Cleaning your oven doesn’t have to be a toxic mess. Learn to clean your oven easily without nasty chemicals.
Over the years, I’ve used all sorts of cleaning products that are designed to clean your oven with ease. Then my son had an allergic reaction to a household cleaner and ended up in the hospital for a week. That caused me to really start thinking about what chemicals I brought into our home.
I think the last chemical cleaner that I gave up was the oven cleaner. Of course that was probably one of the worst chemical cleaners to bring in the house.
But once I learned this chemical-free way to clean the oven, I kicked myself for not giving it up sooner! It works so much better than than chemicals, and no bronchitis as a result either! (Seriously, I’m very sensitive to chemicals and have had nasty bouts of bronchitis after cleaning the oven with chemical cleaners.)
How to Clean The Oven (and Range)
What you need:
- Dishpan filled with hot, soapy water
- Vinegar
- Spray bottle
- Baking Soda
- Scrubbing Sponge
- Cleaning spray (See my homemade cleaner)
- Paper towels or rags/dish towel
Let’s get started.
- Remove your oven racks and set them aside for now.
- Pour vinegar into your spray bottle. Spray the inside of the oven with vinegar. Sprinkle the floor and walls with baking soda. This will fizz a little. Close the oven door and let it sit for 30-60 minutes.
- Fill your dish pan with hot, soapy water. (Dish soap.) If your range has knobs and drip pans, remove them and place them in your dish pan of soapy water to soak.
- Grab your scrubbing sponge, dip it into the soapy water to moisten it, and then scrub the inside of your oven in a circular motion. Everything should come off quite easily. If you have any stubborn spots, simply sprinkle a little extra baking soda, and scrub with the moistened sponge. I am always amazed at how easily this works!
- Once you have scrubbed everything loose, rinse out your sponge and begin wiping down all of the surfaces, removing all of the residue. You’ll need to rinse you sponge often to get everything off.
- With paper towels or a rag/towel, wipe down all of the surfaces to dry it and remove the last of any residue.
- Wipe down the outside of your range, tops, sides, front, all exposed surfaces. If needed, use some cleaning spray to remove any grease or residue.
- If you have any burnt on food particles around your range eyes/burners sprinkle a little baking soda on it, and scrub it with a damp sponge. It pretty much dissolves those food particles.
- Wash the knobs & drip pans and return them to your range. Note – if your drip pans need some extra care, you can clean them with the same solution that you cleaned the inside of the oven with.
- Don’t forget to wipe down your warming drawer if you have one.
- Wipe down your oven racks and return them to the oven. If your oven racks need to be deep cleaned, place them inside a large trash bag, spray them with vinegar, sprinkle with baking soda and let them sit 30-60 minutes. Scrub with your sponge, rinse and dry. If you know they are going to be deep cleaned, you can do this when you start the oven “soaking” and let them sit at the same time.
There you go. A nice clean oven range. Now go bake something yummy!
Love watching your YouTube channel. How are you liking Arkansas? When I was 13 I had a cousin who lived in Fort Smith. I spent the summer with them and loved it! My oldest son lived there his first year after college and he and his wife loved it there. However, when their first baby came his wife wanted to be closer to family.
I have found your content to be very informative. I am almost 80 and have still learned some useful information about canning and gardening.
Thank you for your dedication!
I must have missed it because I read through this fairly quickly, what do you do with your elements? Does anything damage them that you’re using to clean with? Thanks!
I look forward to seeing how this works. I’m getting rid of as much chemicals – if not all – as possible. Thanks for sharing