How to Clean Oven Racks- The Easy Way

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I have a bit of a confession to make. I have been living on my own for the better part of 10 years now, and I have no idea how to clean oven racks. Honestly, I’ve never cleaned an oven in all my life. I guess I never really noticed how dirty an oven gets. And we’ve moved almost every year, so it’s never been that big of a deal.

how to clean oven racks the easy way overlaid on before and after photos of oven racks

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Realizing I needed to clean my oven all started because of the How to Clean Oven Racks

So outside I went. I brought my gloves, some Dawn dish soap, a

before picture of dirty oven rack

This clearly isn’t working. I started to think of what else could get this off. I knew these needed to soak in hot water, which meant heading to the tub, because they were way too big for my sink.

The Easy Way to Clean Oven Racks

So I grabbed my

oven racks soaking in vinegar and baking powder

An hour or so later, I came back and the grease wiped right off! I didn’t have to scrub at all! While, I still used the stainless steel scrubby to wipe it off, but I could’ve easily used a sponge or a dish rag.

I also used a tooth brush to get into the smaller crevices. It was so much easier to clean! I laughed to myself at the 15 minutes I spent scrubbing one, as I proceeded to clean all 4 oven racks in the same amount of time.

after of clean oven rack

How to clean oven racks wasn’t nearly as hard as I had originally thought it would be! Next time I’ll start at the tub first, because letting them soak makes cleaning the oven racks so much easier!

FAQs

Can I use baking powder and baking soda interchangeably for cleaning?

While technically yes, they can be used interchangeably, baking soda is the preferred product to use for cleaning. It is cheaper and doesn’t have any of the other additives that baking powder has.

How long should I let my oven racks soak?

I let them soak until the water cools if possible, but for at least 30 minutes.

What if I don’t have a tub?

Find any storage bin that will fit your oven racks. I find most will work. Just fill it up with really hot water from your sink, or boil water and pour it in.

7 thoughts on “How to Clean Oven Racks- The Easy Way”

    1. Hello! I’m so sorry about that, while you can use either and I have in a pinch, it’s better to use baking soda. It’s cheaper and will more readily react with the vinegar.

  1. Thank you for sharing. I have tried everything else, and I’m definitely going to give your method a try. I’ll come back & let you know how they turn out. Very much appreciated.

  2. We are getting ready to replace our old tub with a new walk in shower so I think now will be a great time to clean the racks before this happens. Thanks for the info. I always appreciate new ways of doing things.

  3. I cleaned my oven racks this way and it was easy and they came out really clean BUT that was 3 months ago and my racks now have rusty spots everywhere there is a connection where the rack wires touch. Guess I’m going to have buy new ones ☹️. This did not go as planned.

    1. Oh no! I’m so sorry to hear that. I’ve used this on multiple oven racks from different ovens and have never had that issue.

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