Most ovens have it.

That handy little button that says “self clean.”

It sounds great, right?! A magic button you can press and your oven will just clean itself up – with no effort on your part! We know…you’re thinking to yourself, “Why doesn’t everything in life have a self clean mode?!”

We hate to burst your bubble, but the self clean mode is the last thing you want to use on your oven – especially before the holidays. At Appliance Rescue Dallas, we get so many calls from clients this time of year who have run their self clean mode to get ready for company, and now the oven won’t work.

Don’t less this be you! Avoid the self clean setting and here’s why:

#1: It Can Be Damaging.

If you haven’t run your self cleaning mode regularly, as in at least once every 6 months, then now is not the time to start. Self cleaning modes work by heating the oven to extremely high temperatures and melting off of the gunk and buildup on your oven, leaving you with nothing but ash to wipe out. This is great, except that those high temps can also damage the controls, racks if you forget to remove them, etc. They aren’t supposed to create issues, but they often to do, and it’s just not worth the call to an appliance repairman in Dallas before the holidays.

#2: It Can Give Off Harmful Fumes.

Research has shown that those high temperatures can also create carbon monoxide as it heats and reacts with the caked on food that is being melted off the oven – particularly those charred spills at the bottom of the oven. Other fumes can be harmful to pets, particularly birds, so if you must run your self cleaning mode, put the pets outside first.

Instead of causing yourself a headache before the busy holiday rush, simply clean your oven the old fashioned way and be sure to wipe up spills right after the oven has cooled down. If you do experience oven repair needs, be sure to call us at Appliance Rescue Service in Dallas, Texas for fast, courteous service from experts you can trust.