How to Clean an Oven, Oven Racks and Oven Door Glass

Step by step

1
Identify your oven type and let it cool
Check the controls or manual for self-clean, steam clean or continuous-cleaning features. Turn the oven off and let it cool completely, then take out pans, foil, liners and any racks not labeled self-clean.

Why: Each type needs a different method. Wiping hot porcelain with a damp cloth can crack or chip the enamel, and items left in a self-clean cycle can be damaged or damage the oven.
2
Wipe out loose spills
Wipe up crumbs, loose grease and the inside of the door glass with a damp cloth and plain water. On a self-cleaning oven, use no cleaning products at this stage.

Why: Loose grease is what makes self-clean cycles smoke. Cleaner residue can damage the enamel at self-clean temperatures.
3
Self-cleaning oven: run the cycle
Open a window or run the range hood, then start self-clean. Some smoke and smell is normal. Keep children and pets away from the oven, which locks during the cycle. Afterward, let it cool (one appliance maker says 30 to 90 minutes) and wipe out the white ash with water and a little vinegar.

Why: Self-clean heats the cavity to as much as about 885°F, which burns food soil down to ash.
4
Standard oven: apply oven cleaner or ammonia
Wearing gloves and eye protection, with the kitchen ventilated, apply an oven cleaner to the cool oven exactly as the label says. Cold-oven cleaners are stronger than warm-oven types. Or use the ammonia method: set 1/2 cup household ammonia in a bowl in the closed, cool oven for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Why: Oven cleaners use strong alkalis (lye or ammonia) that soften and break down burned-on grease so it can be wiped off.
5
Wash out the softened soil and rinse
After an oven cleaner, wipe as the label directs. After the ammonia soak, wash the walls with 1/2 cup ammonia in a quart of warm water, then with soapy water, then rinse with clean water and dry.

Why: Alkaline residue left in the oven can smell and irritate when it heats up. Rinsing removes it.
6
Soak and scrub the racks
Soak racks in warm soapy water in a sink or tub, then scrub them. For burned-on food, soak longer. Coarse scrubbers are fine on oven racks.

Why: Soaking softens baked-on grease. Shiny chrome racks discolor and can warp in a self-clean cycle, so they're washed by hand.

What an oven is made of, and what that rules out

Oven walls are porcelain enamel on steel, a glassy coating that resists acids and heat but can crack from sudden cooling. Self-cleaning ovens have enamel designed for extreme heat; continuous-cleaning ovens have a rough catalytic coating that slowly oxidizes soil during normal baking. Oven cleaner damages both, which is why it's only for standard, manual-clean ovens.

Racks come in two types: shiny chrome-plated steel, which must come out before self-clean, and dark enameled racks labeled self-clean, which can stay in. An appliance maker also advises against lining the oven floor or racks with foil, which can damage the oven. Catch drips with a tray on the rack below instead.

How often: wipe up spills once the oven is cool, before they bake on, and deep clean when soil builds up. Your manual may give a self-clean frequency for your model. Some newer ovens have a steam clean mode for light soil: pour about 1 cup of water into the cool oven bottom, run the cycle, then sponge out the water and loosened soil.

How to clean the oven door glass, inside and out

The inside of the door glass gets the same baked-on grease as the walls. On a self-cleaning oven, wipe it with a damp cloth before the cycle and the cycle cleans it with the rest. For a manual-clean oven, a paste of baking soda and a little water is a gentle, mildly abrasive option: spread it on, leave it a while, then wipe and rinse. Oven cleaner works on the glass of standard ovens if the label allows.

Check your manual before soaking the door: one appliance maker notes that some door panels shouldn't be wet-cleaned, and model-specific instructions cover the inner glass. The outside glass wipes clean with warm soapy water or glass cleaner.

Melted plastic in the oven

Turn the oven off, open a window and run the hood, and let everything cool. Don't try to burn plastic off the oven floor yourself.

On an exposed electric element: one appliance maker's support guidance is to turn on the vent, warm the element until the plastic softens, gently scrape off as much as possible with a wooden spoon or spatula, then turn the element on high so the rest burns off.
On the oven floor or walls (the liner): the same maker recommends a service call rather than home removal.
On a rack: let it cool, then soak and scrub the rack like any other baked-on soil.

There's no widely published, authoritative home method beyond this, so check your oven's manual or the maker's support line for your model.

By situation

Very greasy, neglected oven

Repeat the cold-oven cleaner application or the overnight ammonia method rather than scrubbing hard. Wipe out what has loosened between rounds, and finish with a thorough rinse.

Self-cleaning oven that's only lightly dirty

You don't need the full cycle for a spill or two. Wipe with a damp cloth, or use a baking soda paste on a stuck spot, then rinse with water so no residue remains before the next self-clean.

Dark enameled self-clean racks

Racks labeled self-clean can stay in the cycle. Wash them in warm soapy water when they look greasy, and check the manual before using abrasive pads, which may scratch the coating.

Avoiding harsh chemicals

A baking soda paste on the cool oven walls, left a while, then wiped and rinsed, handles moderate soil. It's slower than oven cleaner and won't shift thick carbon, but it's safe on standard enamel.

What not to do

Don't use oven cleaner on a self-cleaning or continuous-cleaning oven. It may damage the special enamel or coating.
Don't leave foil, liners, pans or shiny chrome racks in during self-clean. They can damage the oven, and chrome racks discolor and warp.
Don't line the oven floor or racks with foil. An appliance maker warns this can damage the oven.
Don't wipe hot porcelain with a damp cloth. Sudden cooling can crack or chip the enamel.
Don't mix ammonia or oven cleaner with chlorine bleach or other cleaners. The combination releases toxic gas. See what never to mix.

Other methods that work

Baking soda paste

A paste of baking soda and water is a mild abrasive and a weak alkali that loosens light grease on oven interiors and the door glass.

Caution: Rinse it out well, especially before a self-clean cycle, and don't expect it to remove heavy carbon.

Steam clean mode

On models that have it, about a cup of water and the steam cycle softens light soil without chemicals.

Caution: It's for light, recent soil. Follow your manual.

Stain still there?

White residue after self-clean

That's ash. Wipe it out with water and a little vinegar once the oven is cool.

The oven smells of chemicals when heated

Cleaner residue is left. Wash the walls again with soapy water and rinse twice with clean water before using the oven.

Chrome racks turned dull or blue

They were left in a self-clean cycle, which discolors chrome. Check that they still slide properly, since the heat can also warp them.

Safety

Oven cleaners can contain lye, which causes severe burns: wear gloves and eye protection and keep children away.
Ventilate during self-clean and when using ammonia or oven cleaner.

Never mix cleaning products; see chemicals you must never combine.

Questions

What's the easiest way to clean oven racks?

Soak them in warm soapy water in a sink or bathtub, then scrub. Coarse scrubbers are fine on racks. Leave shiny chrome racks out of self-clean cycles.

How do you clean the inside of the oven door glass?

Wipe it with a damp cloth, then use a baking soda paste or, on a standard oven, oven cleaner per the label. Check your manual first, since some door panels shouldn't get wet.

Can you use oven cleaner on a self-cleaning oven?

No. Oven cleaner can damage the special enamel of self-cleaning and continuous-cleaning ovens. Wipe with water only and use the self-clean cycle.

How do you get melted plastic out of an oven?

On an exposed element, warm it, scrape the softened plastic off with a wooden spoon and burn off the rest with the vent on. Plastic bonded to the oven floor or walls is best left to a service technician.

Is it normal for a self-cleaning oven to smoke?

A little smoke and smell is normal. Wiping out loose grease beforehand reduces it.

More guides for this room

Sources

Range & Wall Oven - Tips for Self Clean, GE Appliances (manufacturer support)
Range & Wall Oven - What to Remove Before Self-Cleaning, GE Appliances (manufacturer support)
Electric Range & Wall Oven - Cleaning Melted Plastic or Foil on Coil Surface Burners or Oven Elements, GE Appliances (manufacturer support)
How to Clean Your Home Appliances Inside and Out, GE Appliances (manufacturer)
Kitchen Appliances, American Cleaning Institute
Clean and Sanitize the Kitchen, University of Illinois Extension
Selection and Use of Home Cleaning Products, Guide G-304, New Mexico State University Cooperative Extension Service
Keeping Your Home Healthy, Safe & Clean: Living Green (June 2017), Vermont Department of Health

Last updated October 26, 2026. Methods are drawn from the sources above; how we research and check our guides.