Cleaning a stove check to make sure that all switches are in the OFF position. The rims of the heating units should be wiped clean with a damp cloth when you have finished cooking and the stove has cooled. Food that has spilled on open units can be burned off. Put a saucepan of water on the burner and heat it until the food has been completely charred, then when the unit has beenswitched off and has cooled, lift the unit out and brush off the charred material. A mild scouring powder or steel wool can be used to clean the rim on which the unit rests. Wash it, after scouring, with a cloth wrung out of hot suds, rinse it, and wipe dry. Enclosed units are washed with a cloth wrung out of soapsuds. Particles that have burned on can be removed with steel wool or a mild scouring powder. It is important to keep the reflector pans under the electrical units clean and bright because they are designed to increase the heat output of the unit.



Removable drip pans under the burners of kitchen ranges should be taken out and washed regularly along with other stove parts. Lining them with aluminum foil saves work here. And if you have a range without a drip pan do use aluminum foil because the area under the heating units is often very difficult to reach for cleaning.

To clean a gas range thoroughly the burners must be taken out and scrubbed with a stiff brush in hot suds made with an all-purpose detergent or soap and ammonia. If the burners are made of cast iron you can clean them easily by boiling them for several minutes with water containing a few tablespoonfuls of washing soda. (Don't use an aluminum pan for this.) In scrubbing the burners be particularly attentive to the little openings in the turn-on end through which the gas flows to the burners. If any of the little holes (called ports) in the burners are clogged, push out the soot accumulation with a wire or hairpin. Rinse the burners thoroughly, shake out the water, and wipe the outside dry. Then replace them, making sure that they are in the right position. Light each burner to complete the drying and to make sure it is functioning correctly.

Gas burners are functioning correctly and with maximum efficiency when the flame is blue and even. A ragged yellow flame indicates that the burner is not getting enough air along with the gas. Such a flame blackens the bottoms of pans and gives poor heat. Sometimes this flame is due to clogged ports; if any are not burning properly, clean them with a wire. If cleaning the ports fails to correct the trouble and to produce an all-blue flame, see if the little air shutter at the turn-on end is open far enough to admit the proper amount of air.

Pilot light. Sometimes the pilot light on an automatic gas range goes out due to its tiny ports being clogged. Clean them out with a fine wire and relight the pilot with a match. Sometimes a puff of air can blow out a pilot light. Make the flame a little stronger by turning the screw at the end of the tube connecting it to the left for a stronger flame.