Operation Oven Cleaning 2008

Well, there was no putting it off any longer.  So I donned my do-rag, my gas mask, my extra tank (and really what good is just one tank?) of oxygen, and my pink panties (just seeing if you were paying attention) and armed myself with the degreasing foam and paper towels and sponges and rags and scrubbies.  Too bad I forgot to use the latex gloves that I had purchased expressly for this task, but my how soft my hands are now!

And set about to cleaning the oven.

Now, I'd never cleaned an oven before (well, ya know, I clean my microwave oven on a regular ~~ some say excess ~~ basis), but I knew that it'd be a messy job.  Cuz any job I do gets messy, but oven cleaning is deemed messy by all.  I have a very old oven (so old that none of the dial digits are readable past 200) that might be the original appliance for this very old trailer.  It is that olive green that was oh so popular during the 50s, 60s, and early 70s.

I like my oven; it's gas.  I don't have lots of criteria for favored ovens.  It also is wide enough to hold most regulation/standard-sized pans, sheets, and the such.  Altho it only has one wire rack now (I'm certain it had at least another in years gone by), I am but a solitary being and how many racks do I need at any one time?  So it suits my needs quite well.

And! it is the first oven I have ever owned (or ya know, rented, cuz I don't own the trailer; but that's just semantics) that is right about chest height (my chest, though for some it might be head height).  This is awesome!  Cuz it makes it so much easier to check on items, and so much better for me to get roasters out.  This cuts down on severe burns and trips to the ER.  Trust me, this is an ideal feature for me.

Generally, I google everything.  I mean, ev.ree.thing.  But it didn't even occur to me to google, "clean oven" or "oven cleaning" or any other sort of combination of phrasing that might pertain (such as "huffing degreaser", "mainlining easy-off fumes").  Shocking, I know; but it's a vital step to my development.

Since I doubt there is even a self-cleaning option on my antiquidated oven, I set about spraying foam.  And wiping down.  And spraying foam.  And then scrubbing with an old toothbrush (cuz I can be extremely anal about details that way).  And wiping down.  And spraying foam.  Rinse.  Repeat.  Rinse.  Repeat til squeaky clean.

I even removed the floor of the oven, and enlisted the bathroom tub as well as the kitchen sink.  Then I rinsed with clear warm water (which is not an easy task without a hose that would reach to the oven.  which may be a very good reason that hoses are not accessible to me).  I laid out fresh aluminum foil on the floor of the oven, because this is something that has helped me to not need to clean ovens in the past.  It's just that this time, well ya know, exploding marshmallow and burnt chocolate.  Need I say more?  I think not.

The oven is so sparkling clean that I'd crawl in there for a nap; if it weren't for the fact that now I'm too dirty and would soil the freshly scented oven.  And ya know, it's not wise to stick your head into a gas oven for a prolonged period of time.  I feel so dirty; I need a cold shower.

Cuz I used all the hot water.

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