Whether you love to bake or prepare huge family meals every night, keeping the oven clean at all times can be challenging—sometimes, even after you’ve tried everything.
You may clean up the occasional spills as they happen, but in the long run, you’ll still have to perform a deep and thorough cleaning of your oven. And yes, it’ll be messy and maybe even tiring, but at the very least, ovens nowadays have surfaces that release grime and grease more easily.
There are numerous commercial oven cleaners on the market, and there are DIY solutions you can try at home. Today, we’ll share a few nifty tricks that will make your oven cleaning a walk in the park.
Take a look!
1. Start with Vacuuming
Before you begin your oven-cleaning process, vacuum out the accumulated dust, dirt, crumbs, and debris; it’s also essential to vacuum your oven after running a self-cleaning cycle. All you need is a vacuum hose or crevice attachment.
2. Scrub with a Foil
There are tough stains that simply won’t come off your oven. A good trick to handle such stains is using aluminum foil. First, use a sponge and water to wipe down the stains, then follow up with a balled-up sheet of aluminum foil. The foil helps break up the grime on the oven without leaving any damage.
Oven grates also have really tough stains, but instead of an aluminum foil, consider a pumice stone. Your grates will be free of burnt food stains in no time!
3. Make the Grime Loose
To make your oven-cleaning process easier, employ the power of steam. There are two ways to go about this:
Vinegar and Water
- Boil 1/3 of a pot of water on your gas stove before adding an equal amount of white vinegar. Let the mixture boil for at least 30 seconds.
- Take your pot with the boiling mixture and place it on your oven’s middle rack, then close the oven door. Let the steam do its magic for about 45 to 60 minutes.
- Find a soapy cloth, open the door, and start wiping down the surface. You’ll notice the grime coming off more effortlessly than it would if you tried scrubbing only.
Lemon and Water
- Squeeze the juice of two lemons in an oven-safe dish. Alternatively, simply cut them up into quarters to save you some energy.
- Fill the dish with water and put it in the oven.
- Turn your oven on and put it on ‘Bake’ at 250℉ for about 30 minutes to allow the water to boil.
- Once the time is up, remove the boiling water and let the oven cool. Then, using a sponge dipped in lemon water, wipe down everything, including the oven door.
4. Clean the Knobs and Handles
Your oven hardware, such as knobs and handles, also requires some wipe-down once you’ve done tackling the inside. Remove the knobs by pulling them off and soak them in a white vinegar solution for 30 minutes; this will loosen the grime. Rinse the knobs with clean water and set them on a paper towel to dry.
For things such as handles, spray them with a vinegar solution before wiping them down with a cloth.
5. Use the Self-Cleaning Function
Some ovens come with a self-cleaning feature, a lifesaver that will save you the time and effort in cleaning your oven. Check the manufacturer’s manual to learn how the feature works. Once you run a cycle, vacuum the debris and wipe it down with a damp microfiber cloth. It might take a few hours, and you’ll need to ventilate your space to get rid of the smell.
6. Perform a Deep Clean
Honestly, if asked, I’d say doing things as a whole, all at once, is better than handling them bit by bit. To deep clean your oven, you’ll require a baking soda and white vinegar paste, a microfiber cloth or sponge for scrubbing, and paper towels to wipe the stains. Here’s how to go about it:
- If your oven is on, switch it off and let it cool; never clean it while it’s hot! A hot oven can burn you and may react with cleaning agents, leaving unsightly stains behind or, even worse, releasing toxic chemicals.
- Remove the oven racks and soak them in a hot, soapy water solution. Since oven racks have an awkward shape and size, you can clean them in your bathtub, but ensure you line the tub with towels to avoid any scratches.
- Apply the cleaning paste to the sides and walls of the oven, its bottom and top, and the inside of the glass oven door. Be careful not to apply the paste to the heating elements.
- Scrub your oven thoroughly using a microfibre cloth or sponge. Avoid using materials such as steel wool, which will scratch the finish.
- For tough stains that are proving hard to come off, apply a second coat of your cleaning paste and leave it overnight.
- Wipe away the residue of the cleaning paste and lift the debris and dirt using a damp microfiber cloth. If the baking soda and vinegar paste still persists, use a rubber spatula or plastic pan scraper.
- For the final wipe-down, take clean water to remove any trace of your cleaning solution. Dry your oven by turning it on to the lowest heat for at least 15 minutes, or use paper towels.
- Put the oven racks back inside and enjoy a dirt and grime-free oven!
