What are these black things I found in and/or on some dishes, cups and utensils in my kitchen?

I’m surprised no one has yet noticed his comment about mixing vinegar and baking soda to clean.

He didn’t even read completely what his own link says about it.

Re bleach, very little of it diluted in water is enough to disinfect. That means a 1/3 of a cup to a gallon of water.
In fact straight bleach doesn’t disinfect that well.

Interesting thing I just learned. Vinegar is better at killing mold. It sees bleach as a “threat” and grows back stronger. It grows back on porous surfaces as it grows down into the surface.

Is borax a good disinfectant to use if you want to disinfect pots and pans, plates, dishes and other utensils in your kitchep against pests?

I've thrown certain things out because bugs got on and/or in them.

I've used borax when cleaning these things.

(Answering per request in PM)

The active ingredient in Bleach is Sodium Hypochlorite.

1) Bleach is a strong disinfectant (much stronger than vinegar), which is why when I am dealing with something potentially infectious (like mouse droppings) I tend to use Bleach.

2) Bleach can leave a residue when it dries. However Bleach is unstable, and breaks down to salt (Sodium Chloride) and water. So I tend not to worry too much about it.

3) Bleach is not harmful in small amounts.

4) Bleach is water soluble... So after I clean my cabinets with bleach, I rinse out the rags I used in clean water, and then rinse off again using only water.

I use bleach in my clothes. I also use bleach to sanitize my dishrags (I use to clean the kitchen). The first use has never caused a problem. For my dishrags, I rinse well with only water before I use them.

(Also by request from PM)

Remembering from my study of chemistry from University years ago (if someone has a more recent knowledge of Chemisty, please chime in).

Borax works by producing Hydrogen Peroxide. Hydrogen Peroxide is also very unstable (it degrades to water). A quick google shows that although Hydrogen Peroxide is a disinfectant (which you can buy as a liquid) that Borax is not strong enough to be used in critical applications (such as cleaning child care centers).

I use Borax as a whitener... it works very well to get pit stains out of white tshirts. I don't generally use it as a sanitizer.