Discover How to Properly & Safely Clean Your Oven
Regularly cleaning your oven will prevent burnt food scraps from smelling up your kitchen and even your food. It will also extend the life of your oven. Many ovens come with a self-cleaning feature; however this isn’t necessarily the most effective way to go in terms of efficiency and safety. Also, if you use abrasive cleaning products, scouring pads made of steel wool or gritty old washcloths can damage the surface, especially if you’re using these on stainless steel.
Commercially sold oven cleaners are made with toxic chemicals known to cause health issues, like burning eyes, scratchy throat, respiratory problems, headaches and allergic reactions. In fact, research shows that there is a connection between being exposed to chemicals in cleaning products and respiratory conditions as well as occupational asthma. Many oven cleaners on the market contain a corrosive chemical called sodium hydroxide, which is lye. Lye can burn your skin and eyes and if applied with an aerosol can, it can easily be inhaled into the lungs.
The bottom-line is that the toxic fumes given off by oven cleaners can easily be swallowed or inhaled, leading to serious symptoms that include (but are not limited to) severe burning or pain in the eyes, nose, ears, lips and/or tongue; difficulty breathing; vision loss; bloody vomiting; abdominal pain; irritated or burned skin; and lowered blood pressure.
Fortunately, no one needs to use toxic chemicals to clean their oven. If you want to do this the right way and clean your oven safely, use a paste made of baking soda and vinegar. Here are your instructions:
How to Safely Clean Your Electric Oven
- Chemical-free cleaning paste: Mix ½ cup of baking soda in a bowl with 3 tbsp. of water.
- Switch all oven controls to “off” making sure that your oven is completely cooled down.
- Take out all the racks and any oven accessories and set them aside.
- Using a soft paper towel, wipe up any burnt-on food particles from the oven floor. Take an old toothbrush, dip it in the baking soda paste and start scrubbing the oven to loosen the remaining burnt-on food and mess. Leave the heating element alone.
- Don’t forget about the oven door. It needs to be cleaned as well. The doors on most ovens can be removed for easy cleaning. But this does not mean you should soak it in a lot of water because water can seep in around the window and cause discoloration.
- Use the baking soda paste to clean the door, and again no abrasive scouring pads or cleaning powders that could scratch the enamel and glass.
- Leave the baking soda paste to sit there inside the oven and on the door and window for at least 30 minutes.
- In the meantime, take your oven racks into the bathroom because you are going to clean them in the bathtub. Lay some towels down in your tub so the racks don’t scratch it. Place the racks down on the towels and turn the faucet on, covering them with hot water. Pour in ½ cup of liquid dishwashing detergent, swirling it around so it dissolves.
- Leave the oven racks in the tub soaking for at least 4 hours. Any residual burnt-on food or mess can be scrubbed off with the toothbrush or a larger non-abrasive brush, washrag or sponge. When they’re clean, rinse and dry them thoroughly before putting them back in the oven.
- Before wiping the baking soda paste off the inside of the oven and door, splash vinegar lightly over the paste to loosen it up. Use a damp sponge or soft paper towels to wipe the paste away.
- Return the clean racks to the oven.
- Any stains that still remain are a matter of wear and tear and should not cause an unpleasant odor or have any bearing on the life of your oven.
How to Safely Clean Your Gas Oven
Follow the same procedures outlined above, but add these extra few steps:
- Do not get the heating elements wet. This can be a challenge when you’re cleaning the broiler right beneath the heating elements, so be careful.
- If the heating element does get wet, you need to check whether the oven still turns on. If not, use a dry paper towel or soft cloth and dry off the heating elements. If the oven still doesn’t turn on, you should wait a while until it is completely dry or try drying it out with a hair dryer.
- The bottom part of a gas oven usually requires the heaviest cleaning. The bottom panel should be removed for a thorough cleaning. Lift it out or if it is screwed down, remove the screws.
- Once you’ve removed the bottom panel, inspect the gas burner and clean it. To see how it’s working, switch it on now that the bottom panel has been removed. If you notice that the flame has gaps along the sides, that means there are clogged holes.
- Make sure the oven is off before you start poking around with a wire, straight pin or toothpick to unclog the holes. You could also unclog them by brushing them with a soft brush. If you have a pilot-less oven, you should check the ports along with the area beneath the igniter to clear any crumbs, burnt food or grime because this debris can keep the burner from lighting up.
- Once you’ve cleaned the gas burner, make sure it’s working properly and burning efficiently. After turning it on, there should be a steady 1-inch cone in blue, with a half inch inner cone. If you want to read the owner’s manual, it will explain how to adjust the flame and its color. For further advice, call Sparkle Appliance.
Make Things Easier for Next Time You Clean Your Oven
Every time you use your oven, wipe up any food spills. These can contain acids, like tomato, that can damage enamel surface. This is why it’s important to clean these up and any other spills once your oven has had a chance to cool down.
Caution:
Do not put aluminum foil or any other type of oven liner on the bottom of your oven and do not cover your racks or any holes, slots or passages you find in your oven. This blocks the airflow and there must be a free flow of air throughout your oven if you want good results from cooking. You can also cause carbon monoxide poisoning by blocking the airflow in a gas oven. Also, lining it with aluminum foil can trap heat and cause a fire hazard whether it’s an electric or gas oven. Furthermore, using aluminum foil in an electric oven can create the risk of an electric shock.
