Paying for professional oven cleaner at £60?

Agaluster

I'm moving out of my current rented house and have been informed that I need to get the oven professionally cleaned. Not ever had to do this in any other of the houses I've rented in the past. Is this common? Is there any way around it and just cleaning it myself do you think? £60 is extortionate to clean my already quite clean oven.

sooz

Agaluster wrote: »

I'm moving out of my current rented house and have been informed that I need to get the oven professionally cleaned. Not ever had to do this in any other of the houses I've rented in the past. Is this common? Is there any way around it and just cleaning it myself do you think? £60 is extortionate to clean my already quite clean oven.

Therein lies the problem. Quite clean is not clean.

Was it professionally cleaned before you moved in? What does it say on your inventory? Ask to be shown the receipt.

An oven cleaning service is quite different to general oven cleaning. They take the thing apart, leave it to soak in chemicals in their van, clean even under the bits you never even thought could be removed, & put it back together ( and set the clock ). It takes several hours. Really, it's amazing, & I highly recommend everyone has it done.

In your case, it may or may not be a reasonable request depending on if it was professionally cleaned before you moved in. You can get other quotes, as they do vary, & £60 is on the high side for a single oven. Does it include hob & extractor?

Agaluster

Thanks for the speedy reply! It was professionally cleaned when we moved in but I assumed this was because we were the first tenants in after the landlord moved out. If that's the case with professional cleaning then I'll get some quotes, especially if £60 seems high. Not sure about if that includes hob and extractor, that sum was given to me by the management company. Will check inventory now. Thanks!

racing_blue

Anecdote tangental to your question. When we rented a really nice apartment several years back our baby did a huge projectile vomit all over the oven. It had two sheets of glass in the door and somehow a lot of the sick trickled down between the two sheets. We tried everything but could not get the two sheets apart to clean it up. There were no screws, just these rivets. In the end we left it and it baked on in a kind of stalactite pattern.

We visited the old town again recently and saw that our old apartment was up for sale, £600k. Wondered if the sick is still there.

Anyway, we cleaned the inside of the oven and left the sick & never heard anything more

sariebeth

If I were you I would get a good oven cleaner spray type thing and do it myself, they come up a treat. Then photograph it when it's spotless. That way they can't have any argument can they?

Cazza

Definitely worth doing, they do an amazing job! Having said that, £60 is expensive. I live in the South East and paid £49 for a double oven, shelves, trays, and the hob - -that was just a couple of months ago.

sooz

sariebeth wrote: »

If I were you I would get a good oven cleaner spray type thing and do it myself, they come up a treat. Then photograph it when it's spotless. That way they can't have any argument can they?

Do you unscrew the side panels, & clean under the grilling element?
I find the smoke (& smell of lamb chops that were cooked 6 weeks ago) when you turn the grill on a dead giveaway as to whether it's been properly cleaned or not.

margaretclare

I've had my oven professionally cleaned and it was money well spent. I agree with sooz.

mungobella

I understand that people may have found it money well-spent, but that doesn't really answer the question of whether the OP is required to have it cleaned professionally. I'm not a solicitor or a professional landlord, but I would think that any grease or whatnot that gets under the grill counts as reasonable wear and tear? If the LL wants to have it cleaned, that's certainly their prerogative, but I'm not sure why it's OP's responsibility unless it is explicitly mentioned in the tenancy agreement. At any rate, I would think that the best bet would be to get in touch with Shelter or the council and ask whether that's really enforceable.

dt3887

does it state in your contract that it must me pro cleaned before vacating the property?

martindow

The OFT considers requirements for 'professional cleaning to be unenforceable terms. See p113 here

http://www.oft.gov.uk/shared_oft/reports/unfair_contract_terms/oft356.pdf