Ok the interior of your oven has gotten to the point that you cannot ignore it anymore. You are tired of throwing yourself if front of the oven when your Mother-in-law comes over. You need to do a self-cleaning cycle. We tend to let it go but over time the buildup can cause over smoking on high temperatures or even transfer of flavors. If your tuna noodle casserole has bubbled over and now is infusing your lemon meringue pie, it’s time.
Due to the extreme temperatures of self-cleaning, it is not a process that you want to overdue. If the spill is not major and has not been left too long, you are able to just clean up the spill with warm, soapy, water, and a plastic scrubber. Newer ovens are coming with hidden back elements so wiping the bottom of the oven is much less cumbersome. The heat can tend to play havoc on the electronics of the unit. Some new ovens have a steam clean feature that will allow you to clean up the spill without the extreme heat and odor. This new process will allow you to stay on top of the interior so you can keep self-cleaning to a minimum. If you decide to use a cleaner, you want to make sure that it is a cleaner that is safe for self-cleaning ovens.
Once we go through the self- cleaning cycle, there still some cleaning that you will need to do. The oven has gone through its cycle and charred everything with temperatures between 900 – 1000 degrees. Once the unit is cooled and the door has unlocked, you need to wipe up the dry mess with a cloth, and then wipe down the interior with warm, soapy water, and a plastic scrubber. You can use the same process on your oven racks. You can let the racks soak if you have a sink large enough with some fabric softener sheets. This will help to release anything baked on.
With just a little effort as needed, you can keep up with the mess in the oven and not have to go through the ordeal of self-cleaning.
Just a note to our bird loving friends out there, the fumes that are produced from self-cleaning can be harmful to birds. You may want to move them into another room.