Chemical oven cleaners will damage continuous-clean ovens, which have a special porous finish with an oxidation catalyst that absorbs, spreads and dissipates grease/soils at normal baking temperatures.
Self-Cleaning Oven -- Alternative Technologies
Life without a P7
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Chemical oven cleaners will damage continuous-clean ovens, which have a special porous finish with an oxidation catalyst that absorbs, spreads and dissipates grease/soils at normal baking temperatures.
Self-Cleaning Oven -- Alternative Technologies
Continuos Clean Ovens
<span style="font-family: 'book antiqua', palatino; font-size: 14pt;">Thank you Glenn. I guess I had that confused. Do these continuous clean ovens work that well?</span>
<span style="font-family: 'book antiqua', palatino; font-size: 14pt;">Thank you Glenn. I guess I had that confused. Do these continuous clean ovens work that well?</span>
brisnat81
Well-known member
Hi Ralph, our last oven had removable continuous clean panels on the sides, back and roof. They did a pretty good job at keeping themselves clean, although occaisionally you'd heat the oven the 500F to get rid of any spots.
The rest of the oven you would remove the liners and I used an Gel product that you painted on to clean it.
I've since gone Pyrolytic cleaning and would never go back, the only issue I've had is with the racks getting flaking chrome post clean, so I've started cleaning them by hand to preserve the finish.
Nathan
The rest of the oven you would remove the liners and I used an Gel product that you painted on to clean it.
I've since gone Pyrolytic cleaning and would never go back, the only issue I've had is with the racks getting flaking chrome post clean, so I've started cleaning them by hand to preserve the finish.
Nathan
Depends on how much of a clean oven the user expects. It's never 100% clean for anyone who uses their oven to much of an extent for roasting and broiling. It likewise takes a while for soils to dissipate after soiling occurs if the oven isn't used very often. There are discolored spots of varying shades that remain until the oxidation process completes. A trick that can help to speed it up is run the oven empty at 350°F to 400°F for an hour or two ... sort of a low-heat self-clean. I think continuous-clean was discontinued some years ago, except some countertop and toaster ovens may have it.
bradfordwhite
Well-known member
I don't think they make continuous clean anymore.
I really didn't work that well. I tended to get darker with age and just look dingy all the time even though there may not have been any distinct spills.
I really didn't work that well. I tended to get darker with age and just look dingy all the time even though there may not have been any distinct spills.
Continuos-Cleaning vs High Heat SC ovens
CCOs actually worked very well on the hard to reach walls, back and ceiling of ovens, they were hopeless on spills on the floor of ovens and of corse did not clean the light bulb, racks or window. The better ones had a removable panel on the floor that you could remove and clean, or in Whirlpools CCOs you were instructed to keep the floor covered with HD aluminum foil.
CCOs fell out of favor because consumers did not know how to use them, AND if you wanted your oven to look bright and shinny like it looked when new it was about impossible.
You differently DO NOT use lye based oven cleaners in CCOs, it does not rinse off and permanently spoils the appearance.
High Temperature SCOs of corse clean the entire interior [ and better ones now porcelain coated racks ] so they stay nice looking as well, although I have always cleaned the chrome plated racks in the SCC, they just take on a present gray color much like the rest of the ovens interior after a few cleanings.
HT SCOs have the added advantage of using less energy and generally pre-heating faster and baking more evenly.
John L.
CCOs actually worked very well on the hard to reach walls, back and ceiling of ovens, they were hopeless on spills on the floor of ovens and of corse did not clean the light bulb, racks or window. The better ones had a removable panel on the floor that you could remove and clean, or in Whirlpools CCOs you were instructed to keep the floor covered with HD aluminum foil.
CCOs fell out of favor because consumers did not know how to use them, AND if you wanted your oven to look bright and shinny like it looked when new it was about impossible.
You differently DO NOT use lye based oven cleaners in CCOs, it does not rinse off and permanently spoils the appearance.
High Temperature SCOs of corse clean the entire interior [ and better ones now porcelain coated racks ] so they stay nice looking as well, although I have always cleaned the chrome plated racks in the SCC, they just take on a present gray color much like the rest of the ovens interior after a few cleanings.
HT SCOs have the added advantage of using less energy and generally pre-heating faster and baking more evenly.
John L.
turquoisedude
Well-known member
Late to the party here, but I've had all three types - manual, continuous-clean, and self-clean. Currently, both my daily-driver ovens are not self-cleaners ('56 GE in Ogden, '62 Flair in St-Lib) and honestly, it's not that bad to keep them clean. As has been mentioned here, I do try to not let soils build up and burn on. I have found that a wipe-down with a cloth moistened with water and ammonia will knock out grease before it builds up. Racks get a treatment with regular oven cleaner, then a scrub down with a steel-wool pad if needed. (Side rant - cleaning those oven racks is easy to deal with if you have a deep laundry or utility sink - most homes no longer have these alas...GRRR)
I also have to admit that I find the Flair oven is very easy to keep clean - I swear that oven was designed for someone on the not-to-tall side like me. The swing-up oven door is a boon! I've used wall ovens before - a 60s GE with a removable door and and 80s Hotpoint with a non-removable one. The latter was replaced by the GE Wonder Kitchen... LOL
I got to use a continuous-clean oven first - my folks bought a 1974 Baycrest (Canadian department store rebadged Westinghouse) with one. I actually read the user book and as John also said, it instructed the owner to wrap the removable drip plate at the bottom of the oven with heavy foil. I did and that oven stayed looking fine until it was off-loaded in 2006. Of course after I had moved out of my father's house in 1986, that range saw very little baking and roasting activity... LOL
First self-cleaner was a mid-70s Bélanger (a Canadian brand which I think at the time was made by Tappan). When the self-clean cycle was working, I was disappointed with how it did. Heavy, crusty stuff just baked on harder to the oven walls. This was replaced by a 1977 Beaumark (Canadian department store rebadged Hotpoint) and I found it much better. Perhaps this was because the timer on the range was shot, so self-clean ran for as long as you wanted and as long as you forgot about it... LOL The last self-cleaner I had was a 2001 Whirlpool Gold - I was a little leery of it, as it was the model with the concealed bake element, but it did a decent job of self-cleaning. This had been the range in our old apartment in Montreal so it didn't see tons of baking and roasting though.
At the country houses, we had a succession of ranges... When I decided to "go turquoise", both ranges I had were non-self cleaners, but I survived!!
Just one last cleaning tip, I read in an old 'household hints' book to leave a dish of ammonia in a dirty oven overnight to loosen grease. It works reasonably well, I was afraid of the ammonia stinking up the house, but it really didn't!
I also have to admit that I find the Flair oven is very easy to keep clean - I swear that oven was designed for someone on the not-to-tall side like me. The swing-up oven door is a boon! I've used wall ovens before - a 60s GE with a removable door and and 80s Hotpoint with a non-removable one. The latter was replaced by the GE Wonder Kitchen... LOL
I got to use a continuous-clean oven first - my folks bought a 1974 Baycrest (Canadian department store rebadged Westinghouse) with one. I actually read the user book and as John also said, it instructed the owner to wrap the removable drip plate at the bottom of the oven with heavy foil. I did and that oven stayed looking fine until it was off-loaded in 2006. Of course after I had moved out of my father's house in 1986, that range saw very little baking and roasting activity... LOL
First self-cleaner was a mid-70s Bélanger (a Canadian brand which I think at the time was made by Tappan). When the self-clean cycle was working, I was disappointed with how it did. Heavy, crusty stuff just baked on harder to the oven walls. This was replaced by a 1977 Beaumark (Canadian department store rebadged Hotpoint) and I found it much better. Perhaps this was because the timer on the range was shot, so self-clean ran for as long as you wanted and as long as you forgot about it... LOL The last self-cleaner I had was a 2001 Whirlpool Gold - I was a little leery of it, as it was the model with the concealed bake element, but it did a decent job of self-cleaning. This had been the range in our old apartment in Montreal so it didn't see tons of baking and roasting though.
At the country houses, we had a succession of ranges... When I decided to "go turquoise", both ranges I had were non-self cleaners, but I survived!!
Just one last cleaning tip, I read in an old 'household hints' book to leave a dish of ammonia in a dirty oven overnight to loosen grease. It works reasonably well, I was afraid of the ammonia stinking up the house, but it really didn't!
Cleans all but the window...
<span style="font-family: 'book antiqua', palatino; font-size: 14pt;">I have a SCO that for the most part the Self Cleaning function works very well. I take out the racks because I like them shiny. The frustrating part is it does not clean the window very well. Bugs me when I look in the oven I see a shiny clean oven through a window with brown streaks. What is the best way to clean those without any damage to the rest of the oven? I have tried a few cleaners and a little has come off. I tried one day immediately after a cleaning cycle and the door unlocked and even then they wouldn't budge.</span>
<span style="font-family: 'book antiqua', palatino; font-size: 14pt;">Any suggestions?</span>
<span style="font-family: 'book antiqua', palatino; font-size: 14pt;">I have a SCO that for the most part the Self Cleaning function works very well. I take out the racks because I like them shiny. The frustrating part is it does not clean the window very well. Bugs me when I look in the oven I see a shiny clean oven through a window with brown streaks. What is the best way to clean those without any damage to the rest of the oven? I have tried a few cleaners and a little has come off. I tried one day immediately after a cleaning cycle and the door unlocked and even then they wouldn't budge.</span>
<span style="font-family: 'book antiqua', palatino; font-size: 14pt;">Any suggestions?</span>
I remember my mother's Sharp convection microwave from around 84-85 had stainless walls and back but continuous clean on the ceiling. Of course it was a cardinal sin in our house to heat anything without covering it first to prevent splatters. Same rule applies in m y house but DH tends to ignore it....}-(>
I use Easy off no scent to clean the window and door on my sc oven. It has never cleaned those well enough. I also use it on my rotisserie oven and my toaster ovens, makes them look like new. Spray it on leave it over night and cleans right off the next morning with paper towels and just rinse and wipe clean and clear.
Jon
Jon
<span style="font-family: 'book antiqua', palatino; font-size: 14pt;">Thank you Jon. I will give that a try. I wanted to get it clean before it gets too bad then it will be awful to clean.</span>
iheartmaytag
Well-known member
To quote Erma Bombeck:
"If God meant us to clean ovens, he would have given us six foot long arms with detachable scrub brushes."
"Well it's self cleaning"
" Cats are self cleaning"
"If God meant us to clean ovens, he would have given us six foot long arms with detachable scrub brushes."
"Well it's self cleaning"
" Cats are self cleaning"
Well, one mention of “the time of year to service a lot of ovens” to an appliance repair person who was fixing my washer or maybe it was my dryer, years ago, he’d gone off on such a limb on the ovens breaking down that worked because of self-cleaning on what was mainly touch-control systems caused me to be unable to get a word in edge-wise of how I use mine much more wisely, in that a standard 3-hour cleaning the default is set for or going down to the 2-hour cleaning and doing mine a bit more frequently makes my oven work a bit more trouble free, and I think even with the lack of scraping a few food particles and/or cleaning up whatever ash afterwards, my oven is cleaned satisfactorily...
As for the smell, I enjoy the scent of the cleaning being done, just hope that it’s not similar to that of cremating human remains...
— Dave
As for the smell, I enjoy the scent of the cleaning being done, just hope that it’s not similar to that of cremating human remains...
— Dave
sarahperdue
Well-known member
Hopeful features
I did consider ease of cleaning to some degree during my whirlwind romance with the Frigidaire Custom Imperial. French doors on the upper oven and the pull ‘n clean lower oven frees me from the need for 6’ arms. I just learned that the single door Custom Imperial had drop-leaf doors to make cleaning easier.
Sarah
I did consider ease of cleaning to some degree during my whirlwind romance with the Frigidaire Custom Imperial. French doors on the upper oven and the pull ‘n clean lower oven frees me from the need for 6’ arms. I just learned that the single door Custom Imperial had drop-leaf doors to make cleaning easier.
Sarah
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