Even the most enthusiastic of household cleaners often dread having to tackle their oven. If you’re one of those people, there’s no need to worry, as making your oven sparkle is probably easier than you think.
Oven cleaning is a dirty job that often requires special tools, various cleaning agents and lots of elbow grease – literally! But you don’t have to put yourself through oven hell when you have the right tools for the job. In fact; if you’re well prepared, cleaning your dirty oven should take just an hour.
Before you start the clock, make sure you have the following things at hand:
- A wallpaper scraper
- A pack of baking powder
- White vinegar
- A small mixing bowl
- A scrubbing brush
- A scourer
- A bucket of hot, soapy water
- 5 clean cloths
- Rubber gloves
Once you’ve collected everything you need, start the clock. Your first job is to remove all of the shelves and set them aside.
SCRAPE OFF LARGE CHUNKS OF FOOD – 5 MINUTES
Most ovens will have accumulations of carbonised food on the floor, walls and shelves. To make the cleaning process as quick and easy as possible, use the wallpaper scraper to scrape off excess accumulations from inside the oven. Collect all of the debris in your hands and throw it straight into a bin.
MAKE A PASTE – 10 MINUTES
Empty around 200 grams of baking powder into the mixing bowl, and add around 50ml of white vinegar. Mix them together until a paste has foamed. Put on your rubber gloves, take some of the baking soda paste in your fingers, and apply it to the walls, ceiling, floor and door of your oven. Pay extra attention to the glass in the door, which can be very difficult to get clean.
Once you’re satisfied that all areas inside your oven have been covered with the paste, move on to your shelves. By the time you’ve finished cleaning them, the inside of your oven will have had sufficient contact time.
CLEAN THE SHELVES – 10 MINUTES
The shelving in your oven may look dirty, but it should be relatively easy to get clean. Soak your scourer in hot, soapy water, and rigorously scrub each shelf until it sparkles. Dry and polish the shelves with a clean cloth, and set them to one side.
TIME TO SCRUB – 15 MINUTES
This is where the hard work really starts. But if you’ve applied your baking soda paste liberally, scrubbing the inside of your oven clean shouldn’t take more than 10 minutes. Use a stiff-bristle brush to vigorously scrub every inch the walls, ceiling, floor and door of your oven. Once you’re happy that you’ve removed the worst of the grease, carbonised food and general nastiness, it’s time to start rinsing.
RINSE AWAY THE BAKING SODA PASTE – 5 MINUTES
Dip a clean cloth in the hot, soapy water, and start wiping up the horrible, orange mess from inside your oven. You’ll probably need to switch to a clean cloth halfway through.
CLEAN THE OVEN AND VACUUM ANY REMAINING DEBRIS – 15 MINUTES
Systematically work your way around the inside of your oven (including the door) – wiping away the final remnants of grease and carbonised food. Once you’re happy that you’ve covered all areas of your oven, wipe it down with a dry cloth, and reinsert the shelves you cleaned earlier.
Finish off by vacuuming any small bits of food debris you find – paying particular attention to the seals and recesses around the door.
And that’s it! With the right tools at your disposal, you’ll never have to dread cleaning your oven again.
