How to Clean the Burners & Grates on a Gas Stove

Dirty gas burner grates not only age the appliance, but they also can affect your cooking and present a fire hazard.

June 28, 2020

Gas stoves are the preferred choice for many chefs and home cooks alike. Because the flames don’t require time to heat up or cool down, it makes rapid heat changes easy. But the precision and control found with gas stoves can begin to diminish as the gas ports clog with residue.

Not to mention, one too many grease splatters can pile up, leaving you with caked on residue that nobody wants to look at. This method uses household staples and a little elbow grease to bring your burners back to life.

How Often to Clean Your Stove's Gas Burners

The system is remarkably simple and trouble-free. Difficulties arise only when the flow of gas becomes hindered, which is most often caused when food residue spills over the sides of pots and pans and clogs the ports around the perimeter of the burner heads.

Left unattended, this food residue can become quite hard and difficult to remove. The best rule of thumb is to clean the gas burners whenever the flame becomes irregular or exhibits a yellow color. Barring that, cleaning the burners once each month is probably sufficient.

What You”ll Need

Pot holder (optional)
Shallow pan
White vinegar
Water
Spray bottle
Baking soda
Scrub brush or toothbrush

Cleaning Instructions for Grates

Fill a shallow pan with a 50/50 mixture of vinegar and water.
Fully submerge the grates in the solution. Let them soak for at least 30 minutes.
Pull the grates from the solution and use the scrub brush on them.
Rinse the grates.
Repeat the vinegar soak followed by more scrubbing as necessary.

Cleaning Instructions for Burners

While the grates are soaking, mix 50/50 water and vinegar in a spray bottle.
Spray down the burners carefully. Give them a nice coat so the acid can eat at the grime, but do not saturate the burners.
Allow the mixture to sit for 15-20 minutes.
Use a scrub pad to wipe off the grime.
Repeat as necessary.

Also Read

How to Clean a Waffle Maker - The Easy Way

How To Deep Clean Grates & Burners With Vinegar & Soda

If your gas stove’s grates and burners are covered in crusted on food, you may need baking soda in addition to a vinegar and water solution. The acid in the vinegar will help to break down the grease, while the baking soda will work as a gentle scrubbing agent to remove the dried food.

How To Deep Clean the Grates

Fill the shallow dish with a 50/50 mix of water and vinegar. Use enough to cover the grates when you put them in the pans.
Place the grates in the vinegar solution.
Allow to sit in solution for 30 minutes.
Pull out the grates out of the mixture and rinse them.
Mix the baking soda and water into a nice thick paste.
Coat the grate in the baking soda paste.
Allow them to sit for 15-30 minutes
Use the scrub brush to remove caked on food and grease.
Rinse and spot clean as necessary.

How To Deep Clean the Burners

Spray down the burners carefully with the 50/50 water and vinegar mixture, coating them well without saturating.
Allow the mixture to sit for 15-20 minutes.
Apply a thin coat of the baking soda and water mixture to the burners and allow to sit.
Use the scrub brush to scrub away the caked-on food.

Reassemble the parts

When they are completely dry, reassemble the drip pans, burner heads, caps, and grills. On electronic ignition stoves, take care not to bend or damage the ignition electrodes as you reinstall the burner heads.

Relight the pilots

On stoves with standing pilot lights, follow the manufacturer’s instructions for relighting the pilot flames. Test the burners to make sure they operate correctly. Unusual flame color or shape may indicate the burner heads are not completely dry or that the caps are not seated correctly over the burner heads.

Best Solution Is Daily Cleaning

One trick for everyday cleaning is to spray the burners with vinegar. Let them sit for a while (perhaps while you put dishes in the dishwasher), then wipe down the vinegar-treated burners with a clean cloth or paper towel. Cleaning burners after each use of the range makes it so grease and food residue cannot accumulate, and that negates the need for a deep cleaning like the process laid out in the steps above.