What if cookware/dishware is scratched?

[kenny1999]

I mean, fine scratch that you can probably find under light sources and you don't even feel it with your fingers. Are those fine scratches enough to harbor germs and bacteria?

I'm not talking about large scratches or cracks that I'll simply toss them without question.

[Peterkin]

Sure they can harbour bacteria. Bacteria are literally everywhere. Wash the pots and keep on cooking. The heat will kill most of them anyway.

[kenny1999]

59 minutes ago, Peterkin said:

Sure they can harbour bacteria. Bacteria are literally everywhere. Wash the pots and keep on cooking. The heat will kill most of them anyway.

but you don't usually heat the dishware, e.g. dish, knife, spatula, bowl, etc

[exchemist]

3 hours ago, kenny1999 said:

I mean, fine scratch that you can probably find under light sources and you don't even feel it with your fingers. Are those fine scratches enough to harbor germs and bacteria?

I'm not talking about large scratches or cracks that I'll simply toss them without question.

Bacteria have a length of the order of 1 micron. The honing pattern in the cylinder liner of an engine, which is a pattern you can see but can't easily feel with your fingers, has grooves about a micron in depth. So if the scratches you are talking about are of this magnitude there will not be space for a colony of bacteria to hide in them. But as @Peterkinsays, there are some bacteria on all surfaces that have not just been sterilised and there will no doubt be a few in the scratches too. This is not a concern. The vast majority are not harmful and even for those that can be, our bodies are adapted to dealing with the sorts of low levels of them we are likely to encounter in daily life.

[Peterkin]

6 hours ago, kenny1999 said:

but you don't usually heat the dishware, e.g. dish, knife, spatula, bowl, etc

You can heat those things. You can get a pressure-canner , or just a big pot on the stove, with a rack inside and some boiling water - either for immersion of items just before use, or steam sterilizing. Or keep a UV light on your kitchen counter. Or use disposables from sealed, sterile packaging.  

Germaphobes have options regarding their utensils. But your skin and mucus membranes will still harbour some alien life - you would die without them.

[CharonY]

Harboring bacteria is not the issue. It is more of an issue if they can multiply in there. And unless you are in the habit of never washing your cookware (i.e. having plenty of food residue and moisture around) it won't be an issue. Warm water and soap is usually sufficient.