A professional cleaner has spilled the biggest mistake people make when cleaning a dirty oven.
Kacie Stephens, from Melbourne, shared her insider’s knowledge of cleaning ovens like a professional – without spending hours scrubbing.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: How to clean an oven like a pro.
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Her secret? She always preheats her clients’ ovens before cleaning – a method many people skip before tackling the household chore.
The mum said preheating the oven helps loosen any baked-on stains and stubborn grease or grime on the surface.
“Here’s a tip for cleaning your oven that I did not learn as a professional cleaner. I learned it when I worked in hospitality – it’s to preheat your oven before you clean it,” she said in her Instagram video.
“The heat softens all that caked on grease and makes it much easier to clean.”
Stephens, who runs a business called The Big Clean Co, pointed out that instructions for heating ovens before cleaning can be found on spray bottles.
“Don’t believe me? Check out the label on the can of your caustic oven spray,” she said.
“It tells you, five minutes to clean a warm oven, or 30 minutes to clean a cold oven.
“Save yourself a headache and get the oven warm first.”
Once your oven has heated, you can start cleaning it once it’s cool enough to touch.
“In case it’s not obvious, please don’t clean when it’s so hot it burns you,” she warned.
Stephens said cleaning a warm oven can also slash your cleaning time in the kitchen.
“Let’s be serious, anything that cuts down the cleaning time in an oven is good because cleaning an oven sucks,” she said.
She previously revealed her chemical-free method for deep cleaning ovens.
Stephens said she usually “steams” the oven by placing a tray of water and vinegar before deep cleaning the appliance.
“When that charcoal is cold, it’s rock-solid… I’ve got a non-toxic way to clean your oven using the power of steam. So here’s what you’re going to do,” she said in her TikTok video.
To steam clean your oven, you’ll need dishwashing liquid, vinegar, scrapers and scourers.
“Add one cup of boiling water and one cup of vinegar to a tray. Put it in a hot oven and let it do its thing for about 20 minutes,” she said.
The steam will soften the baked-on stains, making it easier to scrape off.
Before proceeding with the clean, Kacie said you need to let the oven “cool to touch” or you’ll “burn yourself”.
“You’ll be left with this big mushy mess that scrapes right off,” Kacie said.
To remove grease and from the oven’s glass door, she opted for dishwashing liquid and a scourer.
“I like to add dishwashing liquid just to … really make it shine,” she said.
“Use a scourer on the racks and for any bits that are stuck, use a blade.
She added: “You don’t need those nasty chemicals.”
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