Fridge Deep Clean: How Often and the USDA Step-by-Step

What It Means

A fridge deep clean is the full version of cleaning a refrigerator: food out, shelves and drawers removed and washed, and the inside, door and gasket cleaned and rinsed with a sanitizing solution. USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) lays out these steps for getting rid of lingering odors. Everyday upkeep is lighter: wiping spills when they happen and clearing out old food once a week.

Try It: Watch the 2-Hour Limit While You Clean

FSIS says perishable food held above 40 °F for more than 2 hours shouldn't be eaten. Enter how long the food has been out of the fridge while you clean.

Minutes out so far

Minutes left of the 2 hours90

Share of the 2 hours used25%

Time to spare. Put the food back as soon as the fridge is cold again.

How It Sounds at Home

"Something in the fridge smells, it's getting a proper clean."
"Everything's out, grab the cooler."
"Put the drawers in the sink to soak."

The Breakdown

How often

Job	How often	Source
Wipe up spills with hot soapy water, then rinse	Right away	FSIS
Throw out perishable food that should no longer be eaten	Once a week	FSIS
Full deep clean	When a smell won't go, after spoiled food or a long power outage, and otherwise a few times a year	FSIS for the steps; the few-times-a-year timing is Buhata's suggestion

The deep clean, step by step (FSIS)

Throw out anything spoiled or questionable.
Take out the shelves, crisper drawers and ice trays.
Wash them in hot water with detergent.
Rinse them with a sanitizing solution of 1 tablespoon unscented liquid chlorine bleach per gallon of water.
Wash the inside of the fridge and freezer, including the door and its gasket, with hot water and baking soda.
Rinse the inside with the same sanitizing solution.

Make it last. Wipe spills the day they happen and do the weekly clear-out, and the full clean stays a rare job. Keeping perishables in a cooler while you work is Buhata's suggestion for staying inside the 2-hour limit.

Good to Know

Never mix bleach with other cleaners. Bleach with ammonia, or with an acid such as vinegar, gives off toxic gas, as Buhata's chlorine bleach page explains with Poison Control's guidance. FSIS's odor instructions add a vinegar wipe after the bleach rinse; Buhata leaves that step out so the two never meet in a closed fridge. Follow the bleach bottle's label, keep air moving, and call 911 in an emergency.

FAQ

How often should you deep clean a fridge?

Wipe spills right away and clear out old perishables once a week, as FSIS advises. Save the full clean for lingering smells, spoiled food or outages, or a few times a year.

What should I use to clean inside the fridge?

FSIS says hot water and baking soda for the inside, hot water and detergent for the removable parts, then a rinse of 1 tablespoon unscented liquid chlorine bleach per gallon of water.

How long can food stay out while I clean the fridge?

FSIS says perishable food held above 40 °F for more than 2 hours shouldn't be eaten, so work in shorter spells or keep it in a cooler.

Do It in Buhata

Tasks with a repeat and Maintenance

Add "Fridge deep clean" as a Task with a repeat every few months, or in Maintenance with the Household X add-on, so it rolls forward each time it's ticked.

Open Buhata

Related Terms and Categories

Chlorine bleach
Household bleach made with sodium hypochlorite that whitens, removes stains and disinfects, but can fade colors and damage some fibers.
Mixing cleaning products
Combining two or more cleaners in one bottle, bucket or bowl. Some pairs, such as bleach with ammonia or with an acid, give off toxic gas.
Baking soda cleaning
Using baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) as a mild, alkaline scrub and deodorizer on sinks, tubs, grout, trash cans and carpets.

Chores, cleaning and home care

Sources

USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service, "Removing Odors from Refrigerators and Freezers"; USDA FSIS, "Refrigeration & Food Safety"

Last updated September 30, 2026.