Need some “good housekeeping” info

[Joel_BC]

I could use a bit of advice from people here who do kitchen clean-up. I’m often the person in our home who does the heavy-duty stove cleaning. Besides a little propane unit and a barbecue, we’ve got an electric stove for everyday use. The old-school type with removable spiral burner elements on top, and a conventional oven.

My wife is generally good on many sorts of cleaning, but due to heat turning some spill-overs in the oven and around and under burners into a sort of varnish (plus some lumps and grit of fused-on black carbon), I wind up tackling that. The reason is: I will use lye in water (sure, with gloves on and avoiding inhalation), and she won’t. She’ll use elbow grease, but she developed a liking for “friendly”, non-toxic spray stuff. The stuff sold as “natural” in many kitchen and hardware store these days. (Lye was the essential ingredient in old-school EasyOff and similar cleaners.)

I’m all for using something less “harsh” than lye—but I want something that actually achieves “old fashioned” clean. Can you recommend anything that is truly effective? (Brand names, please. Many products available in the U.S. are also sold up here.) Thanks.

 

[tortoise]

Confession: I would buy new bowls for under the burners.

I know everyone says not to use foil in the bottom of the oven, but I do. I'd put it right over what is there. Because I'm a lazy housekeeper.

 

[Joel_BC]

Confession: I would buy new bowls for under the burners.
I know everyone says not to use foil in the bottom of the oven, but I do. I'd put it right over what is there. Because I'm a lazy housekeeper.

Okay.

I wonder if possibly many people reading this are fine with using a product like EasyOff?

 

[Beekissed]

I'm fine with EasyOff...it's old, tried and true. Then I'd line that stove with tinfoil afterwards if the wife is prone to letting things boil over in there. It can save you many hours of cleaning by using preventative measures.

I've never used any other product for ovens than that, so have nothing new to offer, Joel...sorry.

One other method is just to soak a towel in soapy ammonia or vinegar and lay it over the bottom of the stove and let it soak in all night...make sure the towel is good and soppy. It could very well turn that layer of varnish into something that then wipes or peels right off.

If the bowls under the top burners are not removable, I always use soaking and then scouring powder on those areas. If removable, I just replace them if they are too bad...it's cheaply done. Then you can wrap the new bowls in tinfoil to prevent boiling over from causing a problem, then just replace them each time the stove is cleaned.

If not wanting to replace them, soaking them in soapy ammonia or vinegar overnight and then rinsing them well...then using SOS pads or scouring powder on any stubborn residue should render them shiny and new.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

I'm even lazier...I just hit the self-clean oven button... But, when I had that kind of stove, I used foil liners.

 

[tortoise]

If it's very thick, I will carefully use a razor blade to scrape. If it's thinner, a magic eraser works wonders. And no! Don't buy the name brand! They're >$1 each! Crazy! I ordered 100 generic online. Cost $0.08 each, free shipping, i shared with a neat-freak friend who can't fit magic erasers into he budget. The generic "melamine foam sponge" is usually and off color, a little smaller, but works better on cooking mess. The only application the name brand is better is on washing walls, and it's not much difference.

 

[Hinotori]

If I'm cooking something that looks like it might spill over, I put a cookie sheet on the rack below it in the oven. That has saved me from more spills than anything. I foil the bowls under the units up top now. I used to replace them if they got too bad.

I'd use EasyOff. The original formula version. The other "friendly" types seem to take forever and don't do as good of a job.

Side note, the toilet cleaner I use is lye based. It's safe for the septic and is the only thing that removes the rust stains.

 

[Country homesteader]

I don't go cheap on any of the products I use in EITHER the kitchen or bathroom.
Kitchen- EasyOff for the spills in the oven, fantastic for the stove, Dawn dish liquid for dishes.
Bathroom- Kaboom foam tastic for the sliding glass doors, walls and shower head; Clorox foaming bleach for the counter ( and sink), Lime A Way for the toilet.
I use Fabuloso for BOTH kitchen and bathroom floors and Windex for the mirror in the bathroom.

 

[sumi]

I use Mr Muscle kitchen cleaner for the stove. Don't know if you get that brand across the pond. It worked well even on the greasy mess on the tiles around the stove that are so dang hard to get off. I spray a generous dose on the affected areas, leave it for a few minutes and then wipe it up. Anything remaining goes with a little scrubbing.

 

[Joel_BC]

Thanks for all the replies.

It seems that generally, amongst those who don't manage to totally avoid spill-overs directly onto stove surfaces, that EasyOff and similar lye-based products are acknowledged as most effective... with Mr Muscle getting a vote from the British Isles.