# Best cleanser to get off baked-on grease?

**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [July 21, 2008, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243 "2008-07-21T12:27:56Z")
**Posts on this page:** 17
**Page:** 1

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### Author: ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)
#### Post date: [July 21, 2008, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243/1 "2008-07-21T12:27:56Z")

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My stove top has some badly baked-on grease. Easy-off oven cleaner might help, but its fumes make me sick. Is there anything that will cut through this baked-on mess?

I thought about putting this in GQ, but maybe this is more of an opinion thing.

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### Author: ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)
#### Post date: [July 21, 2008, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243/2 "2008-07-21T12:35:21Z")

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Go to the laundry section and buy some Washing Soda. Make a paste with water, spread it on, let it sit a couple of hours, wipe off.

Problem solved. Washing Soda is cheap, green, and cuts through baked on grease if you give it time to work.

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### Author: ![Rascal\_s\_Mom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a698b9/32.png) [@Rascal\_s\_Mom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rascal_s_Mom)
#### Post date: [July 21, 2008, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243/3 "2008-07-21T12:55:26Z")

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I don’t know if it works on baked on stuff, but for general kitchen grime and grease, that orange stuff you can get on the dollar shelf of a lot of stores is a miracle worker! I love it!

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### Author: ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)
#### Post date: [July 21, 2008, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243/4 "2008-07-21T13:05:58Z")

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I’ve used 409 or something like that, and let it sit for a while, then use a green scrubby pad to remove it.

My other alternative is to move. 😉

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### Author: ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)
#### Post date: [July 21, 2008, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243/5 "2008-07-21T13:10:19Z")

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Baked-on grease is ugly. I suggest a glory hole.

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### Author: ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)
#### Post date: [July 21, 2008, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243/6 "2008-07-21T19:03:25Z")

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This got asked last week in GQ, oddly enough.

I’ve had good results from those Magic Eraser sponges.

If the surface can handle it, scrubbing with a Brillo pad works, but it might scratch some finishes.

If you’re into industrial-strength chemistry, get some Carbon Off at the local restaurant supply shop.

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### Author: ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)
#### Post date: [July 21, 2008, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243/7 "2008-07-21T19:26:14Z")

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If it’s cooked to a carbon layer then you’re not cleaning grease, you’re cleaning carbon. The only thing I can think of beyond oven cleaner for carbon would be an aviation product such as [carbon-X](http://www.sportys.com/acb/showdetl.cfm?Product_ID=344&DID=19) and I don’t know if that works on the hard stuff. It’s more for cleaning exhaust residue off the bottom of aircraft.

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### Author: ![Cheez\_Whia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d26b3c/32.png) [@Cheez\_Whia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheez_Whia)
#### Post date: [July 21, 2008, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243/8 "2008-07-21T20:11:45Z")

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[QUOTE=Kalhoun]  
I’ve used 409 or something like that, and let it sit for a while, then use a green scrubby pad to remove it.

My other alternative is to move. 😉  
[/QUOTE]

You don’t need to move; just buy a new stove! 🙂

Magic Eraser and Simple Green.

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### Author: ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)
#### Post date: [July 21, 2008, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243/9 "2008-07-21T20:41:23Z")

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I second the orange stuff at the $1 store. I have something called “LA’s AWESOME Orange Cleaner” and it does wonders on grease. Also a lot of good old-fashioned elbow grease. And if it’s really baked on, scraping it with a knife or putty knife.

StG

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### Author: ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)
#### Post date: [July 21, 2008, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243/10 "2008-07-21T20:46:07Z")

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I generally have good luck and no scratching with SofScrub, but your issue sounds like it might be a little too tough for that.

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### Author: ![dactylic\_hexameter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d26b3c/32.png) [@dactylic\_hexameter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dactylic_hexameter)
#### Post date: [July 21, 2008, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243/11 "2008-07-21T21:04:18Z")

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Pour some ammonia on it. Let it sit for a while. Wipe it off. I personally hate the smell/fumes from ammonia, and thus use it rarely, but it works so well I can’t give it up…

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### Author: ![thirdwarning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecccb3/32.png) [@thirdwarning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdwarning)
#### Post date: [July 21, 2008, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243/12 "2008-07-21T21:14:30Z")

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Will those work as well on nonstick cookware? I sprayed a couple of my cookie sheets to do calzones this weekend and the grease baked on where it wasn’t covered. Scrubbing worked somewhat, but it still needs work.

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### Author: ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)
#### Post date: [July 21, 2008, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243/13 "2008-07-21T21:20:27Z")

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[QUOTE=thirdwarning]  
Will those work as well on nonstick cookware? I sprayed a couple of my cookie sheets to do calzones this weekend and the grease baked on where it wasn’t covered. Scrubbing worked somewhat, but it still needs work.  
[/QUOTE]

Before I posted I googled ‘baked on grease’ and got a lot of sites telling me how to clean pans. Here was one:

> [@](#):
>
> o remove baked on grease after cooking, place a fabric softener sheet - bounce, fleecy, etc. - into the pan with a bit of water. Soak over nite and voila! The next morning wipe with the sheet and it all comes off with no scrubbing.

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### Author: ![GilaB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8e7dd6/32.png) [@GilaB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GilaB)
#### Post date: [July 22, 2008, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243/14 "2008-07-22T01:49:05Z")

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I’ve found the dryer sheet tip to be only marginally useful, at least with soaking my crock pot liner.

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### Author: ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)
#### Post date: [July 22, 2008, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243/15 "2008-07-22T02:16:58Z")

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[QUOTE=Annie-Xmas]  
Go to the laundry section and buy some Washing Soda. Make a paste with water, spread it on, let it sit a couple of hours, wipe off.

Problem solved. Washing Soda is cheap, green, and cuts through baked on grease if you give it time to work.  
[/QUOTE]

I hear washing soda is superior to baking soda, but if you don’t have it handy (it can be hard to find in parts of the country, I haven’t found it here), the same paste trick with baking soda can be a miracle worker.

Also, if you have still greasy grease, straight Dawn and boiling water.

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### Author: ![GingerOfTheNorth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/cdc98d/32.png) [@GingerOfTheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GingerOfTheNorth)
#### Post date: [July 22, 2008, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243/16 "2008-07-22T02:39:01Z")

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There is a product called Easy Off Fume Free Max. I use it. I pass out from regular Easy Off, but this is fine.

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### Author: ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)
#### Post date: [July 23, 2008, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-cleanser-to-get-off-baked-on-grease/457243/17 "2008-07-23T18:59:22Z")

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Thanks for all the replies! I have decided to first give Easy Off Fume Free Max a try, since it seemed to me to have a high likelihood of needing the least amount of work from me…

But I’ve saved the link in case I have to try the other solutions.
