The cooktop is one of the most heavily used cooking appliances in your kitchen, providing the surface necessary for preparing a majority of your most cherished dishes. Gas cooktops are popular appliances thanks to their high heat output and easily adjustable controls, but these units are also prone to collecting grease and grime after repeated use.
A clean kitchen is a functional kitchen, and to help with your cleaning needs, we’ve gathered information on how to remove grease from a gas cooktop.
Clean Your Gas Cooktop With Vinegar
If your gas cooktop only suffers from light grease stains, you’ll want to use vinegar as the key tool in your cleaning process. All you need to do is spray your burners with a bit of vinegar and allow it to sit for approximately 10 to 15 minutes. Next, wipe down the appliance with a clean cloth. This should remove minor grease stains and leave your cooktop significantly cleaner.
This method is most effective if used daily. By taking the time to clean your cooktop every day with vinegar, you can ensure that grease does not get caked onto the appliance and grow into a greater mess.
Use Specialized Chemical Cleaner
There are a variety of brands that produce specialty oven cleaner, utilizing unique chemical combinations to help wipe away grease and charred waste from your appliance. While these cleaners can be effective, they also tend to leave a layer of chemical residue within your appliance after use. This can result in foul tastes being cooked into your dishes, and even present a health hazard to yourself and your family.
If you use a chemical cleaner in your oven, be sure to run the unit on high heat afterwards to help destroy any chemical residue that is left behind. But be warned — these chemicals can create foul and unpleasant odors.
Use Baking Soda To Clean Your Cooktop
Most people do not take the time to clean their cooktop every day, and if you need to eliminate tough stains, you may want to employ baking soda in your cleaning process.
First, you should wash around your cooktop and its burners using lukewarm water and dishwasher detergent. This will remove the top layer of grease and grime that lives on your unit. Next, create a paste by mixing baking soda and water, and coat the unit with this paste. Allow your baking soda/water combination to stand on the cooktop for about 20 minutes, then scrub problem areas of the unit and rinse off the paste using water.
This method is ideal if you have significant food residue on your cooktop, as the baking soda paste can help soften such waste so you can remove it from the cooktop surface.
Cooktop Grate Cleaning With Ammonia
Your gas cooktop’s grates can be the most difficult components to clean, as they often gather grease and food residue that surrounds your burners. While the vinegar and baking soda methods can be used on your grates, they are not always effective. If you’re suffering from more serious stains, you’ll need to use ammonia to clean your unit’s grates.
For this method, you must first place each burner grate in its own gallon-sized Ziploc bag. Next, add about a quarter cup of undiluted ammonia to the bag. Seal the bag and allow it to sit overnight, allowing the encased ammonia fumes to loosen grease, grime and food residue from your burner grates. After allowing your grates to sit in ammonia, you can remove them from the bags and wipe them down with water or a touch of vinegar. This will remove any remaining grease, and ensure that your burner grates are effectively cleaned. Be extremely careful to protect your eyes with googles from any splashing ammonia, and wear rubber gloves at all times.
This process can be very effective, though the ammonia may produce a foul odor that bothers you or your family. You can allow your bag to sit outside while the ammonia works its magic on your burner grates, ensuring its strong stench does not overrun your home.
Premium Gas Cooktops Perfect For The Modern Home
A dirty appliance makes your home unattractive, and there’s no reason your kitchen should suffer because of a dirty gas cooktop. These units may be prone to collecting grease and grime, but once you understand how to effectively clean your cooktop, you’ll be able to effectively maintain your kitchen’s elegant and exceptional aesthetic.
No matter how much you clean it, an old cooktop will bring an outdated sense of style to your home. If you feel like it is time to upgrade your appliance, you can use this online collection of gas cooktops to explore your choices, or contact a home appliance expert for specialized service.
