The Cheap Fix for Standing Water: Diatomaceous Earth

I long ago came to terms with the fact that I will spend the rest of my life in an uphill battle with clutter, but I cannot function in my home without a basic level of cleanliness—especially in the kitchen. And nothing makes my kitchen feel dirtier faster than standing water.

Given the frequency with which my kids and I use my kitchen sink for washing dishes, washing produce, washing hands, filling the Brita, filling the dog’s water bowl, filling the electric kettle (there’s more, but you get the idea), puddles around the faucet and dish rack have become inevitable. Or at least they were until I picked up a small diatomaceous earth sink tray from the clearance shelf at TJ Maxx a couple of months ago.

Diatomaceous earth is a sedimentary rock formed from the fossils of tiny aquatic organisms; I was already somewhat familiar with it since I’d successfully used it in powder form to combat basement spiders. Brands selling compressed diatomaceous earth products claim it can absorb up to 150% of its weight in moisture and it evaporates quickly because it’s so porous, so I was hopeful it would at least reduce the stagnant water around my sink.

I put my single drying “stone” on the right side of my faucet—otherwise known as my problem area since that’s where the handle is and where I keep my dish soap pump dispenser. Within a day the wettest spot around the sink was the driest.

I immediately ordered a nicer-looking two-piece faucet mat that would run the entire length of the sink and smaller trays to put under the soap dispensers in each of my bathrooms. A week later, I decided to replace the sometimes-slimy silicone mat (that had replaced a usually-damp microfiber mat) under my dish rack with a much better looking diatomaceous earth option.

If you deal with a lot of water around your faucets, compressed diatomaceous earth is kind of a miracle material. Still, there are a few things to keep in mind before you buy.

What to know before buying a diatomaceous earth mat

Though they feel like soft stone material, these “slabs” are actually made of compressed powder. So if your mat is frequently saturated with more water than it can absorb and isn’t given time to dry fully after it gets wet, it will likely warp, at least a little. So it’s a good idea to remove it from the counter every once in a white and maybe even prop it up on its side so the bottom can dry out too.

Using a diatomaceous dish mat with small feet or one encased in a silicone mesh may also help prevent warping as even just a little bit of elevation allows for airflow under the mat. And if you put your dishes directly on the mat, versus placing the mat under a dish rack, the silicone mesh can also protect delicate dishes from getting scuffed up on the slightly textured natural material.

Compressed diatomaceous earth will also hold onto stains, which makes sense given the fact that its job is to absorb moisture. But if that moisture is anything other than clear, the color will stick around even after the water has evaporated. In general, this isn’t really an issue since a dish drying mat is used for clean dishes. However, since I started using a white diatomaceous earth drying mat, I’ve learned, for example, that the coil of my handheld milk frother holds onto a little bit of instant mushroom coffee—even after I think I’ve rinsed it thoroughly and run it for a few seconds it in a cup of warm soapy water.

I’ll take stain spots over stagnant water any day, and very light surface stains can often be sanded out (most of these products come with a small piece of fine sandpaper). Still, I think my next diatomaceous earth dish mat will be a darker gray color.

Diatomaceous earth isn’t perfect, but it’s the best solution I’ve found for keeping the area around my sink dry. Now I just need to figure out a system for remembering to put on an apron before I hand-wash dishes so the front of my clothes don’t end up soaked.