Discover More

Removing Stains from Tennis Shoes

Most modern tennis shoes are made out of easy-to-clean material, and can be cleaned off with warm water, soap, and some ...

Discover More

Keep Your Hardwood Floors Like New Bona's hardwood floor cleaner is the #1 choice of professionals. The no-residue formula is specially designed to be safe for floors, families, and the environment. Check out Bona Hardwood Floor Cleaner Refill today!

More Cleaning Tips

Getting Family to Help Clean After Mealtimes

Do you live in a home where it seems like it is only one person's responsibility to do all the post dinner clean up? ...

Discover More

Butcher Block Cleaning

Whether it is an entire countertop, table, or simply a cutting board, butcher blocks can be an attractive and useful ...

Discover More

Cleaning Your Kitchen

Do you dread doing a deep cleaning on the kitchen? Take the job one task at a time, and you'll have a clean kitchen in no ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in Cleaning Tips from Tips.Net. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 8 + 7?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in Cleaning Tips from Tips.Net. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.