The oven/cabinet gap. The black hole of germs and old food; the ole’ crumb collector. How do you clean it while keeping your kitchen intact? Fabulously Clean has the answer! Keeping it clean can require continuous effort, but there are easy ways to clean it and even preventative measures you can take to keep it from getting nasty in the first place.
And once again, we will be grabbing that spray bottle of vinegar.
If it has been a while since you cleaned those cracks, we suggest moving the oven out and getting a good scrub of the whole area. You’ll be surprised at what you find under and around an oven. You then can use our suggested preventions, which we will discuss a little later.
Get the Gunk Out
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- First, spray the area lightly with vinegar.
- Use some sort of thirsty type fabric, such as an old t-shirt or thin rag. Soak it in moderately hot water and vinegar or lemon. Wrap the fabric/rag around a butter knife.
- Starting from the back of the gap stick the rag-wrapped knife in the crack at an angle and pull the knife slowly to the front.
- Take the rag and shake it off in the sink.
- Repeat this as many times as necessary until it is satisfactory.
- Once again, spray the gap with vinegar and wipe clean.
- Switch sides and repeat steps.
You can repeat the cleaning steps as many times as needed depending on how stubborn the gunk is that has collected there.
Prevention
As we promised earlier, here are a couple ways to prevent the build-up from requiring that you tear apart the kitchen to get it clean. There are a few great items on the market that fill the gaps and there are also DIY hacks to help prevent these areas from becoming a kitchen nuisance.
Gap Fillers
The Kohzie stove/counter gap cover or Kleen Seam come in high heat silicone designs that you can cut to size. They are friendly on your wallet too. There are also different materials to choose from and they are easy to remove and reinstall for cleaning purposes –all you have to do is remove and rinse in the sink or wipe with a damp cloth. These are multifunctional as well, being used for any small cracks around the house or office.
DIY Control
For you DIY-ers, masking tape makes a soft foam that can be used for smaller cracks. This is normally used for sealing car doors. Weather stripping is another option. Commonly used for creating leak proof windows and doors, this material is designed for compression and comes in many sizes. It is ideal for these types of situations.
Let us Help!
We know how these types of messes can be overlooked and we are here to help make your home a happy one. So, give us a call at (208) 608-4648 and we can schedule an appointment today. We would love nothing more than to help you clean those gaps, cracks, and endless voids any day.