How to clean stainless steel straws properly is going to be a popular topic in the coming years as the push to move away from plastic straws gains momentum. On a small scale, choosing to not use plastic straws is something everyone can do. It is a small choice that can make a positive impact on our environment.
On a larger scale, big business is following the trend by stopping handing out plastic straws. In July 2018, Starbucks announced that it will stop using plastic straws by 2020. McDonald’s has also announced that they will be phasing out the use of plastic straws. No doubt other food service companies will follow suit.
Stainless steel straws are going to become very popular. It is important to know how to clean stainless steel straws to avoid gross drink buildup inside the straw and to prevent mould growth. If you clean stainless steel straws properly, you will get many years of use from them.
Steps to Clean Stainless Steel Straws
Ideally, when you are finished drinking that delicious Blueberry Avocado Hemp Smoothie, you rinse out the straw with hot water to get leftover smoothie out. Unfortunately, your location and timing don’t always allow for you to clean stainless steel straws right away. Sometimes dried on smoothie is inevitable.
Soak the stainless steel straw(s) in hot water and dishsoap. If the straw had been sitting out for a long time and the leftover drink bits are dried and stuck in the straw, you will have to soak it for a long time.
As you can imagine, cleaning a stainless steel straw is easy, with the right tool. A long skinny brush is specifically designed for cleaning inside straws. You can use pipe cleaners but you will have to be sure that the pipe cleaner is large enough so that the bristles scrub the inside wall of the straw.
Put a dab of dishsoap on the cleaning brush and insert it in the straw. Scrub the brush inside the straw from end to end to clean out all the drink leftovers. With a dish cloth, wipe the outside of the straw. Rinse the straw thoroughly with hot water. Remember to clean off and rinse your cleaning brush as well.
Let your straw air dry in a dry, ventilated place. Don’t put your straw away wet.
Although you can put stainless steel straws in the dishwasher, that is not a good way to clean inside a metal straw. The water and dishwasher soap don’t always take care of the dried on bits inside the straw.
Making the choice to use stainless steel straws is good for the environment. And knowing how to clean stainless steel straws makes it easy for you to continue using them, never returning to to plastic. Do your part!
