Cleaning Your Oven With This Popular Product Could End In Disaster

Getting all the burnt food and grease out of your oven can be a difficult job, but resorting to certain harsh household cleaners could damage your appliance. While bleach, or sodium hypochlorite, can be an extremely helpful tool when cleaning because it's a disinfectant, it's not efficient for cutting through grease. Bleach will not make cleaning your oven any easier and could end up causing serious issues. The same properties in bleach that help it remove stains and make clothing whiter could also change the color or damage the protective coating inside of your oven.

While bleach is often used to disinfect surfaces in kitchens, it is not safe to come into contact with food. This harsh cleaner also releases fumes, and if you don't thoroughly wipe your oven down with water before using it again, you could end up filling your kitchen with gases released from the bleach. Sodium hypochlorite can irritate your lungs, throat, mouth, and eyes. To keep your oven in good condition and prevent harmful fumes, it's best to avoid using bleach to clean your oven.

Traditional oven cleaners are great for efficiently getting the grime off your oven, but it's important to follow any safety tips or directions on the label. If you'd rather use something you already have in your home, baking soda, vinegar, and dish soap are extremely helpful. When working on the inside of your oven, wrapping the heating element with foil can help protect it from being damaged by cleaners.

To start, take the racks out of your oven and place them in the sink with dish soap and hot water, just like you would with dirty dishes. While your racks soak, combine 3 tablespoons of water with ½ cup of baking soda and stir to create a paste. Cover the interior of your oven with the mixture and let it sit for at least several hours or overnight. Once the baking soda has had time to work, dampen a cloth with white vinegar and wipe the paste away. You can put the racks back inside your oven after they're washed and you're finished cleaning the interior.