Remove melted plastic within a toaster oven - Ovens

Warm Method Both Good Housekeeping and the website Hunker describe this method for self-cleaning ovens. Hunker warns to NOT use the "cold method" which is reserved for other types of ovens. And the Good Housekeeping site says if the method proves unsatisfactory, that the floor or bottom plate of the oven might have to be replaced.

(That said, I suspect if you pull out oven racks and apply some ice to any plastic on it, the plastic might become brittle enough that tapping it with a spoon and prying at it with something wooden or finger nails might remove a lot of it. No scraping with the spoon!)

Here is the primary process for the oven.

Self-cleaning ovens require heat to remove the melted plastic. This method also works on heating elements with plastic on them. Step 1 Turn the oven on to the lowest heat setting. Only leave the oven on long enough to make the plastic soft and pliable.
Step 2 Scrape the melted plastic with a wooden utensil such as a spatula or spoon. The wood protects the surface inside the self-cleaning oven. When you get all off that you can, the self cleaning feature may burn off the rest. That WILL be smokey and exude an unpleasant smell while it does it. Open windows and keep pets out of the area (and yourself) while it goes through the clean cycle. Do NOT use a screw driver to try and remove the plastic.

not safe, the plastic will most likely release toxic fumes when heated that hot Try warming the oven until the plastic is soft, then scrape it off.

It is likely that the factory-installed clear plastic protective covering was not removed before the oven was placed into service.

Stainless Steel does not peel!

Ovens and other appliances with Stainless Steel finishes are made from solid sheets of the material. They are almost always sent from the factory with a protective plastic film on the finish.

Just find an edge of the appliance, and start peeling the protective film off. Pull it off slowly, as to not leave any possible residual glue or plastic on the appliance.

If the heat from the oven caused some of the plastic film to melt and it does not peel off, I would immediately call the store or dealer from which you purchased the oven and start hollering, as they did NOT properly prepare the item for sale (if it was delivered and installed).

If you purchased it in the crate/box, and installed it yourself, you must take responsibility for not having fully read the instructions before using the oven.

In that case, I would peel as much of the plastic off as is possible, and then use some LOW ODOR CLEANING SOLVENT ( or PAINT THINNER) to remove the rest, using ONLY a soft cotton towel to soak it and rub it with. Do NOT use anything abrasive or scratchy, or you will totally ruin the finish! Do NOT use the scrubber side of a sponge, or a Brillo pad, or Choreboy-type pad!

*** CAUTION!!! *** DANGER! *** The fumes and vapors from the solvent ARE EXPLOSIVE AND FLAMMABLE! DO NOT USE THE STOVE UNTIL THE VAPORS AND FUMES HAVE TOTALLY DISSIPATED!!! Open the doors or windows to the room for fresh air when you are using the solvent, and READ THE INSTRUCTIONS thoroughly!

All is not lost yet, but getting melted plastic off the stove will take some time and a very gentle touch. Be patient, and good luck.

you can not remove the plastic safely please replace the heating element

See this link: http://askruth.blogspot.com/2006/07/cleaning-baked-on-foil-in-oven-help.html

"I called Sears and this is what they said to do:

BE CAREFUL, remove as much of the foil as possible Turn oven on to 200 lay an old wet bath towel on top. Use a plastic spatular to remove the foil.

They said it will take some time to remove the foil, in some cases days, and that you can still use the oven but DO NOT use the self cleaning untill all the foil is removed."

If you can remove the bottom drip tray/pan from your oven which the tinfoil is stuck to, than remove it. Ovens with "hidden element" usually have the removable bottom tray/pan. Don't scrape yet!!
Lay the tinfoil laden tray on a flat service where it wont be disturbed for a couple of days.
Now remove any tinfoil you can with a plastic scraper/spatula/pancake flipper.
Once thats done, pour bleach directly onto the drip tray/pan until it covers all the stuck tinfoil.(assuming your oven pan is like mine and has a lip all the way around and is somewhat countersunk).
Leave the bleach in for about 2 days. Now get your plastic scraper again and scrape away. The stuck tinfoil should all be dissolved by the bleach and the scraper should get rid of any residue. Then rinse!
Now this method will probably leave some darkened stains on the oven tray, but not near as ugly or noticeable as that melted tinfoil!!

Good luck!!

Any oven cleaner, like easy off will work on this but it may take more than one application. You can actually begin with your hair blow dryer and a putty knife by heating the plastic up enough to scrape most of it off. Then let the oven cleaner do the rest.

on the oven's smooth surface you should use a razor blade and scrap off the plastic (when cooled).. if the plastic melted on the burner, you may need to replace that particular element from a local appliance part store. easy to do.

the switch is part of the latch assy, it most certainly is, it is quie possible, htat the heat of a self clen cycle, has melted/malformed the plastic latch housing causing the "Plunger " to become dislodged, and is sitting within the opening somewhere. bit it is ddefinalty part of that assembly

You can remove the bottom oven panel and look under it. All you have to do is remove the oven racks and locate the screws that hold the bottom panel in place. MOST ovens only have two of them. Once you have the crews removed, the panel slides back a bit, then lifts up. If there are any heavy deposits of melted plastic, remove it like you did before. Any residual material can be taken off with some fine emery paper. Wear a dust mask and vacuum all the dust out of the oven. DO NOT use this method on the oven wall as it may scatch it. This is only for anything that may have dripped below the oven pan. You may have an odor to the oven for a while, but as long as you have nothing else melted inside this should go away. Try running it on a cleaning cycle AFTER you've inspected the oven & cleaned out the remaining plastic. This will burn off anything left behind. I hope this helps you.

hi floppy,

if you can't scrape most of it off with a plastic scraper, you may have to buy a new bottom pan. if you can get most of it off it should be ok to use. also if you have propane gas make sure your stove was converted properly.