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I have a Simple Human Dishrack. It was kind of a splurge when I bought it. We were swayed by the good reviews. The rack does not have the typical open wire design, as you can see in the link above. The dishes drain on a wired rack onto a sloped catch tray which then empties into the sink.

We've had it for about 6 months now and I'm noticing pink mold(?) where water pools/evaporates. (On the DIY Stack Exchange an answer to one of my questions there suggests that the pink stuff could be due to fluoride that's been added by the water company.) Potentially food particles could have built up over time, too.

How should I clean this dish rack to get rid of and or prevent more of this pink stuff that's building up?

CLARIFICATION It has stainless walls, plastic bottom (which is the drip tray) and a coated metal rack (I'm not sure what the coating is).

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  • I have non-flouridated water (from a well) and have seen pink mold, fwiw. – Kate Gregory Jan 5 '12 at 16:59
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Bleach is your best bet. Scrub it with a long-handled scrub brush and either liquid bleach or Ajax and water. Let it soak a bit before rinsing it out. Since it's stainless steel, the bleach won't do it any harm and will kill off any organics growing on it.

In my experience, the pink stuff is a mold, not flouride.

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  • FYI, bleach does attack stainless, just not as much as iron or plain steel. At the concentration of bleach you'd be using and the time immersed, it shouldn't matter, but make sure to thoroughly rinse. – derobert Jan 5 '12 at 17:08
  • Here's how to make a bleach cleaning solution: "Household chlorine bleach is a powerful disinfectant that is inexpensive, easy to obtain, and strong enough to kill the germs.... Bleach is also very caustic and emits potentially lethal fumes, so it should never be used full-strength. When using bleach as a disinfectant, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommend using a 1:10 solution. Follow these steps to make a 1:10 bleach solution safely." cysticfibrosis.about.com/od/livingwithcysticfibrosis/ht/…. Another link clorox.com/products/clorox-regular-bleach/how-to – milesmeow Jan 6 '12 at 17:37
  • Here's another good link with steps to disinfect and bleach is involved in two of the steps. ncchildcare.dhhs.state.nc.us/pdf_forms/… – milesmeow Jan 6 '12 at 17:45
  • A strong bleach solution would be: 1 TBSP Bleach to 4 cups of water. This is the disinfecting concentration. Spray on, leave on for 2 minutes and air dry. – milesmeow Jan 13 '12 at 6:32
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From the description you posted:

The drip tray, utensil holder, and inner wire frame are all dishwasher safe.

That's probably the cleanest you're going to get it. Just find some way to fit it into the dishwasher. Especially if you're using a dishwasher detergent with bleach in it, that plus the high temperature dishwasher option should thoroughly remove any mold.

(This is how I clean my dish rack, though its a different brand. It doesn't quite fit, but put it at an angle held in place with some nylon string, problem solved.)

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    I realized I could fit bigger things into the bottom rack of my dishwasher by removing the plastic fountain that sprays water up to the top rack. – Michael Hoffman Jan 9 '12 at 18:22
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    I remove the top rack so there is more room in the dishwasher :) – Kyra Jan 10 '12 at 18:29
  • The dishwasher is a great suggestion (+1). Probably easiest too. But believe it or not, I don't have a dishwasher in my current apartment. But I'll keep this mind for the future. :) – milesmeow Jan 12 '12 at 23:42
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I wipe with a vinegar solution 3 parts water 1 part white vinegar. takes the water deposit away and disenfects witout removing the coating on the dishrack

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