Spring Cleaning: Range Edition

The weather is warming, birds are chirping, and flowers are beginning to bloom. It's a lovely time of year and a time in which many engage in Spring cleaning. Although it can be a lot of work, we think the reward of a squeaky clean home is worth it. 

Today's cleaning instructions will focus on cleaning your range. Cleaning ranges can be a labor intensive but well worth the effort as Consumer Reports estimates Americans use their ranges about five times per week. If you have a self-cleaning oven, we recommend cleaning the top of your range before running the self-cleaning cycle. Before starting the self-cleaning cycle, remove anything currently in your oven, such as your Range Kleen Non-Stick Oven Liner. To clean the top of your range, grab your Glass & Ceramic Range Kleening Kit by Range Kleen and follow the cleaning product instructions.

If you don't have a self-cleaning cycle, roll up your sleeves and grab these items: baking soda, vinegar in a spray bottle, a wet rag and a sponge.

Before cleaning, the oven should be cold to the touch. Remove the oven racks and soak in the kitchen sink in hot water with a 1/2 cup of vinegar. (If your oven racks don't fit in the kitchen sink you can soak them in the bathtub, be sure to place a towel underneath to avoid scratching your tub). If possible, allow soaking overnight.

While the oven racks are soaking, make a baking soda paste. Mix a few tablespoons of baking soda with water to form a paste. Spread the paste inside the oven on the base and along the walls, avoiding the heating elements. (Hint: It's normal for the paste to turn brown). Leave the paste to sit overnight.

Use a wet rag to wipe up as much of the paste as possible. Then use your Range Kleen Scrape and Kleen to scrape away any remaining paste residue. Then spritz any remaining paste with vinegar.

Wipe out the remaining vinegar and baking soda residue, then give the oven racks a light scrub with a scrubbing sponge, rinse with water and return to them to the oven. 

We hope you've enjoyed these instructions on cleaning your range. If you wish to make future clean-up easier, we suggest investing in a Range Kleen Non-Stick Oven Liner which is designed to catch food crumbs, spills and gooey drips (such as pie filling or melted cheese). In addition to being easy-to-clean, it's also reusable, and easy-to-trim with household scissors to customize the fit to your range.

Stay tuned for more cleaning tips and instructions from Range Kleen!