Cleaning Kitchen (Grease problem)...

samh_2

Washing up liquid works best for me with greasy surfaces - it seems to take a lot let elbow grease than stardrops, although I use stardrops for just about everything else.

tina68

i use bicarbonate of soda with lemon juice made into a paste and it brings it up clean without having to rub hard and it doesn't scratch as i use it on everything. try it on the grease marks left on your tiles or glass behind the cooker and see the difference:T

SnowyOwl_2

I would plump for Soda Crystals myself. I don't doubt that washing up liquid would work, however the soda crystals don't produce any suds therefore it would be easier to get your surfaces wiped down without sudsy streaks. They are also free of enzymes, bleach etc etc and are v.environmentally friendly. When you let the water out of the sink the drain the U bend will get cleared of any grease hanging about in there too.

They are usually available somewhere near the washing up liquid or in the washing powder of most supermarkets - ask a member of staff.

I'd say you'd need a strong solution per instructions on the pack in v.hot water - wear rubber gloves then you can have the water hotter than without them. They are quite hard on your skin and nails. Unless being a bloke you're really tough and manly and therefore don't need rubber gloves..???:D

Here's a link all about soda crystals.

http://www.dri-pak.co.uk/cleaningtasks/kitchen.html

Edit to add this: When you've finished the clean up put a sheet of newspaper over the top of your fridge and over the top of your microwave then you will never have to clean those areas again, simply change the newspaper. Sorry, but don't have any advice on how to keep your hob perpetually clean.

dolly_day_dream

I sympthasise cos I am really really bad a housework. So when I get round to it I too have these horrible layers of grease. My worse one is the extractor over the hob. It may be my imagination because it doesn't cost anything, but I find that plain water on a microcloth works really well. For some strange reason if I rubb in just one direction, not too hard, it comes off really well. I swear by it for cleaning the hob and they are both stainless steel. I always swear that I won't let it get so bad then ....

Nemo

Thanks all!

When I saw mention of Starclen, I thought that rings a bell, and there it was hiding under the sink. I'd bought it 3 years ago to wipe some walls down, although I'd never heard of the stuff before.

Anyway, I gave it a quick go last night on the microwave top. It took a bit of elbow grease, and I did have to increase the concentration a bit, but it worked.

I'll also try the other suggestions and see what's best.

Cheers!

Quasar

I use a bit of washing up liquid. That de-greases everything. Ok, it foams up a lot so you have to wipe it off, but hey, no grease and sparkling clean...

Chipps

Starclen is better than stardrops for disgusting grease, although the all-time bestest ever grease remover is a strong solution of soda crystals in very hot water. Rubber gloves definitely required. But nothing else is anywhere near as good!

patchwork_cat

I definately second soda crystals - even my husband who thinks all cleaners are the same thing likes soda crystals - I use it to do extractor fan and top of cupboards.

tawnyowls

I find a solution of Oxiclean works well, but last time I changed cooker hood filter, I used Stardrops and that worked really well too - trick seemed to be (as with the Oxiclean) to spray on and leave for a while.

nearlyrich

The best thing is to wipe the hob when you wash up and wipe out any spills in the oven or microwave as they happen. If you get into the habit it's so much easier than tackling the kitxchen from hell once in a blue moon!