Cleaning Your Oven Is A Breeze If You Grab A Toothbrush

That feeling of having a spotless oven is hard to beat. It's also hard to come by since keeping the oven door shut is much easier than twisting yourself into a pretzel to clean those hard-to-reach corners. That is if you're not doing it the easy way with the help of a toothbrush. If you're not already using this bathroom-turned-kitchen accessory to bear the brunt of your oven-cleaning, you may want to grab one. Using a toothbrush is one of the best hacks for cleaning your oven and keeping it spotless. It requires just one toothbrush and the help of an effective but chemical-free way to clean your oven, such as a baking soda and water paste.

Once you've made your cleaning paste, dip a sponge into it and smear it over the dirty oven spots. Then, leave the paste for at least 20 minutes and up to 12 hours. While you wait, remove the oven knobs and soak them in a cleaning solution for about 30 minutes before scrubbing them gently with the toothbrush. Then dip the toothbrush in the solution and clean the knob areas on the oven's control panel. Next comes the fun part. Dip the toothbrush into a small container of vinegar before gently scrubbing those corners. Repeat this process until you've gone over every crevice and then use a damp cloth to wipe each area.

A toothbrush happens to be the perfect size for those nooks and crannies. It's small enough for the job and may even fit between your oven grates. It also has the advantage of rigidity and length, unlike a sponge or cloth. This means you won't have to stretch your arm as much as you would with a cloth.

You can also bend a plastic toothbrush before using it to ease the work of cleaning your oven. Boil some water and pour it into a cup before placing the toothbrush inside and leaving it to soften for about 10 minutes. Once it's soft, use tweezers to bend the plastic part to an angle that helps it reach the corners of your oven. A bent toothbrush means your hand won't have to do all the tedious twists and turns, and who doesn't appreciate that?

A toothbrush is also the perfect accessory because it's not too soft like a cloth, and especially not too abrasive like a scouring pad. With gentle scrubbing, you won't have to worry about damaging the enamel on your oven using a toothbrush. More importantly, the clustered nature of toothbrush bristles plus their flexibility make for an excellent sweeping tool that accesses dirt from many angles. This helps the toothbrush loosen dirt particles on your oven so that by the time you use a rag for that final sweep, the cleaning is a breeze.