How to Clean the Burners on a Gas Stove
Gas stoves have some great advantages over electric cooktops when it comes to cooking meals. However, when the gas ports on the burners become clogged, gas stoves lose their effectiveness. They also can affect your cooking and present a fire hazard. It is therefore important to clean your gas burners once in a while. If you are intimidated by cleaning your gas stove grates because you think it’s a lot of work or hard to do, don’t worry, because with this simple trick it will be done in the blink of an eye.
If you haven’t cleaned the burners on a gas stove for a long time, you wil start noticing that the gas burner will give off a weak flame – or in some cases, no flame at all if the burner is badly soiled. This indicates thhat the gas burner is clogged, and you need to clean it as soon as possible. Not just because the gas burner will work fine again, but also for your own safety. Of course it would be best to clean your gas burners immediately after cooking, but let’s be honest here: who really does that?
To clean your gas burners the right way, you will need the following:
- Soda
- Detergent
- Sponge
- Boiling water
- Old dishcloth
- Kitchen gloves
Step 1: Cleaning the Cast Iron Pan Supports
As you may have noticed, a gas stove consists of several parts: cast iron pan supports, aluminium gas burners and burner covers. The cast iron pan supports usually become the most greasy, and can best be soaked in boiling water with a good amount of soda. This could be eassily done in the sink. You can clean the pan supports by scrubbing them after soaking in hot water for 30 minutes. It is important that you dry them afterwards using an old towel. This will prevent rust from forming.
Step 2: Cleaning the Aluminium Gas Burners<
To clean the aluminium gas burners, fill the sink with boiling water and add some detergent. Next, soak the aluminium rings of the gas burners in it. Be sure to not use soda, otherwise the gas burners may discolor. After letting them soak for half an hour, you can clean the rings using a metal pan sponge.
Step 3: Clean Burner Covers
The burner covers are usually made of aluminium and are best cleaned using an all-purpose cleaner. Make sure to rinse it with water immediately after cooking (but only after they have cooled down!) Let the burner covers soak in soapy water and remove the dirt using a pan sponge. If everything went well, the gas burners are all shiny and clean! On the last page you will discover an alternative method on how to clean a gas burner using ammonia. Be sure to also read this trick as it may come in handy.
Bonus tip: Cleaning the Gas Burners Using Ammonia
An alternative way of cleaning the gas burners is to use ammonia. First, put the gas burners, covers and grates in a garbage bag together with a small bowl of ammonia. Close the bag and leave it outside for one night. The next morning, open the bag (don’t inhale the vapors, they are very bad for your health!) and remove the grease with a cloth. That is all!