Home & leisure

Oven cleaners

Updated: 03 Oct 2008
Oven-cleaners-hero

Introduction

Most oven cleaners contain very strong chemicals to remove baked-on grease and grime. Is there a gentler option?

We tested nine oven cleaners for cleaning performance and ease of use. Two of them offered a "green clean" because they contained no harsh chemicals - find out how effective they were against their more caustic counterparts.

Products we tested

This report contains test results and recommendations for the following 8 oven cleaners plus a home recipe of baking powder and vinegar.

  • Amway Blast Off (400g)
  • Cinderella Super Fast (500ml)
  • Easy-Off Fume Free (325g)
  • Easy-Off Heavy Duty (325g)
  • Mr Muscle Heavy Duty (300g)
  • Mr Muscle Odourless (300g)
  • Pams Heavy Duty (400g)
  • Selleys Oven Plus Heavy Duty Gel (400g)

What we found

Cleaning performance

Preparing to clean an oven

Getting them dirty: We smeared specially prepared enamel panels with a mix of milk, sugar, juices, egg, flour, oil and fat. Then we baked them.

Getting them clean: We applied the oven cleaners using the label instructions and left the panels for the recommended times. We then wiped each panel with a damp sponge, gave it a moderate scouring followed by a heavy scouring - and assessed the cleaner's effectiveness.

Time: Most manufacturers gave a choice of leaving the cleaner to soak "overnight" or doing a "quick clean" (which had a soaking period of anything from five minutes to four hours). Our test results table shows the best results achieved after leaving the cleaner for the shorter time - we found little improvement in overall cleaning performance after waiting the maximum 12 hours.

Temperature: Mr Muscle Heavy Duty and Easy Off Heavy Duty cleaners offered the option of a "super fast" five-minute clean that required heating the oven to no more than 90°C. Both warned against allowing the product to dry. Cinderella Oven & BBQ cleaner suggested heating a neglected oven to a very low heat so it was also tested at 90°C.

All other products' instructions were for cleaning a cold oven only.

Our verdict
Six products shared first place for cleaning (see the Test results). These were demanding tests - and the "green clean" options (Cinderella Oven & BBQ Cleaner and our "home recipe" baking soda and vinegar paste) weren't very effective.

Ease of use

Here's where our tester got up close and personal with a real oven. "Ease of use" covers ease of application, coverage and adhesion. It's what made the difference in the overall scores.

Most of the products were aerosol sprays. But Cinderella Oven & BBQ Cleaner came in a trigger spray, Selleys Oven Plus Heavy Duty Gel was applied with a brush in the neck of the container and the vinegar and baking soda was applied as a paste.

Mr Muscle Odourless was the most user-friendly spray cleaner. It produced plenty of foam that stayed well on the oven surface, allowing you to see where it had been applied.

Both the Selleys Oven Plus Heavy Duty Gel and the vinegar and baking soda paste took longer to apply than the sprays.

An extractor fan was used during the test so we haven't assessed the fumes. However, safety directions on the aerosol cans warned against inhaling the spray mist.

Tip:
 Leave spraying the roof until second-to-last, just before spraying the door. This will mean the cleaner doesn't drip on your arm while you're applying it to other surfaces.

We recommend

Tick: Consumer Recommends

Gel (b)

  • Selleys Oven Plus Heavy Duty Gel (400g)

    recommendedSelleys Oven Plus Heavy Duty Gel (400g)

    6.96 (a)
    Good points

    Best overall. Good results after a short time (30 minutes). It adhered well, allowing you to see where it had been applied. No spray mist (it's a gel).

    But

    Doesn't have a child-resistant cap. Took longer to apply than sprays and was awkward to apply around elements. Caustic.

    User Reviews 0

Aerosol

Oven cleaning tips

Handle with care

One of the most common ingredients in oven cleaners is sodium hydroxide, also known as caustic soda. It reacts with fats, converting them into soapy compounds you can wipe away.

But sodium hydroxide (an alkali) is dangerous stuff. It's highly corrosive even when diluted. So if it comes into contact with your eyes or skin it can cause deep burns, blindness or severe irritation. The smell is usually strong and unpleasant.

The products that claimed to be fume- or odour-free didn't contain sodium hydroxide. However, they did warn that they were strongly alkaline - so they too could irritate or burn your skin.

Ethanolamine is an effective non-caustic ingredient, but it also has its hazards. It may cause coughing, headache, shortness of breath or asthmatic reactions.

Minimise these health hazards by taking particular care when you're handling a commercial oven cleaner:

  • Always read the instructions on the container - and follow them carefully.
     
  • Make sure the kitchen is well ventilated. Avoid breathing in the fumes.
     
  • Wear rubber gloves and a long-sleeved shirt.
     
  • Small children in your household? Then choose an oven cleaner with a child-resistant cap and store it well out of reach.

     

We're disappointed that only four of the cleaners we tested have child-proof caps.


 

Tips for easy cleaning

  • Roasting at lower temperatures will stop fat splattering.
  • Use disposable foil trays to catch drips.
  • Wipe up any spills promptly.


 

More information

Report by Bev Frederikson