I never line the bottom of my oven any more with aluminum foil. I do use lined baking sheets under my pies and things. I do a lot of baking for me and family so I clean my oven when it needs it, more than once a year. I would not personally try the oven cleaner as it would be too much like having to clean the oven myself and I sure don't feel up to doing that. I am getting ready to bake a hot chicken salad this morning to take to Alyssa's sixth birthday party. I may bake some beans along in the oven too.

Sue

DO NOT use any oven cleaner in a self-cleaning oven. It will ruin it. Our previous owner did just that and the toxic fumes that emitted each time I used the oven made it necessary to replace the relatively new stove.

I self clean about twice a year but dislike it for the same reasons. Therefore, I am very careful not to get any spills on the bottom of the oven and wipe any up immediately. However there is the issue of splatters. :-( I have never used oven cleaner in any type oven. If it is so strong you need to wear gloves, do you think I want any residue left that could get into my food?

I always put an aluminum tray oven liner on the bottom of my oven, under the element. The newer ovens don't have exposed elements and you're not supposed to put an oven liner directly on the floor. It will weld to the floor because of the heat. You're to put it on the rack itself.

My walls get spattered, even though the oven floor stays clean. Mine isn't a self-clean though either. I've read of some self-cleaning ovens that quit working broke after cleaning.

Jasdip, yes -- been there, done that (to my new electric oven at our former house that did NOT have an exposed element. What a mess. Took a lot of soaking in strong cleansers and elbow grease to get it decent again). Now, for my new oven at our current house, I read the booklet very closely. One thing that surprised me was, do not use Comet or other abrasive cleaners on the oven's interior. Dish soap and soft sponge only. Jeez, appliances are getting picky, picky, picky!

My oven has an exposed element at the bottom. I did not know they made them with out that! Next year I may be shopping for a new range insert even if this one is still working. I have had it several years. Time will tell what I decide.

Sue

My range is all gas and not self cleaning. I just wipe up spills as they happen so super cleaning is not really needed. I have never used oven cleaner. I have used an SOS pad on stubborn baked on spots. If I am baking something I know has drip potential I place a cookie sheet or even a sheet of parchment on the lower rack to catch the drips.

It's a 36 incher. I work alone and have the dog on guard duty so no one comes along to push me in. ;-)

I have never lined the bottom of an oven in my life. I have never seen instructions advising it, exposed element i or not. In fact every oven I have owned in 46 years clearly warned against the practice.

I am putting in a small self cleaning wall oven. I just hope the cleaning cycle doesn't fry the control panel. In the past I used self cleaning cycles on my older oven regularly. Once every 3 month or whenever they needed it. I think it's better to use it more frequently and for shorter cycles than less frequently and have all that crude releasing into the air.

My double self cleaning ovens are 38 years old and work fine. I decided to clean the racks in the oven from the very first cleaning after reading the manufacturer's warning about that. I can live with clean racks discolored from the heat better than racks I have to clean myself. I clean it a few times a year, especially after roasting large cuts of meat that splatter the walls of the oven. I do think it warms up the kitchen a little, so I do it mostly on cold nights. I will never own an oven that does not have a cleaning cycle again. Hated the so called continuous cleaning oven had many years ago. It did not work well.

I do my oven when it gets dirty. Sometimes its needed once a year. Others 2 or 3 times. It jus depends how often I use my oven. I always remove the oven racks and wash those by hand. I will NEVER use chemical cleaners in my self clean oven. I find that although it smells, I can open a window to vent the house and light a few candles to kill the smell.

I've never used mine and got it 11 yrs ago.

Has anyone tried the baking soda and vinegar method? I've heard of it but haven't yet. I'd rather do a little scrubbing that get the oven that hot. Did it only once. It scares me.

I use the broiler a lot so I clean my oven several times a year. I don't find that it heats up my kitchen too much or that the smell is over-powering. If the weather is good, I will open a window, but I've done it in the winter with the windows closed, too. I always take the racks out. I am afraid that they will warp.

My new oven has 2 ways to self clean-the traditional way, or a 20 minute 'steam clean'. You pour 10 oz of water on the bottom and turn on that feature. I used that once so far-seemed to work well. Morz8 or anyone else-just wet a paper towel with some cooking oil on the edges of the rack and they will slide easily again. I had an exposed element in the old oven and bought a silicon type mat to put underneath it. Seemed to work well. There are fume free oven sprays now that I have heard work pretty well. I think the warnings about using sprays in a self cleaning oven is so people don't use the spray and self clean at the same time, I've known a few people who have used sprays with no issues. Tin foil isn't recommended as a liner. If it gets too hot and melts it will be practically welded on.

Some of the reviews of my Whirlpool Combo Microwave/Convection Oven said that the self-clean cycle would cause the electronics to overheat and cause the oven to stop working altogether. So I've never used the self clean cycle.

I put foil under my heating element and it's never even come close to be welded on? Everyone's experiences are their own, I guess!

Rob, the ones with the exposed heating elements are fine...........it's the smooth bottoms, where the elements are hidden.

Ah. Ok. I can't imagine what one of those is like

I did that too! I had the non exposed heating elements in the oven and put a foil liner pan in the bottom of the oven. I had never had that kind and had no idea it was a nono. OMG what a MESS! it melted the foil pan onto the oven floor. I scrubbed and scrapped and my husband tried all manner of scrapping tools. Never got it all off. I hated that stove anyway, it had a smooth glass top hated it! So glad I got rid of it. Love the new kitchenaid dual fuel gas burners and electric double ovens with convection. It is so new I definitely have not used self cleaning but I never liked using it in my other appliances. The one in my Dallas house, double wall ovens actually got so hot during self cleaning it scorched the inside of the cabinet it was in. I thought it could have caused a fire so never again used them.

I used to self-clean my electric ovens all the time, but this range is gas and it puts out so much heat with ordinary baking, I am leary to heat it to nearly 900 degrees! Also, the instructions say not to line the bottom with foil.

I've never used the self-cleaning option in mine. If I get spills, I mix baking soda and water and lay a thick paste of it on the spill, let it sit overnight, and wipe it off the next day. Works okay.

My stove had a self cleaning oven when it was new, but we had to switch it over to propane which meant the self clean function didn't work. Apparently propane doesn't get as hot as gas, so the one time I ran the cycle the oven didn't get hot enough to burn off any of the gunk. So, I use an oven cleaner as needed. I find it's easier to keep up spills as they happen rather than let stuff get baked on. I also put a cookie sheet under dishes that might end up being drippy.