How to Choose a Silicone Dish Drying Mat

Table of Contents

Last Updated: March 1, 2022

How The Silicone Dish Drying Mat Differs From Others

The silicone dish drying mat is the best tool to dry your dishes, as well as kitchen tools and other utensils. It has different styles for you to choose, such as ribbed, drain, anti-skid, foldable.

Have you ever walked into your kitchen to find a mess of wet dishes lying around? It’s not very appealing, is it? Taking the time to dry each dish by hand can also be tedious. The silicone dish drying mat is a great item to have in your kitchen. It allows you to dry wet dishes without using an extra dish rack or having to place your dishes on the countertop. These mats come in different sizes, and there are several colors to choose from.

How The Silicone Dish Drying Mat Differs From Others

There is a great amount of silicone kitchen mats on the USA market. As a rule, silicone mats for drying dishes are brightly colored, but there are also classic black ones. More often than not they can serve as the protection of the kitchen table from scratches and various stains.

To the obvious convenience must be added the fact that many silicone household items are resistant to high temperatures, so it is quite easy to wash them in a dishwasher. Also, their flexible structure allows you to fold or roll them in a compact form – which is very convenient when you travel or go camping. Note that there are many silicone kitchen mats, but not all of them are suitable for drying dishes.

There are for baking, for dough, for hot ones – they are flat, with a relief pattern or special grooves for dripping fat. Of course, they can be used, but the maximum effect will be only from special models.

The silicone dish drying mat is ribbed on the front side, and there are sufficient gaps between the ribs to collect water and ventilate the air. The higher the ribs, the more water will collect. Ventilation promotes drip-free drying, which is important for glassware. There are dryers with holes, these will not retain water, so they can only be placed on surfaces that are not afraid of moisture.

The silicone dish drying mat, which is designed to have anti-slip properties, you can put on the table top. On one side of the dish drying mat are silicone “legs”, which prevents sticking to the surface of the table top, while the mat does not slide on the table. Now, on the other side of this silicone mat is a special soft fabric, which allows to clean it without leaving any folds and water spots on the final surface. At the same time to dry dishes You can also put this silicone dish drying mat on surfaces that are smooth or with a small relief.

Unlike rubber mats, plastic drying trays, silicone ones can be used as coasters for hot dishes. Of course, it is better not to put on a hot frying pan without reading the instructions. Some manufacturers combine two useful accessories in one.

Silicone dish drying mat – is very convenient and practical kitchen accessory. It will allow you to quickly and easily dry cups, glasses, plates and other dishes, as well as bakeware. At the same time silicone drying mat for dishes holds a lot of water vapor. That’s why it dries the dishes faster than a regular dish towel.

How to Choose a Silicone Kitchen Dryer

In order not to regret buying a silicone dish drying mat, you need to consider many nuances. If you do not pay attention, then the money that you spent on it will simply go down the drain. Let’s focus on some key points.

Solid or Perforated:

And speaking of the kitchen, we need to protect the most important thing that is found there – the work surface from being damaged with water stains, or covered with scratches.

For the countertop, give preference to a rug that does not allow moisture to pass through, but collects it as much as possible without letting it drain. Otherwise, there will be puddles on the table. For drying dishes on a tray, a perforated one is also suitable.

Dimensions and Shape:

This criterion is individual for each kitchen. It is better to take measurements in advance, determining the best location. A rectangle is more practical than a square, both in terms of placement on the table and in terms of spaciousness. It is equally important to take into account the need for the volume of dishes that will be placed on it.

There are round and oval dryers, but taking up the same amount of space, they are less spacious. Suitable as an additional device, for example, when you need to wash glasses or more than usual.

Silicone Thickness:

The thinner ones are easier to transport and they can be rolled up into a compact roll. A dish mat that is too thin will wear out quickly, especially if you keep rolling it into a roll. This also threatens a poor quality product. But thicker models cannot be folded or rolled into a compact roll. They are suitable for permanent use and takes more space. The ideal type of material for the best dish mat is rigid enough to resist tearing open and exposing long-lasting fibers that will not wear out easily.

At the same time, it should be designed such that it is flexible enough to hold food particles and allow them to slide off when the dish mat is moved. The fibers are also needed to be absorbent enough that they will not hold water and let it seep through into the surfaces below.

Ribs:

If you don’t have a dishwasher in your kitchen, when inspecting the product, consider whether it will be convenient to wash the mat between the ribs. Hard water leaves a residue that is difficult to remove. The more complex the pattern and the smaller the gaps, the more hassle it can give you in care.

True, there are chemicals that instantly dissolve any pollution. The area of the ribs on the mat and their distance from each other also determine whether glasses and wine glasses can be placed from thin glass or they will fail. Look out for a silicone drainage mat that can be drained directly into the sink or manually emptied out of accumulated water without spilling. The drain will protect the table from moisture as much as possible.

On some silicone trays, the plums are a groove in the center or diagonally, to pour out the water, you need to bend the product, the water will collect in the depression and pour out. There are different types of plums, so be guided by your kitchen sink type. If it merges with the countertop, a wide one will do. And if it is much higher, then there is no point in looking for a guided one.

A convenient silicone mat for drying dishes. Thanks to its special structure, the mat is suitable not only for drying dishes, it is convenient to use it when washing vegetables, fruits, children’s toys, parts of a meat grinder, mixer, blender. A useful accessory for the kitchen, both for permanent use and for those cases when you have to get additional plates and cups that have no place in a daily cupboard dryer.