Oven Cleaning

[countryguy]

On my previous stove I left the racks in during the self clean cycle - the chrome turned a dull grey colour which the manual stated was normal. I would have to wipe some cooking oil on the racks afterwards in order to get them to slide smoothly. With my current stove I take the racks out during the clean cycle.

Gary

 

[NYCWriter]

Sandy ...

I do all that and more.

But I put everything over a giant cookie sheet to catch any drips (there rarely are, since I choose appropriately-sized cookware.

And I'm not sure why you get so many splatters -- not a problem here.

 

[chachp]

I have the problem with the splatters too...

..and let the self cleaner handle it.

My issue is I prefer to use convection baking for my baked goods and most of my meats. For meat and chicken the convection oven sears the meat and seals in the juices so the finished product is better in my opinion.

If I cover everything it defeats the purpose of convection baking. SOOOO, I just let it splatter all it wants and let the oven take care of the splatters. As a matter of fact for convection baking you want the most shallow pan you can use for that application because the higher the sides of the pan the more you restrict the air flow.

I think it just boils down to each person's personal preference. I've never had the issue with melted or damaged cabinets. Mine is a double wall oven so I don't know if that matters or not. Both are self cleaning and I hear that vent fan running whenever I am using the over whether it's to bake or clean. I haven't had a free standing type stove in years so I don't know much about them in this regard.

 

[danemodsandy]

NYCWriter:

If you don't have the problem, more power to you. I roast at high heat; perhaps that has something to do with it.

For those who have been talking about damage to adjacent cabinets: I remember the first self-cleaner I ever used, a Lady Kenmore smooth-top from 1974. The installation instructions recommended either a gap or heat-resistant board next to the range, to protect adajacencies from heat damage. I no longer recall just what board was recommended - at that time, probably something asbestos-based. I'm thinking Type X, fire-resistant gypsum board would probably serve the purpose today. Hardie Board would not work well, because while it does not combust, it transmits heat.

 

[cuffs054]

Washer111, this was even worse. Porcelene coated oven with a big "divot" in the floor. You fill up the divot with water and select clean. The oven basically steams, never get hot enough to even need a door lock. When done with that you use "special" cleaner to wipe down the walls. I mean, Really!

 

[parunner58]

I made lasagna the other night and even though it had about 3 quarters of an inch of space at the top of the dish it ran over the bottom of the oven. I am now cleaning it as the door was all potted from other things over the past months. I mostly use the convection to if things spill I can easily wipe up the bottom. I have had this stove for three years so this is the second time I am self-cleaning it. the first time I used the LO setting which is 2 hours and it was not that dirty and it actually made the window dirtier than it was to start. I found in my similar model one I had in my new kitchen in PA it did the same thing. This time I am using the STD which is 5 hours and see what happens. I just hope the window is clean this time it was a pain to clean the last time.

 

[parunner58]

I used my cooking thermometer and this is the temp of the cooktop after two hours

 

[parunner58]

This is the temp at the center of the oven door where the lock is after 2 hours.

 

[dj-gabriele]

Apart the HUGE power consumption of 9 kWh that made me dizzy (more than three times as much as a "standard" cleaning in a normal modern oven here), what scares (yup, scares!) me the most are the temperatures that those ovens reach on certain areas!
Gosh, it is illegal to have such hot surfaces over here!
The highest temperature the sides can reach must be less than 90°C and the front of the oven should be touched with no risk of burns! Even during the self cleaning cycle!

Sure I'd be wary of running them if such temperatures were to develop...

 

[thomasortega]

Euro-Style Electrolux oven here.
I got it when it was still a prototype and was supposed to be launched in Europe as Electrolux Icon.

On the very last minute they decided to change the name and it was launched as "Inspiro" and the name Icon was stored in the fridge until they decide to use it in the US years later.

Cleaning it is fantastic because it has both steam cleaning and pyrolitic options. After almost 10 years, it still looks like brand new.

I clean it once or twice a year and the only problem is that the kitchen heats up like there's a real fire. The only thing i hate is that the fire system goes off.

But I also noted that after some years, the white formica finishing right above the oven is now light beige.

 

[danemodsandy]

Gabriele:

That 9 kwh figure for usage is one I found on the Internet, posted for current-model self-cleaning ovens. I cannot vouch for its accuracy.

As John said earlier in this thread, he has monitored the power consumption of some vintage self-cleaning ovens during their cleaning cycle, and has found power consumption to run between 2 kwh and 4-1/2 kwh. That is half the figure I found.

 

[parunner58]

It' done after 5 hours here are the results of the interior(never thought to take a before picture)The bottom right corner will need some manual cleaning and the white specks are the ash to be wiped up. This is still much easier than the spray and mess of easy-off.

 

[parunner58]

here is the door. will have to clean off the burned on stuff of it. that part is hard because you cannot use anything abrasive as it will scratch the glass very easily

 

[danemodsandy]

FIVE HOURS?

Ye gods - what did you do, roast a hippopotamus?

There is no way a self-cleaner should take that long! Three hours is usually tops, and that's for heavy soil.

 

[thomasortega]

My oven runs for 2, 4 or 6 hours automatically...

Maybe the cycles should have names.

Tan a butterfly - 2 hours
Roast an elephant - 4 hours
Hippopotamus cremation - 6 hours

 

[parunner58]

the self clean settings on this one are LO - 2 hours or STD - 5 hours nothing in between. You also have to remember this is a hidden bake element oven, takes longer to heat up than the older ones that have the exposed bottom elements. There was lasagna which spilled on the bottom and cheese sauce which spilled on the glass plus splatters from using convection roast from roasting turkey, meatloaf, rotisserie chickens and more. I knew from past experience that 2 hours would just bake on the stuff on the window so I tried the STD and it is about 95% clean on the glass. It was in the 70's here in FL and with the windows open and the ceiling fan on the house never heated up to even 80 degrees. even with those temps I took on the surface.

 

[dj-gabriele]

Well, my oven has concealed elements too (top/bottom/fan) and the top grill one also has a removable splash guard on top of it but the longest cleaning cycle is "just" 3 hours, you can select quick/normal/extensive cycles plus an "eco" one that just lasts 1,5 hours but doesn't really clean much unless the oven is already clean.
The first time we run the oven, all new, it was like we were burning tires or worse! Guess all the production oils went away!

Subsequent cleaning have been much odour free because of the forced ventilation and catalytic filters.

 

[danemodsandy]

Ah!

I forgot about the concealed-element factor, even though I was looking straight at the picture. It didn't register that there was not an element visible.

One more reason to avoid that technology. Five hours of pyrolytic self-cleaning has to be expensive no matter what your utility rates are.

 

[tomturbomatic]

Roasting turkey odors

If you insert a generous sprig of rosemary under the skin on both sides of the breast and sprinkle garlic salt and poultry seasoning on the oiled skin of the bird before roasting, the roasting bird will provide a delicious aroma. A little ground ginger on poultry adds a nice flavor/aroma also. The seasonings will flavor the drippings to make a flavorful gravy, too.

 

[danemodsandy]

Tom:

Been there, done that and the smell of turkey fat was still nauseating to me.

Smell is a very individual thing; what's delightful to one person can be very rough on another. Taste is the same way; most people are very happy to tuck into sweet potato pie or casserole. I literally cannot swallow anything with sweet potato or yams in it.

I do thank you for the tip, though.

 

[DADoES]

 
Standard (hi) clean on my unit is 4 hrs.  Lo is 3 hrs.

 

[countryguy]

I can choose between 2, 3 or 4 hours for the self clean cycle on my Kenmore. So far I've only ever used 2 hours and that has worked just fine. Oh and mine does have the hidden bake element.

Gary

 

[magic_clean]

Sometimes an hour of

cool-down time is included in the overall displayed self-clean cycle time. The owners guide should clarify.

L.P.

 

[ptcruiser51]

Handy Tip

On newer General Electric/Hotpoint/Profile products, the oven door is easily removable. Just open a little bit, grasp both sides and pull straight up. This way you can take it outside to clean with hose or put on a counter or bench. Easier than bending over or kneeling on the floor. I don't remember if it works with wall ovens.

 

[iheartmaytag]

Cleaning times

On our P-7 oven a 2 hr clean was sufficient for most all the messes I dumped on it. the Maytag took from "quick clean" 1.5 hrs to 3 hrs. Hardly ever had anything remain after average 2 hrs.

On my new range I have only ever used the Steam clean, where you pour a cup of distilled water in the bottom of the oven and it steams for 30 minutes (the door does lock during this time). Then it beeps at you to wipe oven and most everything comes out.

The reason I chose the GE over a Whirlpool sourced unit when I bought was that you still have the option of a High heat clean if necessary. So far I haven't had to use it as most spatters and such just curl up an wipe out.

I did notice recently that Whirlpool offers the the choice between Aqua-lift and Pyro cleaning.

 

[dj-gabriele]

Aqua-lift / Vapour clean / etc...

Even in "traditional" electric ovens you can have the same effect running the thing around 80°C for half an hour or so with a little pan filled with water.
As soon as the oven starts cooling a little, wipe everything off. Most of the dirt will be gone.

I use that trick on the oven in my rental accommodation that wasn't self cleaning. Far from being 100% effective but subsequent cleaning with oven spray was much easier and faster!

 

[iheartmaytag]

Whirlpool's Aqua-lift is supposed to be a special, Propitiatory coating that causes it to release the spill/splatters in the presence of water vapor. This is why they didn't offer a High-heat option, as apparently the high temps of Pyro cleaning would damage the Propitiatory coating.

GE's system is more what dj-gabriele describes, it just offers a touch up between or to lessen or prevent high heat cycles necessity.

 

[combo52]

Self-Cleaning Oven Times

Having run Hundreds of SCOs through their SC cycles I have found it almost never helps much cleaning them longer than 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours of heating time. Any SCO should be up to full temperature in approximately one hour or less.

Food soil burns off VERY QUICKLY when the targret temperature is reached, we are talking minutes.

It is no secret that newer SCOs built in the last twenty years or so do not clean them selves nearly as well as many of the orignal SCOs did. This is because manufactures made the ovens too large and in many cases they also also cut costs by making the inside of the oven door one piece of metal eliminating the essential thermal break necessary so the entire part of the door that is exposed to cooking soil can get hot enough for good burning off of the soil. They have also made windows too large and eliminated the insulated window shields inside the door that allowed the window glass to get hot enough to clean itself.

In addition they also have eliminated electrically heated catalytic smoke eliminators so newer ovens now smoke more during cleaning and extra heating elements to clean the front edge of the floor and the sides near the front of the oven liner.

In addition to poorer cleaning performance from newer SCOs they almost all use MORE ELECTRICITY [ or haven forbid GAS ] for normal baking. US Appliance Manufactures cleverly got them selves exempted from nearly all energy usage regulation, so the average oven or even cook-top uses MORE ENERGY [ for cooking or cleaning ] that the average oven or cook-top built before about 1985.

 

[danemodsandy]

John:

I didn't realize that part of the purpose of GE's early window-shield design was to concentrate heat at the window, but now that you say that, it makes sense.

The last GE window shields I remember seeing on a new appliance were on a double wall oven in 1977 - in a new kitchen with the first Almond appliances I ever saw installed. After that, I think they disappeared.

At any rate, when I ran my J 370 through a cleaning cycle, the window came clean as a whistle, which I wasn't expecting - every other brand of self-cleaner I've used that had a window needed some help in that area. Now I know why.

 

[MrX]

I've a De Dietrich double-oven with Pyrolysis Cleaning in both ovens.

"Pyro Max" takes the oven up to over 500ºC (932ºF) and holds it there for 2 hours.
You've options to reduce that time to 1:45 or 1:30.

However, the default setting leaves nothing but a light coating of white dust.

Total power consumption is 7kW on a 230V supply.

Comes with loads of cooking modes though:

Circulating heat (Fan oven with the elements at the back on only) - Recommended for meats especially fish, chicken etc.

Combined heat (Cooking controlled by the upper and lower heating elements and by the fan.
Three combined sources of heat : a lot of heat from the bottom, a little circulating heat and a touch from the grill for browning.) - Great for pies and pastries and anything in an earthenware dish.

ECO - Not entirely sure who that works but it uses the upper and lower elements with the fan and it hits the oven's eco-label A++ rating.

Pulsed Grill + Rotisserie:
Spit roasting and regular roasting.
Fan pulses on and off as part of the cycle too.

It then has variable grill settings she you can run it with the rotisserie (spit) or without and set the grill in either compartment to whatever setting you like. from 1 to 5

Keep warm : runs a very cool fan oven with only heat from the back.

Defrosting - runs at 30ºC (delicate food), 40ºC or 50ºC (meats) and monitors temp accurately

Bread : You place a ramekin of water in the oven with this cycle to aid crust formation without burning it.
Not entirely sure what combination of elements is used but it works very well.

To cool itself, the oven has two sets of fans that blow air constantly outwards across the top of the top oven (smaller cavity) between the control panel and the oven and another one between the ovens.
These run at variable speeds depending on what the temperature is and force air down through the door too.

The result is that the exterior of the oven is only 25ºC when cooking and 40ºC when self-cleaning.

At max speed, the fans produce a pretty serious airflow.
The top one blows out straight through a slot above the door between the control panel and the door. So, any hot air rising gets blasted away and it's also cooling the oven internally.