I’m always on the lookout for cleaning hacks (yes, I’m the person who once cleaned my oven with a power drill), so when I heard that a dishwasher tablet could wipe away baked-on grease from oven doors, I had to give it a shot. I saw lots of tutorials mentioning Finish detergent, so I grabbed a small pack of powder tablets (liquid gel packets seemed like they’d be too messy) and got started.
The Setup
I wish I had a more dramatic before-and-after photo to show, but my oven window wasn’t completely disgusting. Still, it had its fair share of visible grease splatters. Before diving in, I put on my gloves (because these tablets contain bleach, and I didn’t want my winter-dry hands to get worse). I unwrapped a tablet, dipped it in a bowl of warm water, and began scrubbing.
Scrubbing the Glass
I held the tablet between my thumb and forefinger (mainly to keep the red power ball from falling out) and scraped it across the glass door. I tried both the blue and white sides, and both worked equally well. The results were quick: the baked-on grease spots came off after just a few scrubs!
I kept cleaning the glass with that tablet, dipping it in warm water as needed, until it crumbled. Then, I opened another tablet to use the fresh edges on the harder-to-reach areas where the metal door frames the glass. I found that laying the tablet flat and applying good pressure with my palm worked best. The power ball kept falling out, so I let it dissolve in the bowl of warm water to make sure it wasn’t wasted.
Finishing Up the Glass
After scrubbing the entire surface of the glass, I wiped away the greasy gunk with a paper towel. Then, I went over it with a wet towel to remove any leftover residue. The glass looked absolutely perfect!
Cleaning the Non-Glass Part of the Oven Door
Next, I tackled the non-glass part of the oven door. My tablet had absorbed a lot of water (from all the dunking while cleaning the glass), and the grease came off even faster here. I think this was partly due to the water and partly because I was using more pressure (no fragile glass to worry about).
After scrubbing and wiping the surface clean, I could still see some small bits of stubborn grime. So, I crumbled what was left of my tablet and scrubbed the entire surface of the oven door once more. I let it sit and dry for about 10 minutes, then wiped it clean with a wet cloth. It was almost too easy!
Is This Cleaning Method Recommended?
My final thoughts? I 100% recommend using this method to clean your oven! There’s quite a bit of scrubbing involved, but it’s not too vigorous, and you really don’t need any special tools beyond gloves.
Key Takeaways for Next Time:
– Use a spray bottle in addition to a small bowl of warm water.
– Let the tablet absorb a good amount of water before you start scrubbing, but not so much that it crumbles.
– Use a fair amount of pressure when scrubbing – using the palm of your hand works best and covers a lot of surface area.
These tablets are tiny secret weapons, and I’m sure this won’t be the last time you hear about their magic cleaning powers!
Have you ever tried this method? Did you get the same great results? Let me know!