Do You Just Throw Out a Groady Toaster Oven After Many Years of Use?
August 29, 2015 5:17 PM Subscribe
Is cleaning an older toaster oven possible and worth the effort?
My Toaster Oven doesn't have a lot going for it--it smells, doesn't heat up as hot as it's digital thermometer claims and looks gross. But it still is good at broiling meats and I like the fact that I don't have to bend over to check on it, like I do with my oven.
(I'm starting to think years and years of baked on gunk is just on there for good and is probably causing the deficient heating).
Is throwing it out the most compassionate course of action at this point?
My Toaster Oven doesn't have a lot going for it--it smells, doesn't heat up as hot as it's digital thermometer claims and looks gross. But it still is good at broiling meats and I like the fact that I don't have to bend over to check on it, like I do with my oven.
(I'm starting to think years and years of baked on gunk is just on there for good and is probably causing the deficient heating).
Is throwing it out the most compassionate course of action at this point?
If you have a day free, and love it more than you love your fingernails (well, or rubber gloves), go for it (lethal degreaser and paper towels). I just poked two little holes in my hands on a similar sort of mission.
posted by hexatron at 5:50 PM on August 29, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by hexatron at 5:50 PM on August 29, 2015 [1 favorite]
A new toaster oven is a lot cheaper than a house fire. Replace it.
posted by myselfasme at 6:19 PM on August 29, 2015 [6 favorites]
posted by myselfasme at 6:19 PM on August 29, 2015 [6 favorites]
"Magic Eraser"-type melamine foam scrubbies can take a surprising amount of crud off a toaster oven door, for what that's worth.
posted by kmennie at 6:32 PM on August 29, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by kmennie at 6:32 PM on August 29, 2015 [3 favorites]
Is throwing it out the most compassionate course of action at this point?
Appliances are kind of hard to tell without doing research on the model. We have this washing machine that looks like a piece of crap, and we always thought it was a piece of crap. The previous owners of the house had lost the knob to turn it on and it was covered with duct tape. Mr. Lllama ordered a new knob when we moved in a few years ago.
But anyway we had an appliance guy over to fix the stove recently and he saw the washing machine and was saying it's an awesome washing machine and people are trying to find them on eBay????
It looks *awful*. But it's always worked really nicely, once we removed the duct tape and put an actual knob on it.
It's worth doing a little research to determine whether it's really just replaceable junk or something that is a good-quality workhorse that will be surprisingly hard to replace.
posted by A Terrible Llama at 6:42 PM on August 29, 2015 [5 favorites]
Appliances are kind of hard to tell without doing research on the model. We have this washing machine that looks like a piece of crap, and we always thought it was a piece of crap. The previous owners of the house had lost the knob to turn it on and it was covered with duct tape. Mr. Lllama ordered a new knob when we moved in a few years ago.
But anyway we had an appliance guy over to fix the stove recently and he saw the washing machine and was saying it's an awesome washing machine and people are trying to find them on eBay????
It looks *awful*. But it's always worked really nicely, once we removed the duct tape and put an actual knob on it.
It's worth doing a little research to determine whether it's really just replaceable junk or something that is a good-quality workhorse that will be surprisingly hard to replace.
posted by A Terrible Llama at 6:42 PM on August 29, 2015 [5 favorites]
I feel like this might be on of these AskMe questions where someone is asking permission to break up with their partner. You have this Mefites permission to toss the toaster and buy a shiny new one. 5-star rated toaster ovens are going on Amazon for about $30 up. I would value time spent with family, friends, a book, reading AskMe, or staring out the window instead of cleaning a nasty old toaster oven at at least that. Of course, YMMV depending on finances and personal attitudes towards appliance care.
posted by whitewall at 7:38 PM on August 29, 2015 [12 favorites]
posted by whitewall at 7:38 PM on August 29, 2015 [12 favorites]
Is it all gunk and crud, or is some of it like a thin, smooth, brownish coating that's almost like a stain? Because that stuff is basically like seasoning a cast iron pan and it either won't come off or won't be worth the time, money, and effort. Not for a toaster oven.
posted by Room 641-A at 7:44 PM on August 29, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by Room 641-A at 7:44 PM on August 29, 2015 [3 favorites]
I just used the scary oven degreaser on my for-reals oven in prep to sell it. Let me tell you what I learned.
That shit is, indeed, nasty. It stings your eyes. It makes your nose and tongue recoil. It will fill your entire house with the stench of industrial chemical nightmare. Follow the precautions on the can. Buy the rubber gloves and wear them. You may also want a face mask and eye goggles. Since you're dealing with a toaster oven, you can do this outside and not poison your pets, spouse, and/or offspring.
However, it is amazingly good at what it does. 10 years of baked-on nasty from three tenants—who gave no fucks—was erased in minutes. The thing glistened. It was brand new looking. If it was a car, I'd rate it showroom condition.
You can get it on the heating elements, in fact it's basically impossible not to because it's a spray. Just make sure you go over every inch of the interior with wet towels/rags/paper towels to get all that residual nasty off. Then run an extension cord outside and broil off the remaining degreaser for 45min or so. Then wipe it down again and it should be good to go.
I'm against throwing away functional / salvageable appliances on moral and economical grounds. But, you know, for the price, it might just be easier. Put it out at the curb with a sign that says free and someone will take it.
posted by jeffamaphone at 11:36 AM on August 30, 2015 [2 favorites]
That shit is, indeed, nasty. It stings your eyes. It makes your nose and tongue recoil. It will fill your entire house with the stench of industrial chemical nightmare. Follow the precautions on the can. Buy the rubber gloves and wear them. You may also want a face mask and eye goggles. Since you're dealing with a toaster oven, you can do this outside and not poison your pets, spouse, and/or offspring.
However, it is amazingly good at what it does. 10 years of baked-on nasty from three tenants—who gave no fucks—was erased in minutes. The thing glistened. It was brand new looking. If it was a car, I'd rate it showroom condition.
You can get it on the heating elements, in fact it's basically impossible not to because it's a spray. Just make sure you go over every inch of the interior with wet towels/rags/paper towels to get all that residual nasty off. Then run an extension cord outside and broil off the remaining degreaser for 45min or so. Then wipe it down again and it should be good to go.
I'm against throwing away functional / salvageable appliances on moral and economical grounds. But, you know, for the price, it might just be easier. Put it out at the curb with a sign that says free and someone will take it.
posted by jeffamaphone at 11:36 AM on August 30, 2015 [2 favorites]
One cause of grossness in appliances is crud that sticks in small spaces you can't properly reach to clean, but would be easily removed by mechanical means without much chemical nastiness: a steam cleaner with a thin jet nozzle works great for this.
posted by Dr Dracator at 1:58 PM on August 30, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Dr Dracator at 1:58 PM on August 30, 2015 [1 favorite]
Free cycle it. I did that with my old cuisinart and it was snapped up in an hour . I did do some minimal decrudifying, like draping the tray. Person who got was looking forward to cleaning it themselves, actually, so a winning situation all around.
posted by jadepearl at 4:52 PM on August 30, 2015
posted by jadepearl at 4:52 PM on August 30, 2015
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by poffin boffin at 5:20 PM on August 29, 2015 [2 favorites]