How to Remove and Prevent Fingerprints on Stainless Steel
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Learn the trick for how to remove fingerprints from stainless steel appliances, along with the secret to prevent fingerprints on stainless steel so you can clean your appliances less!
Fingerprints on Stainless Steel
Just like granite countertops, stainless steel appliances are all the rage right now and the hallmark of an “upgraded” kitchen. I remember a few years ago when my family moved into a rental with stainless steel appliances-I was excited, finally I had the “fancy” kitchen! Little did I realize that stainless steel and three little boys equals a LOT of fingerprints everywhere!
How to Remove Fingerprints from Stainless Steel
Over the past few years I’ve tried a variety of ways to not only remove the fingerprints from the stainless steel but help prevent them from showing up so easily as well. I’m happy to say that I’ve finally found a great system that works and am sharing it with you today!
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How to Clean Fingerprints Off Stainless Steel Appliances
To start clean your appliance (my fridge in this case) the way you normally do. I usually use a window cleaner or my orange basil vinegar mixture. I use straight vinegar to remove any tough spots, being sure to wipe with diluted vinegar afterwards to remove any residual.
Prevent Fingerprints on Stainless Steel
Now for the secret weapon…once your stainless steel is completely clean use Turtle Wax to keep those pesky fingerprints from coming back!! Using a clean cloth or paper towel apply the Turtle Wax in a light coat and then buff to a shine with a clean microfiber cloth (affiliate link).
How Often Do You Need to Clean Stainless Steel Appliances
The result is a super shiny surface that resists smudges for much longer. I usually touch up the cleaning and Turtle Wax every couple of weeks as needed to keep the steel looking brand new!
Have you tried any other methods of cleaning stainless steel? I’d love to hear what has (or hasn’t) worked for you!
You might also like these tips:
- How to Clean Oven Glass
- How to Get Rid of Boy Smell in the Bathroom
- How to Clean Your Whole House in an Hour
How to Remove and Prevent Fingerprints on Stainless Steel
Learn the trick for how to remove fingerprints from stainless steel appliances, along with the secret to prevent fingerprints on stainless steel so you can clean your appliances less!
Materials
- Window Cleaner
- White Vinegar
- Turtle Wax
Tools
- Microfiber cloth
Instructions
- Clean stainless steel with window cleaner to remove the bulk of fingerprints.
- Use vinegar to remove stubborn fingerprints. Wipe clean with water afterward.
- Rub turtle wax into the stainless steel in a circular motion and use a microfiber cloth to buff to a shine.
Notes
Repeat every 2-3 weeks to maintain
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Great post! I never thought about the turtle wax before. I personally use Baking soda, dishsoap, and water then buff it out with some mineral oil. I will have to give this a try too when I’m in a pinch!
I have had success with white vinegar for years and had no side effects or discolouration l am a professinal cleaner have been for over twenty years.
Also white vinegar baking soda and salt work on glass shower doors gentle scrubbing rinse off walla! Sparkles.
Thank you for your post. Would you please share how much of each (vinegar, baking soda, and salt) for shower doors.
Also do you dilute the white wine vinegar for stainless steel refrigerator and if so, in what proportions. Thank you very much.
very informative article, i really enjoyed it to read. thanks for this article but i’ve found more informative article that can maybe helps you too, must visit for a once. Home Appliances Quick services
I haven’t heard about it before. Because i don’t face this type of problem ever. But if this problem are coming in front side of me i know what should i do and how to remove it. If you had more insight i will greatly appreciate it. Thanks for the sharing such a helpful article.
Window cleaner can help to prevent finger prints as well just add some vinegar on it then wipe it on your fridge.
When we bought our stainless refrig the guys that delivered it told me to wipe down with WD40 and that would clean fingerprints and keep it shiny
I read somewhere that vinegar is bad for granite and/or stainless steel is that true?
I’m not sure Amanda, I haven’t had an issue but I dilute the vinegar pretty well and wipe clean. I’d imagine straight vinegar could be too acidic for some surfaces which is why I wipe any toughs pots i use straight vinegar with down afterwards to remove residual vinegar.
I just purchased a lovely stainless steel fridge two days ago. In the “care” section it specifically states to not use vinegar nor any acetic acid containing products on the stainless steel.
I was in the commercial washer business for 20 years. We used a product called Shelia Shine. Very easy to wipe on and resist fingers prints for quite a long time. Available at Ace Hardware.
Thanks for the tip Tony, I’ll have to try that one out! ~Melissa
Thank you, everything in my kitchen is stainless steel.. And Ace hardware is one of my favorite hardware store.
I know we use to use club soda to keep stainless steel clean when I worked at a Dairy Queen.
I’ll have to try that one out, I hadn’t heard it before! Thanks!
For my Stainless Steel Appliances I use Disinfecting Wipes, Kirkland or Lysol. Wipe the appliance and dry it off with a soft cloth … it works for me!
I’ll try that Joyce, thank you!
I use RainX on faucets, shower doors, mirrors and windows to repel dirt and water stains. I bet it would work on SS appliances. I’ll try the other suggestions too.
For cleaning the inside of the dishwasher, I use Tang drink mix.
Tang works because it has a high amount of citric acid. You can order plain old citric acid (aka sour salt) off Amazon or find it with pickling stuff then you get the same cleaning effect without dealing with the sugar and dye in the tang. I especially love using citric acid to descale my Keurig. I hate the smell of vinegar so citric acid keeps me from stoning up my house when cleaning my key rig.
lemon oil & then wipe with clean cloth works better than anything else!
When I used to clean houses professionally we would use lemon oil on stainless steel. It also worked well for keeping scum off shower doors.
Great tip Sandra!!
So, you have to reapply the Turtle Wax because it’s gone, but… where does it go? It goes on your children’s fingers; rather than their oils being deposited on the steel, the wax is being deposited on their skin, which is permeable and absorbs chemicals. Turtle Wax is a seriously toxic petrochemical product, you would never intentionally feed it to anyone, but that’s what’s happening here.
Consider dealing with the smudges and cleaning them with vinegar, no more no less. Once a day, 2 minutes of your life, I can’t imagine anything more worth it than your family’s health.
I used to have a cleaning business, and I used Weiman Stainless Steel Polish. You can buy it at Walmart. I think it works a little better than furniture polish.
I have used the Worlds Greatest Polish, it and it doesn’t just clean Stainless Steel.
It can be fount at protectnshine.net/products
Can’t wait to try this. This is one thing that drives both me and my husband crazy.
I use MINERAL OIL. If you look at all the high end products that come in spray bottles and cost over seven dollars for a tiny bottle –the only ingredient in most of them is mineral oil. Go out to a local grocery or pharmacy and get a bottle of mineral oil for less than three dollars. I would never use cooking or olive oils. Those will yellow over time and are difficult to clean off.
I use Car Wax Spray Bottle called ICE ! It works awesome on all appliance and the cars. Please check out my eBay site DIVORCE SALE Everything must go keep checking back for new items will be posted weekly. User name is ” newtoyourepeats2013 “. Thank you Kelly
I use baby oil! It works wonders! I clean with Windex first, take a cloth and put baby oil on it and wipe the fridge down. You can use another dry cloth to go over the fridge again. Works great and you don’t have to do it very often 🙂