Amazing! 9 of the Best Oven Cleaning Hacks Ever!

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Oven cleaning hacks are these little tips and tricks that make the dreadful chore of cleaning your oven just a little bit easier.

Perhaps you’re looking for a hack to quickly clean up something that spilled in the oven the last time you baked. Or maybe you’re looking for the best hack to clean up an oven that looks like it hasn’t been cleaned in maybe… ever.

This article has you covered! These 9 amazing oven cleaning hacks will help you do the job in the most efficient way possible to get you from the dirty oven you have to the clean oven you need.

How Often Should You Clean Your Oven?

The answer to this depends chiefly upon:

• how frequently you use the oven
• how recently your oven was last cleaned
• how messy the oven gets with each use

If you use your oven less than 4x/week, with foods that don’t cause a great deal of mess, you’ll probably only need to clean it 3-4 times per year. That’s essentially once every 3-4 months.

Generally speaking, you should always clean big spills as soon as possible. (Jump ahead to Hack #8 for the fastest, easiest way to attack these within moments!) The more you allow that mess to get baked in again with subsequent usage, the harder you’ll have to work to get it cleaned up.

If your most recent use left a big mess inside, it’s better to clean that as thoroughly as possible as soon as possible. The sooner you can clean it, the easier it will be.

If your oven hasn’t been cleaned recently – say, within the last 6 months – you’ll also want to give that oven a thorough deep-clean as soon as possible. Even little splatters can add up to a tougher cleaning effort in the long run.

Materials Needed To Clean An Oven

Each of the methods I’ll detail in this article for how to clean an oven will require different materials. But generally, before you get started you’ll want to make sure you have on hand:

• baking soda
• distilled white vinegar
• lemons/lemon juice
• liquid dish soap
• microfiber towels
• sponge with an abrasive side
• plastic scraper (or old credit card)
• oven cleaner
• magic eraser (or melamine foam block)

An old toothbrush is handy for getting dry crumbs and food particles out of small crevices, creases, and corners. It will also be helpful here later to help with any detailed scrubbing necessary.

How to Clean An Oven Quickly (in under ONE hour)

This method requires some chemical products, but won’t involve as much manual scrubbing. Also, even with proper ventilation it may leave a fume-like odor for a little while. So don’t try this method RIGHT before you need to cook something.

If it’s been a while since the oven had a really good, thorough cleaning, this method might not get it perfectly clean on the first try. But it will give you a great head start without too much struggle.

Step 1: Remove the oven racks and set them aside. Do a quick sweep out of any loose crumbs using a plastic scraper and small brush or vacuum.

Step 2: Protect or remove the heating elements. Spraying these with your chemical oven cleaner could result in caustic fumes invading your next bake, or even damage to the elements. (Yes, even “fume-free” formulas create some fumes!)

Step 3: Spray an oven cleaner (like this one) on the walls and floor of the oven, as well as the inside of the door. Take care to follow all manufacturer directions and warnings.

Step 4: Close the oven door and allow the spray to sit for the time advised on the label, usually about 20-30 minutes.

Step 5: Meanwhile, scrub oven racks in the sink with hot, soapy water and an abrasive sponge.

Step 6: Use a damp sponge to wipe out the oven cleaner. Start at the top of the back wall, swiping towards the side walls and pulling forward. Then as it drips, you won’t have to swipe the same space more than once. Rinse the sponge with clean water often between swipes.

Step 7: If you wrapped the heating elements, remove those wrappings! Dry and replace the racks. Done!

That way, anyone who takes a quick glance at the kitchen sees only sparkling cleanliness (as long as they don’t peek inside the oven)!

How to Clean An Oven Overnight (with less scrubbing)

This is the best option if your oven hasn’t been cleaned in recent memory or is especially grimy with lots of buildup. Choose to start this project in an afternoon or evening, with plans to have time to follow up the next morning.

And since you’re going to be getting all up into every nook and cranny, let’s start by making access a little easier…

For most ovens, this is as simple as sliding the door’s hinges from the frame. Have an old towel or two laid out on the floor nearby where you can place the door to work on it separately. If you’re having trouble figuring out exactly how to remove your oven door, check out the several methods presented here.

The other accessory that’s going to need its own separate cleaning area are your oven’s racks.

Lay a few old towels at the bottom of the bathtub to prevent your oven racks from scratching the tub. Lay the oven racks down and fill the tub with warm water until they are completely submerged.

Add a dishwashing tablet to the bath and allow the oven racks to soak in the fizz overnight.

Meanwhile, make a paste to suds up the inside of the oven. Mix a ½ cup of liquid dish soap into 1.5 cups of baking soda. Slowly add ¼ cup of distilled white vinegar, which is going to activate the bubbles in it, giving you a foamy paste.

Use your hand or an old paintbrush to dab the paste all over the inside of your oven. (See Hack #3 above to avoid getting any cleaning solution on the heating elements.) Don’t forget to apply it to the separated oven door as well!

Once you’ve applied all the paste generously to the oven door, as well as the oven’s back wall, sides, top and floor, give it a quick spritz with a spray bottle of distilled white vinegar to activate those scrubbing bubbles one more time.

Make the mist as fine as you can so that the paste doesn’t simply slide to the bottom. Then allow the solution to sit overnight, at least 12-16 hours.

The following day, just wipe away the paste with a sponge or microfiber towel rinsed regularly in clean water. Use an abrasive sponge to scrub away the loosened grime from the oven racks in the tub. Rinse the racks in clean, warm water, and dry with a microfiber towel.

Replace the racks and re-attach the oven door. Voila! You may only need to deep-clean your oven like this once a year, perhaps just before or after lots of holiday roasting and baking.

You should be able to maintain the oven’s cleanliness throughout the remainder of the year with a regular maintenance cleaning method, like the one I’m about to show you.

How to Steam Clean An Oven (with lemons)

This method is quick and easy for regular maintenance. Plus, it makes your whole kitchen smell lemony fresh!

Fill a large oven-safe baking pan with about 10 cups of water. Cut two lemons in half and squeeze the juice into the water.

Place the pan in the oven and heat the oven to at least 250°, so that the water will boil. Let the lemony steam break down any food residue. The timing may vary, but be sure not to allow the pan to boil completely dry.

Turn the oven off and allow it to cool. Remove the pan and any remaining water. Then use a microfiber towel to wipe out the inside, and you’re done!

Got a few stubborn stains that just won’t succumb to the steam? Try adding these Scrub it attachments to your handheld power drill for a boost of elbow grease!

How to Keep Your Oven Clean(er longer)

Of course, the easiest way to get your oven clean is to keep it clean between uses. So here’s a few oven cleaning hacks that will help you maintain the clean, and avoid the buildup that leads to more scrubbing.

“What is that smell?” Uh-oh. That’s the unmistakable scent of your dish bubbling over and smoke emanating as a messy spill bakes onto the oven floor. Yikes!

Save yourself some scrubbing later by sprinkling a generous dose of table salt on the mess as soon as safely possible. Then once the oven is completely cooled, you’ll be able to scrape the spill up with a spatula, or simply wipe it out with a damp cloth.

How to Self Clean an Oven

Please don’t be fooled by the misnomer. Even a “self-cleaning oven” doesn’t exactly just clean itself.

A self-cleaning oven is one which uses high temperature (up to 900°) to burn off leftovers from baking. Instead of using chemical agents, it basically scorches any food detritus to a thin powdery layer of ash, which you still have to sweep up or wipe out once the oven has cooled.

The appeal is that you don’t have to commit too much effort to get the oven clean! However, there are also a few drawbacks to this option, which might make it less appealing to use.

• The oven door will lock for 3-5 hours, and the stovetop will also get hot. This will likely mean you’ll want to keep out of the kitchen, but you shouldn’t leave the house.
• There could be significant smoke and fumes, so you’ll need to utilize the range hood exhaust and likely open some windows to keep the smoke alarm from sounding for hours.

If you plan to self clean an oven, always follow your oven’s manual instructions when running a cycle. Be prepared to order takeout while it runs, bundle up against winter’s cold or crank the air conditioner in summer, and still need to clean the oven racks separately and wipe the oven out afterwards.

Conclusion

Employing the above mentioned methods and oven cleaning hacks should help you get your dirty oven clean again. Once it’s been thoroughly deep-cleaned, be sure to give it a simple scrub now and then to prevent needing to go through all that work again.

Whether it’s a little spill cleanup or a long-term degreasing it needs, these oven cleaning hacks should come in very handy from now on.

And making it easy means you don’t have to hate the task of cleaning your oven anymore!

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