Commercial oven cleaners work, but they come with a trade-off: strong fumes, caustic chemicals, and instructions that involve wearing gloves and keeping the kitchen ventilated for hours. For most households — especially those with children or pets — there's a better way.
The baking soda and vinegar method has been proven in professional cleaning for decades. It takes longer than a spray-and-wipe product, but it's safer, cheaper, and just as effective on baked-on grease. Here's exactly how to do it.
What You'll Need
- Baking soda (bicarbonate of soda)
- White vinegar in a spray bottle
- Warm water
- Rubber gloves
- A stiff-bristle brush or old toothbrush
- Microfibre cloths or paper towels
- A plastic scraper or spatula
Step-by-Step Method
Remove everything from the oven
Take out the racks, the tray, and the shelf supports. These get cleaned separately — soak them in hot soapy water while you work on the oven interior.
Make a baking soda paste
Mix approximately half a cup of baking soda with a few tablespoons of water until it forms a thick, spreadable paste. It should hold its shape without running.
Coat the interior
Wearing gloves, spread the paste across every interior surface — walls, floor, ceiling, and door glass. Avoid the heating elements. Don't worry about being neat; coverage matters more than precision. The paste will turn brown as it makes contact with grease — that's normal.
Leave it overnight
This is the key step most people skip. The baking soda needs time to break down the carbonised grease. A minimum of 6 hours works for light ovens; leave it overnight (10–12 hours) for heavy buildup.
Scrape and wipe
Use a damp cloth to wipe out as much of the dried paste as possible. A plastic scraper helps lift stubborn chunks without scratching the oven surface. Work from the top down so debris falls to the floor of the oven, which you clean last.
Spray with vinegar
Spray white vinegar over any remaining baking soda residue. It will fizz as it reacts — this is the reaction that lifts the final layer of grease. Wipe clean with a damp cloth. Repeat until no white residue remains.
Clean the racks
The soaked racks should now scrub clean with a stiff brush. For very baked-on residue, apply baking soda paste directly to the racks, let it sit for 30 minutes, then scrub.
Clean the oven door glass
Apply paste to the interior glass, leave for 30 minutes, then scrub with a non-scratch scrubber. For streaks on the exterior glass, a 50/50 vinegar and water solution on a microfibre cloth gives a streak-free finish.
For the Rangehood
The rangehood filter is one of the most-neglected kitchen items and one of the easiest to clean. Remove the metal mesh filter and submerge it in a sink of very hot water with a generous squeeze of dish soap and two tablespoons of baking soda. Let it soak for 10–15 minutes, then scrub with a stiff brush. The grease lifts off remarkably easily after soaking. Rinse and let it dry fully before replacing.
How Often Should You Clean Your Oven?
- Light users (once a week or less): Deep clean every 3–4 months
- Regular use (several times a week): Deep clean every 6–8 weeks
- Heavy use or if you cook roasts frequently: Monthly deep clean
Wiping out spills immediately — before they bake on — dramatically reduces how often you need to do a full clean. Keep a damp cloth near the oven and make a habit of wiping the floor and walls after anything that bubbles or spatters.
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