Self-cleaning oven? Phooey!

17 years ago

Does anyone else hate self-cleaning ovens? When we bought this place, the kitchen had a large wall oven (self-cleaning) and a smaller one below it--clean it yourself type. It takes three to four hours for the self-cleaner to do its thing--the last hour is cool down. I can clean an oven in about 30 minutes, including the racks. This one you have to remove all the racks (which you clean in the sink), wipe up any spills, and then wait all day for the thing to let you back in to wipe up the "ash residue." I like to cook and bake, and have to schedule the self-clean when I can do without an oven for three to four hours. Maybe it will self-immolate . . . .

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Comments (36)

doxiemom
17 years ago
I'm scared to use my self cleaning oven. I don't know why--I have had self cleaning ovens for over 5 years but don't like to use them. I really need to do this one now but I can't make myself do it. Sheila
iowagirl2006
17 years ago
I love my self cleaning oven, but I only run that cycle a couple times a year.

I keep a liner pan to catch drips when I am baking something that might cook over. I wipe it out occasionally with a damp rag.

I bake and cook every day.
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The corrosive compound in oven cleaner is lye (sodium hydroxide). It evaporates about as easily as kitchen salt. It also doesn't burn. In other words, no it won't evaporate and get on everything. On the other hand, whatever it already happens to be on will have been attacked much more aggressively than during normal cleaning. Heat makes corrosive things more corrosive. So, I wouldn't be surprised if some of the metal racks or the enamel coated walls of the oven were now suffering from surface pitting. Hopefully, this is just a cosmetic problem after a single mistake like this. But it is possible that some of the racks are now more prone to rusting. Depends on what they are made of. The good news is that lye is water soluble. Use a wet sponge and some paper towels and clean up that mess. Make sure to wear tall rubber gloves. Lye is not fun to get on your skin. If you do get it on skin (or worse, into your eyes), wash off with plenty of water. Another ingredient is DEGBE. It's a solvent that is favored thanks to its high boiling point. But at the temperatures present during self cleaning, it should have evaporated completely. For the DEGBE, the main health concern is the fact that it causes eye irritations. That would have been an issue during the self clean cycle, but won't be a problem now. Finally, there are small quantities of diethanolamine in Eazy-Off (around 1%). That substance is potentially more harmful to your body, but I don't think it causes any damage to the oven. It also fully evaporates and disappears during a self-cleaning cycle. It's the stuff that makes oven cleaner smell like ammonia. So, yes, my main concern would be with proper venting during the cleaning cycle, and with damage to the oven surfaces thanks to extended high-temperature exposure to lye. Other than that, the harm is likely mostly cosmetic and any harm done to people would have happened during the cleaning cycle. Whatever is left in the oven now, is comparatively benign and can be removed with water. In other words, don't do this again. It's stupid. It's dangerous during the self cleaning cycle. And it really isn't doing a good job at cleaning. But you are likely to be able to recover from it, if you now thoroughly wash the inside of the oven with water.
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sjarz
17 years ago
Probably would not be seen as a selling feature if you are contemplating ever selling your home, but you can clean a self-cleaning oven the traditional way with oven cleaner. Once you do that, the self-clean feature will no longer work, but it's a heck of a lot faster than hanging around all day waiting for the thing to go through its cycles -
in a few of my rental suites the owners have bought self-cleaning ovens - tenants did not realize it was a self clean and cleaned it with oven cleaner. No damage done to the oven's functions except it no longer is a self clean.
Would never own one myself, but then I clean a lot of ovens and don't find it to be that big of a deal. I just spray it and leave it overnight, wipe it out the next day. Easy peasy.
Suzan J
frostedc
17 years ago
I love my self cleaning oven.
I only clean it a couple times a year.
Oven cleaners, make me break out, in a itchy rash.
iowagirl2006
17 years ago
I was thinking they had a new cleaner out that was safe for self-cleaning ovens. A new Easy Off maybe?
iowagirl2006
17 years ago
Easy Off Fume Free oven cleaners says it is safe to use on self cleaning ovens (just don't run the cycle when you are using it)
2sweetpea
17 years ago
This "self cleaning oven" thread brought to mind something that occurred years ago when I was in the work force. A young, newish bride, associate was complaining about her oven. Such a waste- it was self cleaning, she had been waiting several months and so far it had not cleaned itself.
azzalea
17 years ago
SJars, you don't mean self-cleaning, you meant a 'continuous' clean oven will be ruined by the use of oven cleaner.

A self-cleaning oven cleans by incinerating the burned on dirt. It heats up to a very high temperature that just turns any dirt in it into ash. The walls of a self-cleaning oven are basically the same material as a non-self cleaning oven. A continuous clean oven has chemicals impregnated into the walls of the oven that are supposed to take care of any dirt--that's the one you can't use oven cleaner on. But you don't see a lot of continuous clean ovens these days. Do they still make them?

OP--it doesn't take all day to clean your self-cleaning oven. I just cleaned mine last week. I manually set it for just an hour. That (plus about an hour cool down time) was plenty of time--the oven came out spotless. I don't ever take out the oven racks. I want them clean, as well. They do get dull if you leave them in, but that's not a big deal to me. As a matter of fact, I also pop in any cast iron I have that needs cleaning, and sometimes the grates from the burners--they all clean beautifully in the self-cleaning oven.

I LOVE my self-cleaning ovens. Wouldn't be without that feature on my range. It's the first thing I look for when buying a new one.
Jacquelyn
17 years ago
I love that feature self "cleaning"img src=> mine you can set the time for it to clean. Mine can run for an hr or longer...
sue_va
17 years ago
I have had a "continus clean" oven and now have a self clean. I much prefer the self clean.

If you have the manual that came with your stove, read the instructions and follow them. Even so, some users say you don't need to take the shelves out.

Don't plan on cleaning when you know you are going to be needing the oven.

Do it in the evening, even at bedtime.

They are made to be safe, and of course things can happen, whether it is cleaning the oven or driving a car.

Just my opinion.

Sue
iowagirl2006
17 years ago
I leave my racks in also.

To make them slide good after cleaning - just spray a little Pam on a paper towel and run it up and down the runner where the rack slides - they slide smoothly again!
User
17 years ago
I will never own a stove that doesn't have a self clean oven. Ever again!!! You have to spray the crap on the mess, top, sides and bottom. Then wait for it to dissolve the mess. Then get every single bit of the stinky crud out of the oven. Then rinse and repeat and if you're lucky, the oven cleaner gets it all. If not, you have to repeat the process or use steel wool to get the rest out. Heaven help you if you missed a spot because your oven will stink up the whole house for days until it burns out and you have to hope that stench doesn't get into the food you're baking in there. Nope, no way would I go back to that. I love that I can just push a button, have lunch, watch a movie or clean something else up. Then when the oven has cooled off, all it takes is a wipe with a wet cloth and I'm done. Voila! yup, no sweat. No smell. Well, it does have a burning smell while it's cleaning but I'll take that over Easy Off any day! LOL
susan_on
17 years ago
I love my self cleaning oven, and I won't do without one any more. It is so much easier to set it for the required time (I manually adjust the cleaning time too-I always decrease it), and then go off and do other things.
kathi_mdgd
17 years ago
I do the same as Susan,set it for the time i want,then go do something else.

The repair guys told me not to use oven cleaner in the SC ovens.Said if you do,you have to make sure you wait 30 days or more before using the SC feature again,to make sure all the residue from the cleaner is gone,and to not do so could cause your oven to blow up.Don't know how true that is,he also said not to leave the racks in,because the high heat could warp them to the point where you wouldn't be able to move them in and out the oven,not to mention it ruins the finish on them.

He did say that the blowing up thing doesn't happen often,but it does happen.
Kathi
dotmom
17 years ago
We live in an APT with a self cleaning oven. It got dirty and I read the instructions but it scared me to run the feature. Finally after 3 years, the oven was so dirty I finally got up the courage and practically sat in front of the stove the whole time. because the oven was so dirty, i had to run it for the longest time.I was amazed at the clean oven I had after wiping up the little ash left on the bottom. Now I'm extra careful and have had to do it once again since. I sure like this feature on the stove, because I HATE to clean ovens by hand. Dottie
sheilajoyce_gw
17 years ago
I set my self cleaning oven to clean after dinner and the heat that does escape into the house from the oven being on just keeps us toastier.

I had a continuous clean years ago. What a waste and a misnomer. It was actually a continuous dirty.
fran1523
17 years ago
I also love my self cleaning oven. I set it to clean if I'm going out for the afternoon or in the evening after I've cleaned up the kitchen. Like others I only do it once or twice a year, but always in cool weather.
jackie_ok
17 years ago
I wouldn't have anything else but a self cleaning oven. I just pick a cold winter day to run it because it does really throw out a lot of heat. I don't bake all that much so I usually just do the self cleaning once a year.
dilly_dally
17 years ago
Posted by kathi_mdgd: The repair guys told me not to use oven cleaner in the SC ovens.Said if you do,you have to make sure you wait 30 days or more before using the SC feature again,to make sure all the residue from the cleaner is gone,and to not do so could cause your oven to blow up.Don't know how true that is,he also said not to leave the racks in,because the high heat could warp them to the point where you wouldn't be able to move them in and out the oven,not to mention it ruins the finish on them. He did say that the blowing up thing doesn't happen often,but it does happen.

I think this guy was pulling your leg. Even if "it doesn't happen often" show me just one news article where it has happened.

Leaving the racks in while self cleaning, will discolor them but won't "ruin the finish" or melt them.

I would find a new repair guy. This guy sounds kooky. I wouldn't want a guy that talks like that in my house at all.
Marcia Thornley
17 years ago
I love my self cleaning oven. I won't even bring oven cleaner into the house. Nasty stuff!!!
sheilajoyce_gw
17 years ago
I have left the racks in my 30 year old double ovens for every cleaning, a few times a year. They are just fine. They lose the shiney look, but they are clean.

I remember non self cleaning ovens and cleaning them. What a mess. And dangerous with the strong chemicals. And how hard it was to get everything clean even with the strongest cleaners. Hate to think what breathing all that stuff did to lungs.
mary_c_gw
17 years ago
I use my self-clean feature several times a year. It cleans the oven, I do not have to take the racks out, and I have no nasty chemicals to deal with.

There is no more risk in running the clean cycle than running the oven itself.
nicki_in_niles
17 years ago
All I know is this... I tried to run my "self cleaning" oven one time and one time only. It burst into flames on the inside! AND... I couldn't get the door unlocked to put it out. That was crazy, but of course, you have to remember who this is coming from. lol
irishdancersgram
17 years ago
I now have a self clean and hate it...I had a contineous (sp) clean on my old oven and when I tried to get the same, they said they no longer made them. Of course after having the old oven for 30 years, it did have holes in the bottom of the oven, caused, they say, by the cleaning....But, now I'm very careful, don't get many spills and try to wipe up as soon as something happens.....
jannie
17 years ago
I hate my self cleaning oven. It takes hours (five), makes so much smoke it sets off my smoke alarm. and the first time I used it, I left a potholder on top of the stove and it caught on fire. Luckily, I was right there and threw it into a sink full of dirty dishes, water and soapsuds. I prefer to use Easy-Off Fume Free. You spray it on at night, close the oven door, and wipe away the dry ashy dirt in the morning.
kathleen44
17 years ago
I never know how to do it, the time to turn it on and then off is what gets me. I hate it.

You have to do it when you can open up the doors and not smoke your place out.

Also can't do it in summer when its too hot outside and inside.

Its hard, I have to have mine done, so must ask my dad to help me figure it out next year when its nice out to open up the doors.
blueheron
17 years ago
I run it at night. Problem solved!
linda_in_iowa
17 years ago
I had a self cleaning oven in the last place I lived in in CA. Lived there over 3 years and never used the self clean feature. I have lived in this house 3 years and have never used the self clean feature on my oven. The only thing I use my oven for is baking and I wipe up the spills.
mary_c_gw
17 years ago
If you have enough crap on your oven walls to set off a smoke detector, well, you don't clean your oven often enough. My lower floor smoke detector is just outside of the kitchen, and the self clean cycle has never set it off. And yes, I use that oven - I roast, broil, and bake in it several times a week.

If you leave puddles of crap (cake batter or stuff) on the bottom of your oven, and don't wipe it up, well, yes! it will flame.

Do you not read the instructions???

All the "problems" mentioned above are clearly pointed out in my 25-y-o instruction manual. Wipe up spilled food and excess grease. Set clean cycle. Run. It's not rocket science, but it is common sense.
jannie
17 years ago
Yes, I admit my oven was filthy dirty with spills and cr@p. But the flaming potholder was a complete accident, the result of my stupidity. I had laid the potholder near the oven vent, and the heat of the oven cleaning set the potholder on fire. I got so scared by that small fire that I now use the Easy Off Fume Free spray.
mary_c_gw
17 years ago
Mine is a wall oven, so I don't now have the problem of the oven vent. But I did in the past. So don't leave combustible materials over the oven vent. It truly seems like a no-brainer to me.

I maintain - self-cleaning ovens are perfectly safe to use, as long as one is sensible.
sandy_in_ia
17 years ago
I have had a self cleaning oven for over 6 yrs. I have used it ONCE! If something spills over...which I try hard not to let happen...when it is still warm, I lay wet paper towels over the spill. Wait until it is cooled..wipe it up and it is cleaned!

I didn't buy the oven because of the self cleaning...I wouldn't buy one for that reason. Hate them!
Marilyn Sue
17 years ago
I just used the self cleaning feature on my new range yesterday. I set it for the lowest time, 2 hours and it came out perfect. This is the first time I used it. I did not leave my racks in, took about 45 minutes for the cool down. I do a lot of baking and I love not having to clean the oven by hand.

Sue
jannie
17 years ago
Keeping potholders away from the oven vent during a cleaning cycle is a "no-brainer"? Hey, now, I already admitted I'm a slob who didn't clean her oven for the first two years,and that I'm stupid. Please stop beating up someone who is already beating herself. By the way, rather than fight my oven, I found an alternate way to clean it. Maybe someone could congratulate me on that? I'm too stupid to use the self-clean feature, so I found a differnt way that works for me.
FlamingO in AR
17 years ago
Congratulations, Jannie! :) And I've caught my hot mitts on fire whilst wearing them, only to hear Woody say "what did you do that for?" like I did it on purpose. Men. Sheesh.

I love my self-cleaning oven, I try to only run it when it's chilly so I'm making more efficient use of the heat it puts out, but I'll do it any time it needs it.

However, I won't turn it on and leave the house or go to bed. They get so hot, I just won't risk another house fire if I can help it. I run mine for 2 hours, leaving the racks inside. Well, I did- this new one, I'll pull the racks out for a couple of years, then I'll leave them in when the "new" has worn off. lol
tioga
17 years ago
I have a self-cleaner, but at the risk of harming my African Grey, I don't use it. They say the fumes can kill the parrot. We've had him over 30 years now, so he's one of the family and we'd hate to lose him.

So it's back to the elbow grease, but try not to let it get too dirty before tackling the job.

Self-cleaning oven? Phooey!

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