Dirty Drip Pan Blues

The dryer sheets work! Hot water and three dryer sheets. Soaked for 45 minutes, and came back and used the dryer sheets to scrub them with. Easy scrubbing. Shiny drip pans.

I used the dryer sheets and it worked!!! No more setting off fire alarms for me ! :)

I know using a lemon removes everything from a grill, so I wonder if it'd work on drip pans...

My favorite thing in the world to use is Cerama Bryte. It is cheap and will remove anything and you can use it on any ceramic top stove. I will put a link to the store I get mine from. They are they cheapest I sound and they also have the cheapest shipping. Any way I put a little cerama bryte on my stove after cooking and let it set while I set and letmy food digest. I get up and with a damp rag I wipe away all of the mess I made leaving me with almost new looking cooktop.
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I love this stove!!! After a week of going back in forth between this size and the smaller one, and reading countless reviews I made my choice and selected this larger one and I am so happy that I did!! I ordered the stove on Tuesday morning and it arrived Wednesday afternoon, how is that for service? It looks great and it fits perfectly under our TV. We live in a drafty house built in 1936 and even though we live in central Texas, the winters at times can be quite cold

my biggest problem is getting the burner to go back down can anyone help? i have a very old stove.

I just wash them with my dishes with Dawn whenever they get yucky. It usually works just fine.

If it is dirty enough that scrubbing won't get the grime off, just buy new ones...I think I've gone through about four sets already this year. Visitors keep insisting on cooking and then letting things boil over - ugh! Anyway it is not worth my time to scrub forever & still have not so clean drip pans. Definitely worth the money though!!!

Rose and Kate, you don't mention if its GAS or ELECTRIC. Big difference, I believe, if you see a fire hazard immediately, then yes, the foil didn't work. I would never have to do this if I had a Gas stove........Electric is different and needs to be watched if you're using any cleaning product, even natural Tarter methods. Knowing this is any cleaning procedure, I wouldn't even put "food" close to the burner until it's totally clean or burned off and not a fire hazard before I start cooking again. To be con'td...............

I'm going cheap, and try the foil method first, I'm renting, and sick of the sludge in the drip pan in the electric stove stop and and only two of the four work! I'll try this and let you know shortly.... Good suggestions, nonetheless! TW

Do NOT put foil on your drip pans!! This can be a SERIOUS fire hazard!!

My GE manual says not to cover the drip pans with foil. It says "Using foil so close to the receptacle could cause shock, fire or damage to the range."

I have used both oven cleaner and cream of tartar and water and they do work, but they can take a long time to get the job done. I really like to use Dawn Power Dissolver. This stuff destroys baked on grease and grim. It works great on the oven and microwave too. Give it a try.

I agree with Melissa. A little Cream of Tartar and hot water. It'll definately do the trick.

I don't wash the drip pans nightly, but I do throw them in the dishwasher whenever I have a pot boil over, or its been too long between cleanings (you know, you can't ID the spots and its been months since I have cleaned them).

Last time I bought new ones, I got black ones instead of the shiny metal ones. It hides the burnt on bits, and I can go longer between washes. They were a bit more than the metal ones, but they are also more heavy duty, and trust me I can be quite the whirlwind of destruction in the kitchen.

Oh, and another solution that works until you turn the wrong burner on, the decorative burner covers.

I have a smooth surface cooktop now, but for years had to deal with the drip pan thing - usually in rentals with really OLD stoves. The tinfoil thing works, but on some models, it prevents the elements from sitting down flat so they rock when you're trying to cook on them. When that's an issue, try this: start with a new set of drip pans, spray them with cooking oil spray, and then wash and respray them after every use. It adds to your dishes, but it keeps the drip pans from turning into huge messes. Eventually the oil will form a nonstick sort of coating on the drip pan, like seasoning cast iron. It will be brown, but will wash off very easily.

I've never lived in a house with both electric stove & dishwasher, so I've never tested this theory:
if you put the drip pans in the DW nightly, would the buildup not get so bad?

I relied on the foil method, & occaisional replacements justified by company coming. Or when moving out.

yeah well ladies, I wish i had a ceramic one (its me wish list) but for now, its rusted, yuck looking, but try to keep it clean..in actuality, i need a new stove! but have to live with what i have for now, but those suggestions are great! thanks! :-)

My drip pans are in serious need of scrubbing too and the first thing I'll try is to boil them in some water with baking soda. That helps loosen the gunk. Then maybe I'll try the barkeeper's friend or see if I can borrow a dryer sheet from someone who uses them.

A ceramic stovetop is very high on my wish list!

I use a few teaspoons of Cream of Tartar, and a little hot water. It even removes the little spots of rust!

Becca and Jackie,
Both of these are excellent suggestions. I used to do the foil trick. I remember being amazed the day I discovered the whole metal top of the range was hinged and I could scrub under the burners. I don't know if it's true for all models, but even with drip pans it was nasty under there.
In addition to regular foil, they also sell foil covers made to fit pans, your mileage may vary, of course.

Hooray for ceramic stovetops! But I remember, all too well, the joy of having to clean those drip pans.

I, personally, would use salt to help scrub off the burned on debris that wouldn't come off during cooking. I'd soak the drip pans and then go to it with a little salt and a scouring pad.

Back in the rental days.....I would keep a pair of "new" ones in the cabinet to be swapped out with the everyday stained ones for special occasions. This way when company came over, etc.......my stove top could look shiny clean. (I was in college and working 2 jobs....& appearances matter). Once the folks go home....put your dirty looking ones back on the stovetop!

After you get them cleaned, cover them with tinfoil and then you won't have the problem again. My mother always did this, and I do this on my little stove in my basement (I have a ceramic top in my main kitchen).