In this article, we share practical tips for thoroughly cleaning your professional oven, and which products give the best results. Keep your machine in top condition, from removing stubborn grease residue to maintaining internal components. Read on and find out how to keep your ovens performing at their best.
The importance of a clean oven
A clean professional oven is invaluable to any hospitality and retail entrepreneur, including for food safety. Leftover food, grease and other contaminants attract bacteria and mold. And these sensitively increase the risk of food poisoning.
In addition, a well-maintained oven reduces the likelihood of foul odors and bad tastes. Old grease residue and caked-on food spread unpleasant odors when heated and affect the taste of fresh food.
A clean furnace also extends the life of the appliance and ensures more efficient operation and fewer breakdowns. Dirt that accumulates causes problems such as smoke or leaks. Fixing those will cost labor and spare parts. So with regular cleaning, you save costs in the long run.
Cleaning ovens (automatic)
D’Heldt’s DEBAG bread ovens all feature the e.CLEAN.SYSTEM for automatic cleaning. Furthermore, we have a wide range of self-cleaning chicken spits from Fri-Jado with a cleaning program. Those automatic programs are best run daily or every two days. Check seals such as the door rubbers beforehand to be sure they close properly. Then the machine uses steam to soak off the biggest dirt. Then it cleans itself like a powerful dishwasher, with soap and water.
The duration of the program depends on the device. With a DEBAG bread oven, it takes about 40 minutes. For a chicken spit, the quick program takes 30 to 40 minutes, while for daily cleaning it is best to count 1.5 to 2 hours. It is perfectly possible to set up the machines to clean themselves outside opening hours. We do recommend that someone always remain nearby, to intervene if necessary.
Even if your bread oven or chicken casserole cleans itself regularly, it’s a good idea to remove crumbs, spilled pudding and other residue in between so they don’t bake in. Manual window cleaning is done by warming up the machine to 50 to 60°C, spraying the warm windows and letting the product take effect for a while before removing it along with the dirt.
Cleaning your chicken spit
Have regular automatic cleaning if your machine is capable of it, remove as much food residue as possible in between, use environmentally friendly and food-safe products… A lot of cleaning tips for bread ovens are equally applicable to chicken spits. But there are also some specific directions for these devices.
The intake filter of a chicken spit is easily cleaned under the tap. A self-cleaning chicken spit uses jars of Fri-Jado ProteClean with detergent. You place these in the holder provided for this purpose in the door of the chicken coop. And for very large chicken pits, we sell grease discharge bags. By preemptively collecting and disposing of the grease, it takes a little less effort to get and keep your machine completely clean.
Products for cleaning an oven
Bread ovens, chicken spits and warming cabinets are appliances in which you prepare or store food. Therefore, do not clean them with any kind of degreaser, but rather with one of our specially designed cleaning products.
For example, in our webshop you will find Grill Power Cleaner, which tackles unruly chicken residue. And a product that can handle chicken fat is also perfect for removing all other contaminants in food machinery. We offer Grill Power in 1-liter sprayers and 5-liter water bottles.
Do you need to sand off the last remnants? If so, do not use steel wool. Doing so will damage your machine. Steel wool makes scratches in the stainless steel, and exactly in those places dirt likes to settle. Therefore, choose a sponge suitable for stainless steel, such as a foam sponge or a chamois sponge. With a chicken spit, we usually supply a brush to clear the drain line of grease.
Professional furnace maintenance by D’Heldt
D’Heldt has more than 60 years of experience with machinery for the food industry. In addition, we are official distributors of DEBAG and Fri-Jado. This makes us the obvious party for the sale, but also for the service afterwards, namely the maintenance and any repairs of your furnace.
During annual maintenance, our technicians provide a thorough cleaning and descaling of the machine. Are your bread ovens, chicken spits or warming cabinets in need of an extensive check? Don’t hesitate to contact us, and together we’ll make sure your appliances are back in tip-top shape.