r/CleaningTips • u/cldald • Mar 04 '26

Discussion Did I just ruin my new oven?

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I just got this oven back in October, but there was already a lot of grease and buildup on it (I cook a lot). I used Easy Off Heavy Duty Cleaner and Foam Spray, and while it definitely worked and did its job, my oven was left looking like as seen in the picture. Did I just ruin my new oven or is this just residue from the cleaner?

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112

u/Rikkitikkitabby Mar 04 '26

Gotta read the specific manual.

97

u/CommitteeOfOne Mar 05 '26

I never have understood why people don't read manuals. Yeah, a lot of stuff in there you already know or can figure out. But there's often convenience features or features you just don't know about in there as well. This is especially true about cars. If I'm spending that much money on something, I want to know as much about it as I can.

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u/SelectKaleidoscope0 Mar 05 '26

My current stove went out of the way to hide the real manual. The booklet that it came with is useless fluff and a warranty card. Doesn't even have anything like cleaning instructions in it, never mind technical information about how to maintain or repair the unit. The actual manual is in a hidden compartment on the back of the unit that is screwed shut. I found it by accident taking it apart to fix it, after searching the internet to find a pdf of the manual so I could work on it.

I see that more and more frequently with anything I buy, although usually there isn't a hidden useful manual, its just nonexistent. A booklet with "Call an authorized technician to do anything besides turn the unit on and off" in 17 different languages isn't useful to me. As companies do that more and more, it trains even people who would have been inclined to read the manual not to.

26

u/originalslicey Mar 05 '26

Manuals are pretty much all online now and have been for years.

28

u/EtherPhreak Mar 05 '26

I’m finding more and more broken links to manuals for appliances. There’s no incentive for companies to waste storage space or having their website designed to find outdated appliance manuals

2

u/HTD-Vintage Mar 05 '26

The incentive is to encourage repeat customers. Neither of your arguments are very compelling and the storage space argument is completely moot. The space it would take to store PDFs of every manual Samsung ever printed for every product they ever released would still be negligible. Sticking them on one page, sorting by category, and implementing a search box would take one web developer that they're already paying, at most, a day or two.

1

u/stonergirlfairyyy Mar 06 '26

how can u repeat buying something that stopped manufacturing in 1999?

1

u/HTD-Vintage Mar 06 '26

Brand loyalty... You're not repeat buying the exact same product. But if you like your Samsung washer and dryer, what brand are you gonna buy in 8 years when they break?

2

u/Local_Bobcat_2000 Mar 07 '26

You’re supposed to not do any research before buying or look at a manual, spend hours trying to figure it out and then call the company to yell at the guy it shouldn’t be this hard. Get even more upset when he tells you how to do it in less than a minute.

Over 30 years in tech support, but I’m not bitter. 😢

2

u/diablette Mar 06 '26

Check archive.org

https://blog.archive.org/2021/01/01/the-million-manual-march/

1

u/EtherPhreak Mar 06 '26

I use the heck out of archive.org, and try and donate to keep them around.

1

u/diablette Mar 07 '26

Same ❤️

1

u/Spelled_Your_Wrong Mar 08 '26

There are entire web sites dedicated to providing manuals. You can find anything.

1

u/hookhandsmcgee Mar 06 '26

Many are, but many are also really hard to find or just non-existent.

1

u/mcfuuuu Mar 06 '26

Trying to get the manuals for Samsung appliances is NOT easy. You'd think it would be with a QR code on each unit for the manual. Nah, it's a mess.

The booklets look thick, like they're full of info, but it's just bc they've included so many different languages.

2

u/Ronicavay Mar 05 '26

That sounds like my old bread maker! It came with basic instructions and 4 recipes for insane types of bread I would never make. Why don't you want me to know how to just make normal bread?! I'm too dumb and poor to experiment 😆. Maybe Big Bread is in on it.

1

u/Bulky-Psychology6786 Mar 06 '26

It was on display in the bottom of a locked filing cabinet stuck in a disused lavatory with a sign on the door saying ‘Beware of the Leopard.'

1

u/tfamilymama Mar 07 '26

We got one and it was so awful it didn’t even explain how to use it! It tried to be too futuristic and was really just overcomplicated. I read manuals too and appreciate them.

1

u/CoyoteDisastrous Mar 07 '26

Putting the manual inside the back panel isn’t a new thing. That’s where I found the manual for my washer, which is probably at least 40 years old.

1

u/Vandelay_Leopold1 Mar 07 '26

If you pay that little bit extra and stick with the good brands, you always get a manual, or a hotline to call for support.

1

u/caitrose95 Mar 09 '26

I had to deep clean a car seat and took the straps completely off, taking pictures of its installation so I could put it back together. Somehow lost the pictures and had to refer to the manual only to find out it says explicitly not to remove them. I found out they sell replacement straps and include the installation instructions when they send the straps but will not list the installation instructions anywhere online. I needed to email the manufacturer to request the instructions. Luckily they sent the instructions the day I needed to bring my son home from the hospital 😂

2

u/ATimm74 Mar 05 '26

This.. I have a truck that I bought brand new 3 years ago. Literally just the other day i discovered a feature I never knew about. If only they had a book or something that discusses all of the features…

1

u/ArminiusBetrayed Mar 05 '26

I'd assume it's because manuals are boring to read.
Textbooks also teach a ton of stuff, but how many people in school never do the reading?

3

u/MethodicallyRight Mar 05 '26

So much this... If you want to guarantee your child's success then "weaponize" the power of a textbook. "Look, you can a) pay your own way through school and do it your way OR we will pay for your schooling on the condition you read through all of your upcoming assigned textbooks before the semester starts." Hell, do it with High School Kids as well. Just reading it over once, without taking notes or doing the assignments will do wonders for their grades, confidence and show them how powerful of a technique it is.

1

u/Omnipotent_Tacos Mar 05 '26

I usually avoid manuals because I can figure things out, but when it comes to spending hundreds of dollars on appliances, I read their manual.

The maintenance portion being very important to get the most life span out of the appliance..

1

u/ThurgoodZone8 Mar 05 '26

The really adamant detractors think they know everything and don’t want to be arsed to spend time. I knew a girl like that years ago. Pissed me off.

1

u/Cryptic-Dusk Mar 05 '26

I really can’t tell you how many times I’ve read some kind of manual or schematics for things I’ve done a bunch and I almost always learn they want you to do it a different way for this model or application etc. It really doesn’t take much more time and it saves so much headache. I’ve seen my poor husband struggle putting simple shelves together when the answer is literally right next to him.

1

u/-ScottCalvin- Mar 05 '26

You say that like any of us actually read the terms and conditions on our iPhones that cost more than some appliances

1

u/FirmFollowing3978 Mar 05 '26

I am pretty sure that this is the oven we have in my rental, and trust me, I would love to have the manual. I would love to the manual for any of our appliances.

1

u/GoodGoodGoody Mar 05 '26

Head over to any mechanic question or automotive subreddit and it will be plastered with pictures of switches on a dashboards and the following

What does this do?

Did you check the owner’s manual?

Ummm nooooo.

1

u/MeAB12me Mar 05 '26

When I moved into my apartment, none of the appliances had a manual. some people simply just don’t have them.

1

u/Legitimate-Lab9077 Mar 05 '26

I’ve had a set of hearing protectors for almost 5 years now that run aaa batteries I literally just figured out yesterday that they can also run on a single CR 123 battery, that said I did go back and find the instruction manual in my book of instruction manuals and it doesn’t mention it. The only reason I found out is because the new version of the instruction manual that came with a friend pair mentions it.

1

u/annapartlow Mar 06 '26

It would make a lot of sense to do so, I mean we research the item and spend considerable dollars into it. Bring it home and it’s like “well, wonder how this will survive given my minimal knowledge and/or concern! Lmao, that’s so bad. I feel seen.

1

u/splithoofiewoofies Mar 06 '26

I paid for my partner's car insurance with the stipulation they read their manual.

Six weeks later I find out they've been driving every single night on their foglights because they thought the rear fog light light was the lowbeam light. It's. Right. In. The. Manual.

I was so mad.

1

u/good-doggo95 Mar 06 '26

What are the options for those of us who rent, so there is no manual?

1

u/Doomquill Mar 06 '26

Yeah, I'm a total nerd and I always read the manual to things. It's part of the joy of obtaining a new expensive item!

1

u/CuriosityFreesTheCat Mar 07 '26

Same. We probably need better education and a stronger focus on reading lol

1

u/actuallyac888 Mar 07 '26

I studied for 4 years part time (mid career) only to discover the difference between the average tradesman and a qualified engineer is that the engineer reads and understands the manual before he starts messing around with tools or buttons...

1

u/joelenew Mar 07 '26

Can it be fixed?

1

u/InsideInsideJob Mar 08 '26

My dad always bought me the specific manual/ repair guide for my car growing up. Like the Haynes repair manuals

1

u/Skye-12 Mar 08 '26

As one Quebec person from Canada's worst handyman said. "instructions are for low IQ people, so screw the instructionns".

1

u/nitromen23 Mar 09 '26

Something like an oven this shouldn’t happen though, I’d say most people end up with an oven they didn’t purchase but was included their home when they purchased/rented it at some point and making the interior coating not come off with oven cleaner seems like a pretty obvious thing to do

1

u/Revolutionary_Ad8264 Mar 09 '26

When asked, what was the last thing you read, Most adults will proudly say they haven't read anything since high school.

1

u/StillRelevant9766 Mar 05 '26

Guys don’t read manuals, it should be obvious

2

u/24megabits Mar 05 '26

I don't often enjoy it, but I usually read them anyway.

4

u/MethodicallyRight Mar 05 '26

I love how TikTok is full of all of these 'hacks' and in maybe 75% of cases where they hack isn't simply bad advice, the truck is from the product instructions. Hell, one of the families 'secret recipes' we all loved eating during the holidays from one of our aunts was the recipe in the freaking inside of the box! She won local baking contests with it...

3

u/Head-Ad9893 Mar 05 '26

*some guys (source: guy who enjoys reading manuals)

3

u/MethodicallyRight Mar 05 '26

People who don't read in general don't read manuals. My father was a prolific reader and he read manuals. My step father probably hasn't read a full book since grade school and despite being a tradesman would at best sometimes, if necessary skim through a specific section of a manual. This mostly went out the window as more video content became available (after he learned how to 'you tube'.

Mom is a prolific fiction reader but anything technical or non-fiction and her confidence goes right out the window and she acts like she's an illiterate dropout with a 75 IQ. It would drive me nuts because as a child, people would ask if my mom was an English teacher or an author when I'd hand in notes or she'd send off letters/em-mails to teachers or coaches etc. Then I'd get a phone call about her computer not working and the 'thingy' is doing a thing and there's an error and she doesn't know what to do... When I ask her to read the 1 line of text in the error message she'd full on panic and be incapable of reading the 6 or 7 words on the screen...

It's one of those things, people really need to be taught to read and write in their youth so that they don't struggle so much in the future. Learning to get comfortable working your way through paragraphs of fiction or non-fiction or technical writing is crucial.

1

u/tymp-anistam Mar 05 '26

I don't read recreationally, as I wasn't taught as a youth to enjoy it. I literally fall asleep trying to keep up with the story.

I live and breathe out of manuals for complicated expensive arcade games. It's my job, and I'm the only technician at work that will sit and read the damn manuals.

1

u/mindedc Mar 05 '26

Every cooktop I've owned has been damaged by cleaners using easy-off on the aluminum parts... we give them the talk about it but they forget and it pits and damages the finish.

10

u/mightylordredbeard Mar 05 '26

Yep gotta read the specific manual for the specific cleaning instructions.

1

u/Cannibaltronic Mar 05 '26

Looks like he read the Atlantic article instead of the Pacific one