bowl/lid cleaning: putty knife vs chemicals vs scrubbers vs razor scraper

[mike.stavlund]

I use the exact scraper that Troy recommends, and I love it.  The clip works great, the handle gives lots of leverage, and I love the convenience of having extra blades in the handle. 

Before I got it I used a regular Vice-Grips as a holder for the razor blade.  Those dinky little blade holder things would make my hands cramp up. 

PROTIP:  the inside of your oven (and most kitchen cooktops) are also metal coated with porcelain.  So before you scrub that stuff or fume up the house with oven cleaner, give those surfaces a dry scrape with your razor scraper, and vacuum up the mess with a shop vac.  It'll save a lot of work, and a lot of mess.

PROTIP #2:  the inside of your oven and cooktop will stay a lot cleaner if you cook outside on your Weber kettle. 

[1buckie]

Do you shave your bowls with a razor?

@Hell Fire Grill

Good ta see ya back & being of assistance there Ray !!!!!

[MacEggs]

@Hell Fire Grill

Good ta see ya back & being of assistance there Ray !!!!!

I will 2nd that ... 

[Josh G]

So the blade does not scratch or cause damage to the porcelain? 

Are you using this along with the easy off or does it handle it by itself?  I have been using plastic ones and it has always been a chore on the really tough jobs.

Thanks for the advice!

[1buckie]

So the blade does not scratch or cause damage to the porcelain? 

Are you using this along with the easy off or does it handle it by itself?  I have been using plastic ones and it has always been a chore on the really tough jobs.

Thanks for the advice!

Josh, I think it depends at least somewhat of the type of crud that's there, but sometimes the slightly lighter stuff that maybe hasn't been there for years you could just use the scraper...

More intense or thicker crust might need some help......oven cleaner works good, but not everyone likes the heavy chemical junk (kids & dogs, cats being around may also be a factor)......

This one had a layer that may have been on there for decades (kettles about 54 years old).....I mopped it down with apple cider vinegar (I'm a whimp about white vinegar) soaked in a rag, then waited 15~20 minutes for it to soak in a bit, then scraped....the coating was a little bit softened by the vinegar & with some work, it peeled up pretty well.....



There was a bunch of strips & bits, but the porcelain was great underneath.....





Here's what it started like.....doesn't look too bad, but was actually 1/16" thick in a lot of places......if the stuff's not been there forever, maybe even mopping down with water would work OK.....



Just keep the scraper at a fairly low angle & don't "chop" or "chip" at it too much as it could gouge with that action.......

[1buckie]

It's unfornuate.....but we're all dealing with this:

[addicted-to-smoke]

Looking at your first photo, 1buckie, I think that fingernail would be about all you'd need.

[Troy]

Looking at your first photo, 1buckie, I think that fingernail would be about all you'd need.

LOLOLOLOL

[zavod44]

been using only razors for years

[Andrew]

The only thing I've found to be effective on really thick crud is a wire brush attachment for my drill. I thought it would have scraped the porcelain so I tried it on a grill that has seen far better days, and it didn't scratch at all.