The Self-Cleaning Oven Mistake Almost Everyone Makes (It'll Ruin Your Racks)

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There are so many cautionary tales about self-cleaning ovens that even just deciding whether or not to use the function feels monumental. And, should one wind up among the unlucky folks for whom the feature ends up requiring costly repairs (or worse), it kind of is. If you do wish to use the feature, however, you still need to take some self-cleaning oven precautions for both safety and performance. And removing your oven racks before you crank that baby up is particularly important. If you want them to keep them in good condition, at least.

An oven's self-cleaning setting works by approaching a temperature of around 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit for a good few hours, depending on the model. That extreme heat cleans all of your home cooking's little spills and splatters by rendering them down to ash for you to merely wipe away, versus the old fashioned scrubbing. And, believe it or not, those racks are not always compatible with that level of incineration. Such high heat can warp the racks, for one, making them harder or even impossible to slide in and out of their grooves, or create a less stable surface for pots and pans. Even racks that are technically designed to withstand self cleaning can lose their shine at 1,000 degrees, should your oven's interior aesthetics be a priority. So the best thing to do if you truly must run your oven's self-cleaning cycle is to remove the racks in advance.

It is perfectly reasonable to be seduced by a self-cleaning oven's effortless song, at least until its signature singed aroma begins filling your home. But the potential risks really just outweigh what you might actually find amounts to a fairly negligible benefit. It's ultimately easy enough to clean your oven racks without scrubbing for hours on end, or possibly ruining a whole darn appliance. You'll just need to gather a few simple tools like rubber gloves, a few trash bags, and a spray like Easy-Off heavy duty oven cleaner in advance. A strong chemical compound such as this, perhaps one even stronger than you're used to, will help you get the job done the first time without repeat rounds. 

The first thing you want to do is remove the racks from the oven; it's just too cumbersome to clean them in place. If you have a secure outdoor space away from kids, pets, or wildlife, you can haul 'em out, spray with the chemical cleaner of your choice, pop them into the trash bags, and leave to sit for at least around an hour before wiping or even rinsing with a garden hose, all with your safely gloved hands. You can also soak oven racks with dishwasher pods in hot water to break down grime before scrubbing if you're limited to the great indoors. And cleaning the racks frequently paradoxically means that you'll have to clean them less, in either case.