How to Clean Grease From an Oven: Effective Tips & Tricks
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Cheryl Regan
- Last updated:
Cleaning an oven is a messy, tough task that few people look forward to doing. If you have the right tools, tricks, and know-how, however, it doesn’t have to be so bad!
In fact, if you’re well prepared, cleaning an oven can take a fraction of the time, and the gleaming results are guaranteed to put a smile on your face.
In this guide, we’ll share our grime-busting tips and tricks, and show you how to clean your oven the easy way.
To navigate this guide, click on the step you would like to review first:
- Before You Start
- What is the Best Cleaner for Oven Grease?
- Cleaning Stuck Grease off the Bottom of an Oven
- Cleaning Grease From Oven Window
Before You Start
Preparation will not only make the task of cleaning an oven easier, it will also minimize the time and aggravation you’d otherwise spend cleaning up your surroundings afterward.
Here’s what you need to do before you start:
- Make sure you’re dressed for the job. Either wear an apron or old clothes that you wouldn’t mind getting stained with chemicals and grime.
- Wear a pair of rubber gloves to protect your hands and nails from harsh chemicals and dirt.
- Open a window and make sure you have good ventilation in the room.
- Gather cleaning cloths, equipment, and anything else you might need, so that they are easy to access.
- Place old newspaper pages on the floor in front of the oven, and a little bit to the sides. This will catch any dripping dirt, detergent, and debris, preventing the floor from getting stained—besides, it just makes cleaning up afterward easier.
- Make sure your oven is turned off.
- Finally, remove all the oven racks, thermometers, and any other objects you’ve left inside your oven.
How to Clean Grease From an Oven
What is the Best Cleaner for Oven Grease?
Without a doubt, the easiest and quickest way to clean an oven is to use a store-bought cleaner. These cleaners are usually made up of powerful chemicals that react with the baked-on grease and grime in your oven, lifting them away from the surface so you can wipe it clean.
However, some people prefer to use natural products, which can work just as well.
Whatever method you decide to use to clean your oven, the preparation will be the same. However, depending on whether you prefer to use store-bought cleaners or a natural solution, you’ll need different supplies.
Store-bought Oven Cleaners
There are many oven cleaners that are known to work well. Usually, you spray them into your oven and leave them to work for 30 minutes or more. Then, you wipe the product—and the grime—away with a wet cloth.
We recommend you use a plastic scraper to gently clean the oven and remove the majority of the debris, detergent, and dirt away. Then, you can use a wet cloth to give the inside of your oven a final clean. Take care when using any scrapers, and make sure they are suitable for use inside ovens.
Some great oven cleaners we recommend as our choice include:
Natural Oven Cleaners
If you don’t want to use harsh chemicals to clean your oven, that’s okay. You can make a powerful oven cleaner using baking soda.
To create a baking soda paste, stir 3/4 cup of baking soda with 1/4 cup of warm water. You may need to make up more depending on the size of your oven. Once you have enough, apply this paste to the inside of the oven, including the door. A paintbrush can really help with this part!
The baking soda paste is left on overnight and then scraped off the next day. You can then use white vinegar to spray and clean the inside of the oven to give it a final polish and remove any streaks.
Cleaning Stuck Grease off the Bottom of an Oven
- Begin by removing any loose dirt and debris from the bottom of your oven.
- Cover the bottom of the oven with your cleaner of choice or baking soda paste.
- Leave the solution for the amount of time suggested in the instructions for the oven cleaner, or if you’re using baking soda, leave it overnight.
- Use a plastic spatula, or better yet, a plastic scraper to scrape off the grime. You’ll need to rinse the scraper several times.
- Spray with a daily oven cleaner, or vinegar, then give the bottom of the oven one last wipe with a wet cloth.
Cleaning Grease From Oven Window
To clean grease from an oven window, you can either use an oven cleaner, baking soda paste, or steam.
With a Cleaner or Backing Soda
- Apply the cleaner or baking soda paste over the glass.
- Leave it for the specified time.
- Use a glass scraper to scrape the baked-on grease from the window (you’ll need to rinse the scraper between use).
- To finish off, spray the glass with white vinegar and wipe it off—the end result will be a shiny, clean oven window.
With Steam
- Fill an oven-proof bowl with distilled water, then place it on the middle rack.
- Switch on your oven’s “steam clean” setting and leave it. If your oven doesn’t have this setting, switch it to 450°F instead, and run it for around 20 to 30 minutes.
- When the time is up, switch off the oven and leave it for a few minutes to cool down.
- Use a plastic scraper or plastic spatula to scrape away the grease and grime from the window.
- Finish by spraying the window with white vinegar and wiping away.
Wrapping Up
By far the quickest and easiest way to clean an oven is to use an oven cleaner, a glass scraper, and a plastic scraper. However, if you don’t want to do this, you can make a natural cleaning paste using baking powder and vinegar.
Featured Image Credit: Geo-grafika, Shutterstock
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