Self Cleaning Ovens

That is weird. My mom has a self cleaning oven and it never has a bad smell when it is cleaning. It usually smells pretty good. I think it all depends on what cleaning product you use in it. And as far as it being harmful, well you might need to find out what cleaning product was being used first. Some things are harmful and they say when in a closed area it's always good to open a window and also it would of helped some if you would of maybe used the stove fan. :)

Here is a tip from a repairman... Use the self-clean feature on your oven a little as possible. It cleans by heating the oven to a very high temperature which burns out the heating element faster in ovens. It is said...To be safe, only self-clean when you can keep the windows open and everyone out of the kitchen. Also have seen where birds are damaged. So err on the side of caution and avoid sharing the air space with a self cleaning oven.

I think you have answered your question yourself, if you feel sick and get a headache from the smell then it will probably be harmful, I don't know what your oven uses to clean itself, but that doesn't sound right to me. Was the oven door left open will cleaning? that could account for it being worse than it should be. Some self cleaning ovens don't use chemicals but just a very high heat to burn off any residue in the oven, this could give a very strong smell. The ovens should also be cleaned regularly, at least once per week, sometimes more often than that. There are reasonable instructions at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-cleaning_ovens which gives details of what to expect from these ovens.

I would be wary of it. I have never had a self cleaning oven, so I don't know exactly how it operates. What substances do the manufacturers use to do the self cleaning? You could look into it, by ringing the manufacturer. Some of these cleaning products are quite toxic. If you are foreced to do this type of cleaning gain, perhaps wear a mask.

I have a very good self cleaning stove and I bought it brand new. I was told there would be a smell a strong smell the first time I use the stove and that would be normal, and yes there was an ordor but after that one time there was no more. As far as I know you do not put any cleaner in the oven I never do, that's why it's a self cleaning oven. You set the oven and it does take hours to finish. The extreme heat is what burns the stuff up and you just wipe it out when the oven cools down. You should not be smelling fumes if the oven has been used more than once. I suggest getting it checked by a qualified technican.

It's so funny that I would come across this discussion today. Just last night we used the self cleaning feature on our new oven for the very first time. I had just a little spill in the oven. I actually could have taken a sponge and cleaned it up myself, but since the oven was new, I wanted to try the new feature. I pressed the button that said "speed clean". It automatically locked the door and began heating up the oven. After about 10 minutes we noticed a smell. We tried to shut off the oven but it wouldn't let us. After about an hour of the smell, my husband shut off the breaker on the breaker box and it shut the oven off. We pulled out the manual for the oven and it said that the speed clean runs for 2 hours. It also warned about a smell and that it could be harmful to birds. Didn't say anything about being harmful to humans! I think next time I will only use the feature if I can have all the windows opens and a fan blowing.

I am not certain if the smell is harmful. It is nauseating. I use a cleanser and some elbow grease to clean mine. I hate the fumes of the oven cleaners or the smell of the self cleaners. It takes too long to use the self cleaning method.

i have no idea, surely it couldnt be too bad for you or they wouldnt make them? I mean obviously it wasnt too good for you because you felt sick. maybe you are supposed to leave while it does it's business?

It makes me wonder what was in it that it made such fumes, as I have never had that happen. I would have put on the vent fan, though, and maybe opened a window. If the dirt in the stove was just food, then it should not be harmful. I hope you are feeling better now.

We also have a self cleaning oven and I have not had it smell bad at all. Maybe the previous owners never cleaned it at all ?

I do not know if it is detrimental or not, but I agree that the fumes are awful. If you must do it again make sure you have adequate ventilation. Whenever my mother used to use the clean feature on her oven we would vacate the house for the day. It would make my eyes burn something fierce if we were at home.

yes that gud people do tha .......