From the “fighting fire with fire” file…..today we are going to be fighting gunky oil splatters with….more OIL! I know, some of you are saying, “But Jillee…that sounds like CRAZY TALK!” To which I reply…”Crazy like a FOX!” Allow me to explain……..
I happened to wander over to my friend Mike’s blog yesterday, “The Manly Housekeeper“. His blog is where I first spotted the idea for “How To Clean That Greasy Stove Filter“.
I wanted to see what kind of manly housekeeping he had been up to. :-) That guy never disappoints. Once again I found myself immediately drawn to one of his ideas and simply had to try it out.
This is a greasy stove hood. I doubt there is a home in the universe that hasn’t dealt with this before. It happens when we cook GREASY stuff. How it gets THAT FAR UP on the stove hood is a mystery to me…it just does. Normally to clean this I would get out my bottle of 1/2 water & 1/2 ammonia and spray down the hood, then wipe it off. Works quite well! However, it SMELLS horrible and it is considered a hazardous chemical that can irritate skin, eyes, and lungs if not used properly. Not necessarily a cleaning agent that fosters confidence. :-/
So I was very interested is seeing if this little “trick” of Mike’s would really work. Guess what? Mike did it again. I now have a new way to clean my greasy stove WITHOUT resorting to using potentially harmful chemicals.
Here’s how it works:
Put a couple of drops of oil on a paper towel, wipe the paper towel over the greasy surface, and watch that gunk come right off!
Yep, the proof is on the paper towel….
…..and on the nice and shiny hood!
When you are done cleaning, take another clean paper towel (or cloth towel) and wipe down the surface one more time. This will leave the surface lightly coated in oil, making future clean-ups much easier!
Mike recommends using Mineral Oil, which is a neutral oil used to treat wood products like cutting boards and salad bowls, but Vegetable Oil works just as well. That’s what I used.
Since the stove hood turned out so well, I decided I would try the other greasy surfaces on my appliance. I actually thought the stove top results were marginal (too much gunk to get through)…..but the console (is that what you call the part of the stove with the knobs and buttons?) turned out beautifully!
As you can see, this appliance has seen many years of “active duty” (I’m thinking it deserves an honorable discharge soon!) but the parts that are still black and shiny (as opposed to scratched and dingy) shined up beautifully! I was happy to give my old friend a good cleaning and restore some of the lustre of its’ youth.
So thanks Mike…for another useful cleaning tip that I will definitely be using from now on.
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Who would have thought that oil would work? Not me, that’s for sure. Will be trying this soon.
Likes dissolve likes. Finally a place in the “real” world where my chemistry helps me understand why this works so well and for me to do a head slap–why didn’t I think of that?
Oil also works nice in shining up my stainless steel kitchen sink (I use olive oil), I think it also loosens up stuck-on gunk. Baking soda cleans the stains off well too, but tends to leave a white film no matter how much i rinse it down.
If ya ever need to bleach sommat, and do so in a stainless steel sink, it’ll shine it up purrrrty when ya drain it and wipe it down with a soapy washcloth then rinse.
That is so great, I was looking at mine the other day and thought it’s about time to tackle the beast again. Thanks Mike and Jill!
Amazing. Thanks for all your great ideas and the time you take to research and post them! ALWAYS great and useful information.
There. Now I feel better about waiting to clean that yucky ceiling fan over my stove. I was waiting for this tip. I believe I actually have some mineral oil as well. Just in time too, it was growing a nice fuzzy sweater for winter.
I always read to use grease to take out grease stains from clothing and I have never tried it… This reinforces that idea!
Hi lisa
I have removed grease from clothing by rubbing margarine into it, then soaking in napisan or simlar, works a treat!
I found this to be very interesting! I popped on over to Mike’s blog and noticed that he did update his comments at the bottom. Although vegetable did work to clean, mineral oil was actually better because it doesn’t turn yellow and sticky and gummy over time like the veg oil. Good to know…
Going to try this today, on the underside of the exhaust fan. My problem is, the cover is oak as are the little spindle wood decor above it. Wish i could post a picture! Do you think i could use the mineral oil on the wood parts too?
Mineral oil is great to use on wood…..
I have cabinets above my stove and vent hood, they get very greasy. I just tried the oil and some wild orange essential oil…they look great. I wouldn’t think you could hurt your wood with oil…I’ve always used Murphy’s Oil Soap.
Thanks! I appreciate you all chiming in! I bought some mineral oil last night..will see how it turns out!
….and this is why I can’t really start my day without reading your blog. thanks
Any tips for how to get the burnt on grease off? You know the kind you need a knife to pick at? Sometimes the other cooks in my family think the stove is clean because they can’t see the grease, then they light up the burners and the grease browns and cooks on. I want it off!
On enameled stoves… straight ammonia cover with plastic baggie to keep from drying out 24 hrs later scrub with scrubbie. i do this all the time works great for gas burner grates just put them in garbage bag with ammonia on the grates makes sure plastic is form fitted over grates 1 day later scrub with scubbie…voila!!
Test a hidden spot before cleaning the wood trim around your stove etc–first it might have changed color from the rest of the cabinets slightly due top its position and mineral oil can darken the color a bit too–you don’t really WANT to have to mineral oil your WHOLE kitchen—do you?
Ya didn’t THINK so!
Murphys Oil Soap==altho for wood!!!–can do a great job on other surfaces too like hoods etc. (And apparently washing your dog–just read THAT somewhere!!!)
Any one have any “hint” for a TEXTURED stove “Backsplash”–the part that is attached to the rear of the stove—mine has some sort of orange-peely sort of “finish” and I CANNOT get the yellow crud off—the vents from the oven pump this stuff up and altho somewhat hidden my the pots on my rack behind the stove it is still–eeeew. I DO clean it but—-Who thought a textured surface was a GOOD IDEA here I dunno! Will try the oil on it but have my doubts! Was considering oven cleaner–what do I have to lose? LOL!
I find that Dawn Power disolver spray works quite well on this built up yellow gunk that looks as if it has never been wiped down. I find it at wal-mart in dishwashing isle. It is my favorite product purchase and works on pots and pans as well as ovens, on burner pans, on grates for gas stoves, and of course stuck on mess. Good luck.
I was hoping for the answer of how to get the seemingly permanent black stain from my flat top burner. Early on in my stove’s life, some oil spilled on the top and made these black marks that WON”T come off no matter what products I’ve tried. If you have an answer, I’d love to hear it.
Hi Evelyn, this is easier than you think and there may be a blog on this site about this also. What I do is take some soft scrub made for glass top stoves and smear it on the stove top and take a razor blade (bought at the hardware store in the paint supply isle and it comes in a little set with a plastic holder so you won’t cut yourself) and scrape the burnt on stuff right off!! It may take a little elbow grease if the black stuff is really stuck on there and you may need to add some water to the soft scrub, but once you have taken that razor to the top it will look like new! Then you can better keep up with spills and things without it getting too bad :)
For the stuck on yucks on the stove top I use the Dawn Magic Eraser and some elbow grease :) hope this helps.
I’m guessing baby oil will work too because it is just mineral oil with some fragrance added. I was reading not too long ago that baby oil is not good for the body because it is petroleum based–so now I have a few bottles that have been sitting unused.
Thanks Jillee.
okay wow that was just. too. easy. 4 years of grease and grime – GONE. in minutes. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS TIP! whoda thunk???!
Hi ronna, which tip were you referring to that got the 4 years of grease/grime GONE in minutes? I’m not sure. Thanks, Karen
THANKS, I NEEDED THAT!! :-) I’ve lived in this same apartment for nearly 8 years, and had no noticeable problem with cleaning the top of the range hood….until last week. All of a sudden it was so icky that my herbal vinegar cleaner wouldn’t do much more than smear it around. :-/ I didn’t know what to do about it, short of chemical cleaners, and didn’t want to do that. So, when I read this post today, I got right up and cleaned it lickety split! I don’t have any mineral oil (Note to self: put it on the shopping list.), so I used some olive oil. I am so happy to have this super easy solution!! THANKS A MILLION, JILLEE!
I tried this trick this morning and I did the “boiling water and baking soda” tip for my filter–amazing! Then I got looking under the hood…..ick! So, this is what I did, and it worked perfectly. I wiped a layer of vegetable oil on and let it sit for a few minutes, then I put some baking soda in one dish and veg oil in another. I dipped a paper towel in the veg oil and then in the baking soda and scrubbed under the hood and all around the filter. It worked better than the Goo Gone that I tried earlier (which didn’t even work AT ALL!). Baking soda has done it again!
I don’t know if you have this in your “fire with fire” arsenal…my 9 year old son taught me a new trick. To get stubborn dried on dry erase marker marks off of a whiteboard, simply color over the old marks with dry erase marker. Both marks (old and new) lift with minimal dry wiping, and the results are cleaner than the solvent-and-elbow grease method.
I’ve also had success removing permanent marker from a dry erase marker with this trick!
Oops! I meant from a dry erase BOARD. =)
Thanks for the hints on cleaning kitchen stove hoods. I have fought constntly with ours–will try your idea today. Something I’ve tried . . . The other day I was out of cleaner to take the brown spots off the bottom of my Corning Ware pans. In desperation I grabbed a cheap tube of toothpaste, rubbed it on, and rinsed it. It worked perfectly! (It also did NOT leave those ugly “gray” lines that some cleaners do.
I’m thinking this would also for our greasy outdoor grill?
Lighter fluid is my go-to stove de-greaser. Requires almost no elbow grease and i just wipe down with a wet paper towel after cleaning with it.
I have good luck with Avon Skin So Soft original oil. They sell a spray bottle, also. Makes Stainless Steel look like new…Your hints are wonderful, and I check and use some continually. Thanks.
Oh hello! I have a bottle of that somewhere in the back of my linen closet. Time to go find it!
Who ever would have guessed this would work will have to try it.
Thanks,Jocelan
I just cleaned my over-the-oven microwave & stove fan yesterday. I didn’t have this knowledge until today so I muscled through it with good old soap & water and then shined with alcohol in a spray bottle (another tip from you). I also used the baking soda/boiling water tip for the vent filters. I was very pleased.
I have also used mineral spirits or WD-40 to clean greasy stuff. Similar to using the oil to clean oils. I’ve even used it on grease stains on blue jeans before washing. Got that tip from a carnival worker! Check out this list:
http://golfgal.hubpages.com/hub/50-Ways-to-use-WD-40-Home-Remedies
Thanks for all of your wonderful ideas. How sis you know I needed this one. I had to chuckle at your comment about your old stove. You see I have a 43 year old cook top stove and it’s Harvest Gold.
Great tip. Do you have some advise on getting that greasy smear (that it seems you can only see when the stove light is on) off of the black ceramic top of the electric range?
Hi. I’ve had great results with my black cooktop after using peroxide & baking soda. I just sprinkle baking soda across the surface, then I spray it with peroxide & saturate the baking soda. I let it sit for a little while, then scrub around before rinsing. (I think I got that tip off of this website.) Nothing else would get that greasy smear off, but this did! You won’t believe how clean & sparkly your cooktop will be. I also use Windex Antibacterial spray in between cleanings for a quick wipedown.
WOW! Our stove hood and the ‘console’ as you called it (what is that called anyways?!) have been SO gross. I could never get them clean. Anything I did only got some of it off and it would be sticky again right away.
As soon as I read your tip tonight I tried it out and the ‘console’ is BEAUTIFUL!! SO much grime came off! The hood it a lot trickier as it is old and paint comes off too. It did remove much of the grime from the outside of it and didn’t try tackling the underside yet.
Finally the knobs look great! THANKS to you and the manly housekeeper!!
Amazing! My stove hood is REALLY gross right now, and I’ve just been putting it off and putting it off…but no more!
Found your post through Pinterest. What a great tip, thanks for sharing! I also polish my stainless steel with oil, as another commenter said. I use the tiniest amount of olive oil.
That’s brilliant! I’m moving tomorrow so will definitely use that trick in my pre-final-walkthrough cleaning. Thanks, Jillee and Mike!
oh my gosh who would have thought. i am gonna try it today
Not for the kitchen, but pretty much the only thing I use WD-40 is cleaning.
Thanks Ill Have to try this. by the way we have the vary same stove.
I love this idea! Thanks for sharing – your blog is incredible, and utterly inspiring.
Wonderful! Elbow grease doesn’t work very well…finally found some that does! I haven’t had a chance to read all the comments so am not sure if someone mentioned this…what do you use to keep food from spilling between the stove and counter top beside the stove? Someone told me to take two lengths of clear plastic tubing (3/4 inch diameter) and squeeze them between the stove and counter top. It has helped me so-o-o much!
thanks for this amazing post.. I tried it and it works!!
I don’t know if anyone mentioned this yet but Mr. Clean Magic Eraser cuts straight through this stuff too. I just recently cleaned my entire stove with one of these in minutes and it hadn’t been cleaned in over a year. Yea gross, I know but what can ya do? Anyway…Mr. Clean took it right off
Thanks for the tip. I know like cleans like. When my daughter got black grease on her new dress my MIL suggested smearing it with shortening and then washing it. It worked! I was ready to chuck my stainless steel kettle last week, it looked so gross. It had the brushed finish and it was always getting splattered with grease from the range. DH suggested a bit of toothpaste before we threw it out. It looked brand new in minutes with a bit of white paste toothpaste…and smelled minty fresh! lol. The mint scent didn’t last and there was no aftertaste.
Hope this helps someone else! :)
I use baby oil. I also use it with a micro fiber cloth to shine up my stainless steel refrigerator too!
Alright, lets give this a try. ;)
thank you! I told hubby about this when I first saw it. He just tried it and it worked! I think there are a few different versions I’ve heard of that are similar to this concept.
the oil cleansing method for face washing and using another coat of nail polish to take off existing nail polish come to mind.
Does anyone know what to use to clean the stuck on grease splatters “underneath” on the underneath side of the stove hood. I’m not referring the hood filter…. I need to clean the stuck on grease underneath the hood. Please help!
Maybe #9 on this post: http://www.onegoodthingbyjillee.com/2012/03/10-homemade-cleaners-made-from-citrus.html
For those of you who are trying to reduce your useage of Petroleum based products, Mineral Oil is one of them. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mineral_oil
Mineral oil is approved for use in places where it comes in contact with food. I used to use it to oil beltswhen I worked at a cattle-processing facility.
I do like the 100% clear nature of mineral oil. Although I have never used it in ‘cleaning’ before.
Did it and it worked! Thanks!!
Oh my Gosh, Genius! I use Oil for all sorts of clean up projects, removing adhesive, squeaky doors etc, but that hood range has been the bane of me. Why didn’t I realize that Oil emulsifies oil for that surface as well??!?!!
I’m loving your blog!!!!
How about the greese spots on your back splash in the kitchen? There’s dots all over near stove. Help.
You should be able to use this same method on your back splash.
Several years ago, I was up on a stool, looking at the grease and dust on top of my refrigerator and poured canola oil on it, thinking, “fight oil with oil” then wiped it off.. A great idea and I’m glad someone is sharing it.
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