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Thursday, May 15, 2008

Cleaning a glass cooktop.

My self-imposed break is over. I originally started this blog with the intention of covering do-it-yourself home projects while I worked on my home. I've got most of my projects done, but I hate not posting here. So I'm back. Now I'll broaden my coverage to bring you posts that cover home maintenance and special offers that I see (check back later for some of these).

Today's topic is how to clean a glass cooktop. When we remodeled our kitchen last year, I chose a stove with a ceramic cooktop. I didn't do much research. I looked at the Lowe's sale flyer when I was placing my cabinet order and pointed to one. William, my kitchen designer, added it to my very long receipt. I bought all my appliances then because I could save the sales tax. Apparently if Lowe's is doing the installation, you don't get charged the sales tax. Which is significant in Tennessee.

Anyhoo. We got our stove. It looks lovely. But cleaning it is a pain! I've learned to use Windex for daily cleaning (409 gets smeary). And I also bought a bottle of ceramic cooktop cleaner at the grocery store. It's a soupy, pasty kind of stuff that I don't use every day, but when I want it to really shine, I'll buff some on. Let me take this opportunity to tell you that John hates this cooktop and says I can never buy another one like it. No seriously, he hates it and tells me that twice a week. I, too, would rather have a gas range, but that's just not happening right now.

Last night, after I let a pot of milk/water/noodles/spices boil over, we had a huge mess on the cooktop. Huge. After all, how do you clean up a nasty mess when your burner element is red hot? So we let it cool off and tried to clean it after dinner. Uh. Not good. See below.

Messes like this really show up well in person. The stove looks filthy and we look like complete pigs. Can't have that. I told John I'd work on it today.

I sprayed some Windex. Then the stain laughed at me. Then I Googled "cleaning a ceramic cooktop" and most of the advice was to use a single-edged razor at a 45 degree angle. I whipped mine out and went to work. I tried using it on a dry surface (good for the thickest areas of the spill) and also after spraying more Windex (good for lighter areas). After I scrapped as much as I could (probably about 10 minutes' worth), I used the cooktop cleaner and nearly every bit came off. See below, again.

Ahhhhh. I'm really amazed that it got this clean. I've read that with some stains/spills, once they got hot again they are impossible to clean up. I've also seen the recommendation to start scraping right after the spill -- use an oven mitt to hold your scraper. I'll add that while the scraper is great, you want to be very conscious of how hard you are scraping. Do just enough to lift the spill or you'll end up gouging the surface.

Anyone else want to add any cooktop cleaning tips? Besides thinking twice about buying this type of stove?

56 comments:

Stephanie said...

Thank you for this post! I'm going to give it a try!We were living in a rental house while we remodeled our current kitchen and the stove (which was electric) had knobs in the front. Our daughter was a toddler at the time and was constantly trying to turn the knobs (they were at the perfect height to be way too tempting)so I made the decision to buy a glass cook-top solely because the knobs were way in the back. I REGRET THAT DECISION DAILY! I HATE OUR STOVE! Not only do I really miss cooking with gas, but it's impossible to keep the stupid thing clean. If only I had known about these at the time: http://www.buzzillions.com/dz_132316_safety_first_inc_clearview_stove_knob_reviews

Unknown said...

Two tips! My glass cooktop was the bane of my existence for a long time before I discovered two things:

1) Easy Off Cleaner for glass cooktops! It comes in a spray bottle.. smells great.. and works instantly. Great for daily cleaning.

2) For those nasty messes - grease buildup and carbonized rings on the burners - if you notice after scraping and using cooktop cleaner (especially the creamy kind) that you have streaks and smears and smudges.... (This is a huge problem for me because my cooktop is in our center island and the sun shines on it.... Ooooooh how I hate to see a smudged black cooktop in the morning) The fix is simple. Wipe off excess cleaner. Then use rubbing alcohol for a final wash. Don't dry it! Let it dry on its own and you get a sparkly streak-free shine.

As much of a pain as it was to figure out the best way to clean my cooktop -- I still think it's better than dealing with drip-pans that never DID get clean despite all my efforts...

Unknown said...

Oh one more thing.. The culprit for leaving those black hard-to-remove rings = water. Yes... water. So the more careful you are about making sure your pots and pans are dry before sitting them on the burner.. and the more careful you are about avoiding boil-overs... The less mess to clean later.

Tami said...

i have made a major change in my household, no more chemical and cough induced cleaning supplies. all natural and HOMEMADE cleaning for us. and it's FUN and my kids actually help me clean instead of coughing their way through the last scrubbing bubbles cleaning a few months ago. I highly recommend the clean green article in body+soul, it was printed a few issues ago, but you can find it online as well. the all purpose scrub using the LEMON is great (and fun) and our shower has never looked cleaner.

and also you should invest in some cloth bags for all your shopping. i turned two tshirts into a two pages in a matter of minutes the other day, also from martha

i hope this long link works out without messing up the page.......
http://www.marthastewart.com/natural-cleaning-products?lnc=18a9cf380e1dd010VgnVCM1000005b09a00aRCRD&page=1&rsc=articlecontent_health

Cher said...

Hi Marci!
I am surprised noone ever heard of what Bon Ami powder cleaner - with the 3 sprinkle holes in top - looks like Comet - but oh so not!!!
It is awesome - even gets all the grooves and all - no matter how big the mess - I have had 25 people for Thanksgiving and they always destroyed my stove making "boil-over" gravy, etc - same make as yours - and all you have to do is use this great stuff - It also will spruce up the copper on your pans! I PROMISE - no scratches! (It IS recommended by the manuf.) That is true no matter how hard you scrub! And - it lasts for years!
Hope you try this - and let us know!
Hugs~Cher
Austin, TX
PS - Marci - lmao - just spent some time at home and got sick of my scraps - so started reading your other blog - and stayed up all night - it is awesome - back to a year ago! The girls changed so fast - me - who has an almost 22 y/o dd and 30 y/o ds! And yes, I teared up ALOT - my memories of them at your girls' ages! Will tell you how I got to yours "by mistake" later today! <'}

Anonymous said...

We are removing our discusting Viking ($1200.00) cooktop. The knobs have been replaced twice and the numbers have rubbed off again. Cleaning is a nightmare and the top is bowing! What now? Induction? another glass top???? Gas??? any suggestions???- Kathy

Anonymous said...

I just boiled over macaroni and cleaned up all the burnt rings - plus some other stains - with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. Worked slick, plus, no scrubbing!!

Anonymous said...

i have been told that spray oven cleaner works great on glass cook tops.any comment

Unknown said...

I agree, it is impossible to clean. I have used several products and they all leave streaks. A mixture of vinegar, Windex and water works the best but it takes so much effort to clean it. I would discourage anybody from buying one like it. They look great in the store, but at home it is a different story!

Graciela

ashley said...

I have Bosch glass cook top with 5 burners, oh boy, how hard it is to clean......I bought cook top cleaner, from local supermarket, which came with 3 in 1 package. creamy white solution and a razor and scrubber. I will not suggest to use scrubber but papare towel or soft rag. Just apply creamy solution on the top and use razor on 45 deree to scrub all the spill overs and then clean it with soft cloth. I do experience fine scratches here and ther on my cooktop but failed to figre out how that happened. Make sure your pot bottom is flat and with no circular groves at the bottom, just to avoid any scratch. And, yes, water is BIG culprit, wipe dry the bottom of the pot before putting it on the stove.....good luck!!!

Anonymous said...

The best thing I have found to use is baking soda. It is cheap and works as well as the creamy stovetop cleaner from the store. Give it a try.

Unknown said...

OK I am in big trouble. I had read to put foil on the stove top to make clean up easier. Stated to cover with foil and then put pan on top. Well the foil stuck to the stove top and no matter what cleaner I have used I can't get it off. Just moved in to house 3 weeks ago and this is horrible. Any suggestions?

marci lambert said...

i would try using a razor blade to scrape it off. i would wet the foil with something like 409 and hold the blade at a 90 degree angle and slowly scrape. be careful not to gouge the surface of the cooktop.

please note that i have not done this myself; i'm only offering this suggestion.

Anonymous said...

I have always used the glass cleaner for my glass fireplace doors. I never fails to remove burnt on spills and does not damage the finish. You can purchase it at ant fireplace store.

Anonymous said...

@Jeannie: The "cover with foil" tip applies to regular electric burners (the black coils or discs), not to glass top stoves.

Unknown said...

bar keeper's friend has done the trick for me on all burnt stuff on the glass top- super easy.

I also got (at bed bath and beyone I believe) a little ceramic thing that you put in whatever you are boiling and it keeps from boiling over to make those hard to clean water burns.

Anonymous said...

Easy-Off worked overnight! I had a maple syrup spill-over that really did a number on my glass cooktop. I had tried all of the specialized products plus Vim, Mr. Clean Eeraser, Vileda Scrunge -- all products that were great for everyday spills but burnt-on syrup was tougher than any of these products. Then I saw the comment from one of your readers regarding Easy Off and it worked! I sprayed it on a cool cooktop, left it on overnight, and the next morning the stains had lifted off like magic. Remove it with a damp sponge, wipe clean with a water/vinigar mixture and it looks like new! Thank you very much! Diane

Marissa said...

I use Wieman glass stove top cleaner. I actually use (gasp!) a barbecue spatula on burnt on stuff and stains on the stove. I cover it with the Wieman cleaner which has a lotion consistency, scrape gently, then wipe off and buff with a paper towel. Repeat as necessary.I like the size of the barbecue spatula since it is wider than the scraper that came with the stove top and makes removing stains faster. I think the consistency of the cleaner protects the surface from scratches (even from my big spatula).

Perrin said...

My Harley Davidson man suggested I use his chrome polish (the kind where you wet the sponge, rub it on the dry solid "cake"). Rub in circular motion, let dry to haze, wipe off with soft cloth. Miraculous and easy!

Anonymous said...

Actually, just use a wet rag right after it boils over, even if it's red hot. I boil things over constantly, and do this every time. It gets everything up.

I live in a rented house that has one of these stoves and I hate it. It takes forever to heat anything, and the pans slide around too much.

Anonymous said...

I use to have the same problem with my glasstop stove. But I love the looks of it to much (when it is clean) to get rid of it. So, one night I had a huge mess, like most nights. I brought out my ceramic glass cookop stove cleaner, not realizing that hte burner was still hot and squirted it on. Much to my surprise I could not wipe it off becuase the burner was too hot, I thought I had royaly screwed up. After letting the cleaner sit on the hot burner and drying on there like that I simply took a rag and softly wiped it off, and EVERY bit of the mess came up. So now every time I have a mess, I jsut put the cleaner right on top of the hot burner, works like a charm!

Anonymous said...

Got a new black glasstop and scrubbed a dark brown mark with a sponge/scrubber (yellow sponge/green scrubber).I used the green side with a bit of baking soda and now I have marks you can see when the light shines on it. Any suggestions (wish I would've checked here first)

Anonymous said...

actually the marks are more like dull spots-it doesn't 'shine' like the rest-is this a scratch mark and what do I do to get the 'shine' back?

Katie D said...

Barkeeper's Friend is the best. Doesn't scratch and then you continue cleaning your sink and all of your stainless. It's awesome!

Anonymous said...

Using lemon juice and sprinkling baking soda on top of the lemon juice when the burners are still fairly warm works great.....let it sit for a while after the "bubbling" --- chemical reaction between the baking soda and lemon juice has stopped and wipe it clean :) Works really well on tough stains and doesnt scrath or damage the stove top :)

Anonymous said...

You should use Easy Off Heavy Duty Oven Cleaner. I had burnt on water stains around my burners for years and could never get them off. I sprayed on the cleaner and left it overnight. Then just wiped away the stains with a wet paper towel the next morning. I couldn't believe how easy it was to literally wipe away the stains!

YoMaMa said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
YoMaMa said...

I use baking soda and peroxide. There is no need to scrap with a razor blade or rub for hours. It cost less than $2 to use this method. No harsh chemicals and it's green. I wish I would have known this years ago. http://thedailymom1.blogspot.com/

PD said...

Help! I love my glass cooktop however, I set a hot skillet on a woven hotpad (that my granddaughter made for me)just long enough to melt a bit of the plastic on the bottom of the skillet. I was shocked that it did that and of course, I wasn't aware of it and returned the skillet to the hot burner and the plastic on the pan transferred onto my cooktop. I don't want to damage the cooktop so would ask what is best to safely remove melted-on plastic from my cooktop.

YoMaMa said...

I'm not sure if my peroxide and baking soda will work on melted plastic, but it could possibly take care of it. The instructions are on thedailymom1.blogspot.com . If it was my stove I would definitely try it. Good luck

PD said...

Eureka! I have solved my "melted plastic on my glass cooktop" issue. It was suggested by the appliance store that I warm the burner (not too hot), then use a Mister Clean Majic Eraser to scrub the plastic away. It worked slick and without too much scrubbing and no scratches! My thanks for your suggestions.

Anonymous said...

I had a pot of water boil over on my smooth cooktop, used weiman but it wont come off, looks cloudy, any suggestions?

YoMaMa said...

On thedailymom1.blogspot.com there are instructions on how to use baking soda and peroxide to resolve your issue with water over boiling. I had the same problem and this is what worked for me. Good luck!

KB said...

Black glass cooktop........

Pour clear white vinegar on areas needing to clean, sprinkle baking soda on top. It will bubble up. Let sit at least 10 min.

I used the recommended scraper much like a paint scraper or putty knife and got thru what looks like several years of baked on who knows what.

When we moved in I assumed it was permanently
ruined. I was wrong. Looks brand new and shiny. I love it and now I know how to keep it this way.

Anonymous said...

I hope someone can help me. I have a black glass cooktop range and I boiled potatoes on it. When I removed the pot I seen a half moon like black ring on the cooktop. Had problems before and used cooktop cream and it worked fine. But this time I have tryed everything and nothing works. It looks like someone drew it on with a permanent black marker. It is smooth like metal marks are. I have scrubbed, and soaked for hours. Used everything, creams, baking soda, vinegar,oven cleaner, you name it I used it. Think I may be scratching it. Any suggestions at all? Can a professional get the stain off, or is it permanently damaged?

Anonymous said...

I used to have glass top range and the previous owners told me that they used Soft Scrub and a sponge so that is what I used and it worked great.
Not a scratch on it :)

Dieseldog2669 said...

Thanks for advice. I have all of these problems. I have found that the Mr Clean Eraser sponge does help with the left over film and mild dirt since I don't have the other cleaners that's what we use. I will be buying the cleaners now.

Anonymous said...

Wow, the Bon Ami worked great for the stains and build up I had on the glass top, but I agree with the majority, I will never buy another one. I miss my gas range.

Anonymous said...

Hi,

My cooktop has been abused for 6 and a half years. I never really paid attention to how bad the rings were but until this morning they were an inch wide. I have tried a few things including the following:
- lemon
- baking soda and vinegar paste (and scrubbing)
- paint stripper
- oven cleaner
- cooktop magic

all the above failed. what worked this morning was scraping back the build up with a razor blade and then I buffed it with cooktop magic. it doesn't look brand new but very close.

Anonymous said...

I moved into a rental property with a very very dirty cooktop that looked like it hadnt been cleaned in years. I used a spray oven cleaner on it and that got rid of most of the issue. I then used a standard cream cleanser and that got rid of the rest of the stains. Regular use of a ceramic cooktop polish has made it so much easier to clean and makes it look like new!

Unknown said...

My cook top has this Metallic looking ring on it how to get it off some one Please help..

Anonymous said...

I could not bring myself to clean it with a razor... I cleaned it with a little bit of hand lotion and simple green... I COULD NOT BELIEVE IT! No scrubbing for ten minutes no burning myself trying to warm up some water and then scrubbing it... Best idea I ever had :)

Unknown said...

Thanks All, a 45 degree Razor took 2 year old Carbon rings right off. 15 minutes across 4 burners. I was amazed. I had tried every clean in the book, covered it with baking soda over night etc.

Preventive Measures from now on! Thanks all for your Advice!

Anonymous said...

how can i get the grey off the top of my glass stove top

Oven Cleaning in Sheffield said...

Great Job! Scrapers are wonderful tools aren't they??

Lots of folks seem to find cleaning the glass cooktops difficult. Following your instructions will help so many people, I use a very similar method myself. Even works on parts of they inside of the oven too!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for sharing your idea in cleaning because many people needs this kind of tips. I've found a nice cleaning service for those who have a meat shop. You can find them in Abattoir and meat shop cleaning company. I hope that I could help.

Darian Renn said...

Thanks for sharing this helpful information.

Jennifer Hazel said...

I really found a lot of help through this blog. Thanks for the great info and this conversation below. :)

Sonya Zane said...

Thanks for sharing this great post. I'm considering changing my kitchen top and I was checking out if it's a good idea. You really helped me decide thanks <3

F. Warden said...

My break is not over (because I'm lazy) but it should be soon. I have to get my working hands on and start cleaning the whole house since spring is here already. By the way loved the article and really enjoyed reading it <3

Jackie said...

At x-mas last year. I was making sugar cookies.I was boiling milk and sugar on my 37 year old glass top stove.Trying to multitask and my milk and sugar boiled over.What a mess I tried to clean it up to soon.I think I scrubbed to hard and it hurt the finish it looks dull now.Any ideas?


Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

My stove is 5 months old. I use all the proper way to clean. But I have two dull spots on it when I rub my hand across it, It feels smooth at different angles it shines. But when you really look at it closely it looks like it in the glass on or on the other side of the glass. Also when it spray the light cleaner it disappears until I wipe the cleaner with the a paper towel. Is my glass have defects?

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