How to Clean an Oven Without Toxic Easy-Off
Before your oven smells like burned food or smokes while preheating, it needs a thorough seasonal cleaning. Burned-on food can be extremely difficult to remove, which is why traditional oven cleaners have relied on toxic chemicals (with toxic fumes) to get the job done. So if you’re wondering how to clean an oven without the use of those chemical cleaners like Easy-Off, read on…
Sometime in the 1950s, Americans ate the message that chemicals are a necessary prerequisite for cleanliness. Today, toxic chemicals and additives are included in many household products in the name of clean.
Commercial oven cleaners like Easy-Off contain many chemicals and carcinogens that pose huge health risks when inhaled: butane, monoethanolamine, diethylene glycol monobutyl ether, sodium hydroxide and diethanolamine. Inhaling these chemicals (which is impossible to avoid while using the product) can cause not only major respiratory irritation, but may also lead to headaches, confusion, nosebleeds and even cancer.
These toxic “cleaners” may remove stubborn grease stains but also may leave a taste residue on anything you cook for weeks. Delicious. Even worse, many oven-cleaning products now come in “fume-free” varieties, following the lead of flower-scented bleach. However, these products have horrible smells for a very important reason – because you should not smell them!
Women in America and around the world consistently show much higher rates of respiratory distress, and many believe that this statistic is due partially to the fact that women clean more with toxic chemicals.
Don’t be a statistic.
Anyone with ongoing respiratory issues should switch to all-natural cleaning products, oven cleaner and everything else, to see a huge improvement in their respiratory health.
You don’t have to sacrifice your lungs for a clean oven. Simple products plus time and a little old-fashioned elbow grease can create a shining environment for all your cooking adventures. Skip the toxins and enjoy a clean oven by using the following all-natural method.
You will need steel wool (or a plastic scrubber) for cleaning the shelves and broiler pan, baking soda, a spray bottle filled with water, and time.
1. Make sure that your oven is completely cool.
2. Remove the shelves from the oven and the broiler pan from underneath. Scrub with steel wool and then place in dishwasher on “heavy” cycle, or clean by hand in your sink using the same methods outlined below.
3. With a knife or metal spatula, scrap off any visible food remains or burned-on gunk that you can into the trash.
4. Sprinkle a solid layer of baking soda over the entire oven floor until it is about ¼” thick. Don’t be stingy – this thick layer of soda will do the scrubbing for you. Repeat this process on the oven door, which you can leave open throughout this process.
5. Spray the baking soda with water until it is thoroughly damp, but not completely saturated and dripping.
6. Wait 2-3 hours, then spray with water again to keep the baking soda nice and wet. You may have to repeat this step, depending on the level of funk you find.
7. Go to bed.
8. Using a damp sponge or washcloth, gently scoop the baking soda (along with all the burned-on food) out of your oven. You won’t need to scrub too hard, as the baking soda has interacted with the black gunk to lift it right off the oven floor.
9. Wipe down the inside walls and back of the oven (be sure to stretch your body before making the reach). Now enjoy your sparkling oven and bake something wonderful!
Image: flossyflotsam
