Oh yeah, dilute it. It doesn't take but a drop or two. I hesitate to say that it will be safe on all painted surfaces, because that has more to do with the paint quality and how it was applied than it does the cleaning products used. If you have factory finished painted cabinets, then it will be fine. A microfiber cloth is the other magic ingredient. If you are having issues with grease in your kitchen anywhere other than around your immediate cooktop, the first thing to do is to address your venting. It's not adequate.

@Beth H. - thank you for your comments. I don't think we want to have dark counter tops. The kitchen is open to our family room. The minimal wall space in the kitchen will be painted a light blue color, as will the walls in the family room. We were thinking about: a) white cabinets and island b) the Calacatta gold marble 3" x 6" tiles for the back splash c) light(ish) counter tops on the perimeter and island (perhaps with some grey coming through d) medium brown hardwood floors We thought about using walnut for the island surface, but decided against it due to maintenance issues. If we didn't want to have dark counter tops, are there any other options? Thanks!

I have a question for you guys. Is it too outdated to have a cointibayoon do the quartz for the badksplash(only the 4inches) without having to add any other back splash? I worry about making my kitchen Look too busy and having a hard time matching colors , so i was hoping to just install a quartz counter top with that extra 4 inch lip without doing any other backsplash . That is assuming my counter top isn’t too bland . Also, can I get away with a gray? What about the Silestone calacatta gold ? Are the speckled quartz outdated ? Thanks! My floor has to be changed because it’s got a lot of holes and pkaces that are showing the underneath black rubber. it also has stains . My dream is to have white cabinets , a Taupe counter top(warmer gray like), and wood floors . If calacatta gold form Silestone , Bianco drift from Caesarstone , cambria Torquay , or viatera “sol” would work with white or warm cabinets , I’d pick one of those maybe. It’s a small kitchen, and I don’t have a huge budget .. but I do want to make a big enough change beginning with the counter tops that were never sealed properly, flooring, (and our back wall behind the sink that needs to be replaced ) . Thanks, again. I like honesty .

Egan-I would reduce island length by around 12”. I would eliminate pony walls on ends and use decorative cabinet end panels and reduce 18” cabinet on far end to 12” cabinet. Make sure your cabinets are designed with proper metal support plates for slab. 12-13” overlay for stools is tight. I would expand to 16”. Most slabs can accommodate that total width. 36” deep plus 4” more would mean slab has to be 40-44” wide and 108-112” long. That is doable for most slabs without seams.