How to Use Dish Soap on Anything

By Elissa SanciMarch 17, 2023

Okay, not quite anything, but the surfactants in dish soap — the chemicals that help water cut through grease — are what make the cleaner such an efficient workhorse both in the sink and around the house.

Here are some different ways you can use the gentle liquid on jewelry, eyeglasses and even Crocs →

Dish soap can make most metals, gems and crystals sparkle again. Mix one drop of dish soap with a bowl of warm water, then let your jewelry sit in the mixture for several minutes to cut through oils and grime. Gently scrub solid gold and hard gemstones, such as diamonds and rose quartz, with a soft-bristle toothbrush.

Though it might seem natural to scrub your dental pieces with toothpaste, dish soap is actually a better option since it's less abrasive. Every morning, use a squirt of unscented dish soap on a soft-bristle toothbrush to gently scrub your guard or retainer.

Dish soap, lukewarm water and some vigorous scrubbing can eliminate almost any common Crocs stain. Use a sponge to clean soil, sidewalk grime and dog poop off the outside of your Crocs. Follow with a toothbrush to get in between the grooves on the soles and under the rivets.

When it's time to clean up an after-dinner mess, pour water and a few drops of dish soap into the work bowl of your food processor. Run the machine for a few seconds so that the blades can whir through the soapy water. Use a bottle brush to clean, then rinse and leave each piece to air-dry on a dish rack.

Contrary to popular belief, you can clean your cast-iron pans with dish soap. Gently scrub it with dish soap, hot water and a nonabrasive sponge, then rinse the pan out and dry it completely with a dish towel. Once dry, coat the pan in a thin layer of neutral oil and rub it in using a paper towel or a clean rag.

To clean your eyeglasses, rinse them for 15 seconds under a tap running warm water. Then squeeze a pea-size drop of soap onto the front and back of the lenses and work up a gentle lather to clean the nose pads, hinges and frame before rinsing thoroughly and drying with a microfiber cloth.

Read more about ways to clean with dish soap at Wirecutter. Or check out other timely advice: