Ask Tamara
Question: What dish rack do you use?
Answer: Natural materials! Whenever possible I try to stick with natural materials in my home. That means unpainted, uncoated – and usually undecorated. For a dish rack, I think wood is good option!
I have also had stainless steel ones in the past. If they are marked and labeled and sold as stainless steel then they are generally going to be safe/ lead-free, and a good choice for a non-toxic kitchen.
Related; #AskTamara: What is Stainless Steel?
Here’s a wooden one that is similar to the one I have used in my home. I also use the top of my stove (more often than not) to pile clean dishes on (until the kids dry them and put them away) … and my husband’s favorite drying rack is our dishwasher! He hates using it for washing dishes, but washes dishes by hand and loads them up to dry on the dishwasher racks.
Not a complex answer… but there you go!
Here are some links to these products on Amazon:
- Bamboo Dish Rack
- Stainless Steel Dish Rack
- Ikea also has some nice, simple, non-toxic/ safe choices!
As always, please let me know if you have any questions.
Sincerely,
Tamara Rubin
Unexpected Lead Expert
Mother of Four Boys
Hi Tamara, I’m wanting to buy the metal dish rack you posted, but curious of your opinion – in the description it is called “stainless steel” and also “chrome plated iron.” Have you tested it/do you believe it to be safe? Thanks!
Get more convenient counter top space with this Stainless Steel Dish Drying Rack from Juvale! Crafted of heavy duty high grade chrome plated iron and comes with a 1 Year Manufacturer’s Anti-Rust Guaranteee.
It looks like they changed the description from when I originally posted it. I updated the post with a new choice! Thank you.
Hi Tamara! Is IKEA Oftast plates lead-free?
All of the recently made Ikea I have tested has been either lead-free or very low lead. I don’t know about that design specifically.
Hi Tamara,
I’m interested in the response to Sara’s question. The product you linked is not stainless steel. Is it still OK?
Thanks!
It looks like they changed the description from when I originally posted it. I updated the post with a new choice! Thank you.
Hi Tamara,
Thank you for all that you do. I was wondering if Simple Human or Kitchenaid dish racks are ok to use or if you have tested them? Thx
Here are the links:
https://store.simplehuman.com/ca/steel-frame-dishrack
Hi Tamara,
Thanks for this post. I struggle a lot with finding simple kitchen items that are safer choices. The IKEA link you posted has galvanized steel. A lot of their items have that description (like kitchen paper holder) and I have wondered if they are indeed safe to use? Can you discuss galvanized steel vs stainless steel please?
Thanks!
Tamara, any ideas of clothes drying racks? I think even the bamboo ones have a coating to prevent mold.
Hello Nidhi! I don’t really have any concerns for Lead in typical modern clothes drying racks. Vintage ones may have issues in the rubberized coatings , but new ones are not likely to. This looks like a good option available on Amazon right now (affiliate link): https://amzn.to/2FXoyJb
Thanks for commenting.
Tamara
That is great! Thanks a lot. Since this is currently out of my budget, I think I’ll go with a simple Ikea option for now. Hopefully it’ll be fine.
Thanks
Nidhi
Dear Tamara,
thanks so much for the prompt response. The product in the link you shared looks wonderful, but is too large and expensive for my needs. Would a simple IKEA rack be generally safe?
https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/frost-drying-rack-indoor-outdoor-white-40244831/
Hi Nidhi – that should be fine (from a Lead perspective.)
Tamara
What about aluminum racks? I’m not finding one I like in stainless steel. It seems aluminum is the only other metal option if you want some thing rust proof. Do you think that the aluminum one ones are safe to put the dishes on? Thank you.
What do you think of black powder coated steel? This is what im using for baby bottles/pump parts.