THE toaster is probably one of the most-used appliances in a household, used to toast up foods such as bread and waffles.

But it gets very dirty by time and it's important to clean it to keep your kitchen as hygienic as possible and also make sure that you serve the best toast possible.

You do not have to go to the shops and buy any expensive cleaning products to clean your toaster.

These household items will help you get your toaster clean in no time.

As equipment, you need a pastry brush, a sponge or dishcloth and a microfiber cloth.

As for liquids, you only need water and dishwashing liquid.

Now we can get cleaning.

Remember that you are cleaning an electric appliance which generates heat too, so make sure that you are following as much safety precautions as you can as you start cleaning.

Make sure that the toaster is unplugged and that it has cooled down.

If you just used your toaster, give it time to cool and get on with other chores while it does so, or else you'll burn yourself while cleaning.

Once the toaster is fully cool, turn it upside down in the sink or a in the garbage to remove any excess crumbs which might have been left from food made before.

Some toasters might have a removable tray at the bottom.

If you do have this, remove it and remove the crumbs from it too.

If you have no idea how to remove the crumb tray from below, check out the toaster's instruction manual and it should show you how to do so.

Mix some warm water and dishwashing liquid to create a cleaning solution and place the crumb tray in it.

Wash it well with a sponge or a dish cloth.

Rinse the tray with water to remove any excess soap and then dry with another clean cloth.

With the crumb tray removed, you have an opportunity to also clean the inside of your toaster.

Brush off any crumbs which are stuck inside using your pastry brush.

You can do so from the top and bottom of the toaster.

Do not try to insert your fingers into the toaster because you'll either get yourself hurt or else you'll damage the inside components of the toaster.

Using your soapy water from earlier, wipe the outside of the toaster with a sponge or dish cloth.

Try to wring the water out as much as you can, so that your toaster won't be soaked in it.

Watch out for any components on the outside of your toaster, so that you don't get any damaged.

Also, be careful not to get any water in between the components because you don't want to risk turning the toaster on and get electrocuted.

When you clean the outside, grab a cloth with just clear water to remove any excess soap that might have been left.

Then grab a microfiber cloth to rinse it clean and dry.

Reassemble the toaster to how it was by inserting the crumb tray and making sure that everything was left in place.

Now that your toaster is clean you can plug it in and get making some more toast.

As said above, you can clean your toaster with water as long as it is unplugged.

Do not pour or insert any water inside though, because once you turn it back on, you will be in risk of electrocuting yourself.

If you get water inside, you can never be too sure of when it dries or not, so better be safe than sorry and just use the pastry brush to clean the inside.

Make sure that you shake it much as you can so that every crumb stuck inside is gone.

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