Cleaning your caravan caravan cooking appliances might not be your favourite thing about RV camping, but it's an essential part of staying healthy (and sane!) on your road trip. What's more, it helps ensure your caravan gets the best resale price, when the time comes.
Oil splatters, sauces, grease and just about anything else you cook with will inevitably end up on your cooking appliances. If you struggle with cleaning your cooking appliances properly, you run the risk of attracting dreaded flies and bugs into your caravan kitchen. Worse, without proper maintenance, fuel ports can clog up and cause damage.
The good news is cleaning your caravan cooking appliances, sinks and rangehoods don't need to take up precious time better spent exploring- so long as you follow some simple tips.
The number one trick is to ACT FAST. Scrub away food bits before they cook onto the surface and cleaning your cooking appliances will be easier than ever. The more often you do the "small clean" on your cooking appliances, the less often you'll have to do the "big clean."
Remember, if you are camping in a corrosive environment (for example, near the ocean), all metal surfaces need to be cleaned, rinsed and dried weekly to prevent corrosion. This is especially relevant if you have an outdoor caravan cooking appliance such as the Dometic Slide Out Kitchen.
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In general, how you tackle tougher cleaning depends on what your cooking appliances are actually made from.
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Cleaning Your Caravan Cooking Appliances: Stainless Steel
1. Always clean the surface with soap and hot water immediately after use. Then, rinse with clean water and dry with a soft cloth to prevent spotting.
2. Tackling more stubborn dirt or grease? Use a non-abrasive multi-purpose cream cleaner (like GIF).
3. Towel dry your sink after use. The quality of water can affect your sink's appearance overtime. If the water has high iron content, your sink will be left with a brown surface stain, which will look like rust. On the other hand, a high concentration of minerals, or over-softened water, can leave a white film. Combat this by towel drying your sink after use and cleaning it at least once a week.
4. Avoid bleach products. If your cleaning products contain bleach, don't leave them in contact with stainless steel.
5. Never use abrasive cleaners or wire wool pads to clean the surface. NEVER. These can permanently scratch the surface.
6. Avoid leaving rubber mats or dishpans in the sink. This can lead to surface rust or pitting.
7. Go with the grain. Like wood, stainless steel has a grain. Going against the grain can result in a less effective cleaning and may scratch the steel.
8. For extra shine, rub the stainless steel surface of your caravan cooking appliance with a soft cloth and a few drops of lemon oil.
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Cleaning Your Caravan Cooking Appliances: Other Materials
9. Enamelled gas burners can be scrubbed with a scouring pad in a sink full of warm, soapy water. If you have a stainless steel cooking appliance with enamelled burner lids, only use the scouring pad on the enamelled material. For example, the Thetford Argent 3 Burner Hob MK3.
10. To clean glass, use a mild detergent and clean cloth or sponge. Do not use abrasive pads and strong chemical cleaners, such as oven cleaners etc.
11. To clean a rangehood, remove the filter if possible and clean it with warm water and a synthetic detergent such as dishwashing liquid.
Remember to shut off gas, electric supply and ensure all parts are cool before cleaning your cooking appliance!
For more advice and guidance on cleaning your caravan cooking appliances, check your appliance instruction manual or the manufacturer website.
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DISCLAIMER* Please note, this advice is general in nature and we strongly recommend consulting the product manual and where relevant, a professional installer.
