Disinfecting a wooden cutting board?

[Ekim]

I found a nearly un-marked wooden carving board today, with the ring around it for collecting the juices.

It was in a very bad storage spot. It has tons of dust, a few spider eggs and possibly even a little mold on it. It's pretty filthy. (I already KNOW that I'm a terrible housekeeper, please refrain from any comments on that score.)

If I soak and/or scrub it with hydrogen peroxide, should that sufficiently disinfect it and render it safe to use?

Or should I sand it down or do something else? It's not going to kill me to throw it away, but I hate wasting things.

Thoughts?

[justplainbill]

Scrub with brown soap ( e.g. Fells Naptha or Octagon)and rinse thoroughly, then swab with Clorox and let sit overnight.
Rinse thoroughly.
If you're obsessive-compulsive, swab with 5% acidity white vinegar solution.
Scour damp board with kosher salt (to coat with a salt paste).
Allow to dry, brush off dried salt, rinse and allow to dry.
Treat board with mineral oil or a mixture of mineral oil and paraffin or bee's wax.

[Ekim]

I'm not seeing either of those soaps online anywhere. Am I looking for the wrong thing?

Could I not use a dab of dish soap first, then bleach, then vinegar, then salt paste?

[Andy M.]

Originally Posted by Ekim

I'm not seeing either of those soaps online anywhere. Am I looking for the wrong thing?

Could I not use a dab of dish soap first, then bleach, then vinegar, then salt paste?

The soap serves to remove surface dirt. Dish soap will work. I'd scrub hard with a scrubber sponge or similar. Then continue with the rest of the steps.

[Bigjim68]

I would not put soap on a wooden cutting board, nor would I soak it. In this case I would scrape it down with a metal scraper using running water as a lubricant. I have a couple of broken off spatula blades that I use for scraping. Water and perhaps as little bleach would sanitize it. A light sanding may be called for (I use an orbital sander)

Soaking a wooden board most likely will result in a warped board.

[Addie]

Originally Posted by Ekim

I'm not seeing either of those soaps online anywhere. Am I looking for the wrong thing?

Could I not use a dab of dish soap first, then bleach, then vinegar, then salt paste?

Go to
http://www.vermontcountrystore.com/store/

They sell the Fels Naptha soap. It is a brown soap that has excellent disinfecting properties. It has been around for ages and ages. When I was a kid, they use to use it for impetigo and other skin infections. It is advertized as a laundry soap. But it has so many other uses.

[Addie]

Household Cleaners | Household Cleaning Products

this will bring you right to the page for Fels Naptha or Octogon. Fels is cheaper.

[Timothy]

After you've removed the surface dirt by rinsing, you could do what thousands of sushi chefs do; (From the Clorox Site: "To disinfect: Use 3/4 cup of Clorox® Regular-Bleach per gallon of water. Wash, wipe or rinse items with water, then apply bleach solution. Let stand 5 minutes. Rinse thoroughly and air dry.")


Rinse, rinse and rinse again until you can detect no odor of clorox on your cutting board.

[Ekim]

Thanks for the input, folks.

I notice that a lot of folks reviewing on Amazon.com say you can find the Fels at Kroger & Wal-Marts for around $1 or so a bar.

[letscook]

I would scrub it with a cleanser like soft scrub that has bleach in it and then wash it in hot sudsey water, then reoil it with a mineral oil ( found in most store near the pharmacy)