It all depends on the brand and the coating they use. There are many manufacturers that coat their stainless to resist fingerprints and don't show spots as readily. Some though have the raw stainless finish which will show about every touch.

All of my appliances are stainless and they do get fingerprints. I just use a slightly damp microfiber cloth and wipe with the grain, buff dry and that's it. I use a stainless cleaner once in a blue mooon. It's kind of like car wax, you wipe it on and buff it off and it puts a protective coating on it that resists fingerprints. I have two kids and I haven't had any problems with it.

it depends on what kind of person you are.....i have a stainless fridge and have to wipe it down almost daily because i can't stand to see any smudges. i really like weinman's stainless steel cleaner...the spray can, not the moist towelettes.

no kids here so no finger prints. i clean it before i have guests over :) Use the stainless steel cleaner and micro fiber cloth. Looks like new...same for all stainless appliances.

much better than the yellowing white appliances of yester years!

I have a Stainless Steel GE profile and I can't stand it!!! I also have GE profile double ovens and dishwasher which I love. The difference is that my kids open the refrigerator a 100 times a day and never touch the dishwasher or ovens. I can't even blame it entirely on my kids, when I am cooking my hands have oil, butter etc. on them.......the other day I started to get onto my kids about a FOOTPRINT on the fridge, and then I remembered I had closed the door with my foot the night before:( The refrigerator is constantly dirty and if I try to go over it quickly with a damp paper towel it gets all streaked. I am getting panels on the new refrigerator and this one is being banished to the garage as my extra refrigerator.

With that said, I have always maintained that my kids are the 3 messiest humans I have ever met, and I am a messy cook!!

kensocal - Any tips on which brands have the better coating? Is there any way you can tell when you're shopping for SS appliances?

Laurie

Having walked through various appliance stores, I would not have a stainless fridge in my kitchen. Even in the store that's trying to make the best possible impression, they tend to be pretty messy.

Plus, I'm not a fan of huge expanses of stainless steel.

I think paneled looks much better.

Of course, your kitchen, get whatever you like...

I have a Kitchenaid side by side. It needs an every other week wipe down, and I have two 4 year olds. It really hasn't been too bad, but I don't enjoy cleaning it when I do have to. The stainless steel wipes streak badly. So I use vinegar and water in a spray bottle and dry with a microfiber cloth. Luckily the fridge door handles are a brushed finish and different from the rest of the fridge. I've opened it many a time with damp hands, but the handle is fairly smudge/spot resistant.

They also make brushed stainless panels now, which I think help with the fingerprints a lot. We have a regular Sears Kenmore stainless fridge and I've noticed that even with just my husband and I, fingerprints appear by the end of the week. I use a stainless cleaner that has a little oily finish on it that's supposed to help repel fingerprints, but I find myself cleaning the fridge at least once a week with the cleaner.

I also have the GE Profile refrigerator and at first I did notice fingerprints and nothing seemed to work...I tried the wipes (awful!) and the liquid sprays (marginally better). I was at the point where I was beginning to regret my choice.

But then someone on this Forum told me about the Pledge in a brown can...I used it to clean my refrigerator and no streaks! So I then cleaned every SS appliance in the kitchen...same thing!

I have since noticed the GE Profile appliances & VAH all seem to be resistant to fingerprints b/c, I can only assume, of the Pledge. The only appliance that it doesn't seem to work as well on is our KA DW....it seems to have just as many fingerprints as before (a lot!) Even my DH remarked about it.

I've only cleaned them once so far w/the Pledge....about 3 weeks ago...so I'm pretty well-pleased w/the results.

(And no, I am not affiliated w/Pledge in any way!)

Thank you whoever told me about the brown Pledge!

HTH!

Buehl, this is awesome! When you say brown Pledge, what exactly is it? Is it the same as Lemon Pledge for furniture only in a brown can? I would love to try it!

You're welcome KaraLouise!

I'm not home right now so I can't describe it to you except to say it's in a brown can! It does say it's for stainless steel, etc. so I think that means it really is different from the furniture pledge. I wasn't able to find it at all stores...I think I found it at Safeway...but it might have been Giant (in Maryland).

HTH!

Buehl, I am heading to the Giant here in Northern Virginia pronto!!

Hi,

I was so scared to get granite, because I absolutely can't rest with spots around. However, we have been so pleasantly suprised. I have a KA and I rarely see spots. The only thing we use to clean it with is a microfiber cloth. Maybe
as time goes on I will need something stronger for buildup. To be fair though, for most of the time it is only DH and myself. When 20yr old DS comes home for visits, I see more spots but still not lots.

I have a Bosch SS range and I can't stand that stainless. It spots easily and smears when you wipe it. It is ok for a range (and works nicely so that helps)but if the fridge SS was like the Bosch I would cover it with plastic like people used to do with sofas. LOL

Oh, I also have the KA SS DW, that stainless also is easy to keep clean and maintain. Guess it is all about the brand.
Good Luck, LYNN

I agree that it's all about the brand. Before I decided on my fridge, I went to a couple of appliance stores and deliberately smudged my fingers on the surface to see how bad the marks would be. The store may actually wipe the surfaces down frequently, so it is difficult to tell without the test. There was a huge difference between brands.

I bought the Electrolux ICON all fridge and all freezer twins and am very happy with them. When they do get smudges, I also just wipe with a damp microfiber cloth followed by a dry one. I don't know if the non-ICON Electrolux is as good.

My GE Profile microwave shows everything. My Monogram oven is nowhere near as bad but not as good as the ICON. My Bosch dishwasher is like the Monogram oven.

buehl, GET THAT CAN, TAKE A PIC, AND POST IT FOR US!!! I have all GE appliances and I have almost been in shock over all this mess. I have the French door GE Profile refrigerator and it seems to be the worst cause it has so much surface area. The handles are something else! I even see smudges where I know it's not even been touched? We aren't really using the kitchen just yet, no kids, dogs can't get up that high...maybe someone is sneaking in at night and fondling my fridge?

Please post a pic if you can (stupid, I know), but I want to get this right. I'd even like to know your exact regimen. Do you clean with soap first and then finish up with the pledge? Come on, give us a blow by blow description of your technique.

Thanks,
pup

kitchfrenzy, I got so caught up in the "pledge" I forgot to respond to you. HA! Well, I haven't had mine that long so I may eventually get over it and find something that will clean well...buehl's pledge, I hope! But, right now, I am certainly second guessing my choice of stainless. My problem was I have creamy almost yellow cabinets with a rust glaze and could not see any other color with my cabs. I really wanted a French door fridge so I didn't think the panels would have worked with that model so well. I also was a little concerned about how heavy the panels would make the fridge doors. If you like the look of the panels and have no issues with the weight, you might go that route. If you are into cleaning, buffing, (even cursing) you might go with the stainless. BTW, I just thought of something else. We have another home and about a year ago I bought a Whirlpool Satina finish side by side fridge. It has black handles on it and I really like it. Very little cleaning for it. I don't really like the interior of it, though, as I can't seem to get as much stuff in it as my old Amana side by side.

Good luck...appliance choices are hard.

pup

Found a brown can of Pledge at Kroger...it says extra moisturizing on it. Hope it's the right one, and I pray to the fridge gods that it cleans my GE Profile refrigerator.

We had SS appliances at the house we just sold. They were purchased in 2002 and maybe it was a newer concept then. I honestly hated them. I have 2 kids and they never stayed clean. They also would attract our cats fur. Maybe they make the material better now and easier to keep clean. I love the look, but I really hated the upkeep. Im not sure what we will get when we build. I'll have to test the new stainless at the store ;)

I wrote a while ago about the Pledge, I use the lemon (yellow) "flavor" and the kitchen smells clean even if I know better! I had tried everything out there for stainless and was ready to kill DH who had to have ss!

I clean my GE french door fridge, double ovens and mw about every other week and it is GREAT!!!!!!! It even seems to repel fingerprints. I have also used it on my granite and it works beautifully, no build up anywhere, if only I could use it on my glass cooktop...

No link with Pledge either, just enjoying the benefits!

Fern76