Do you use the self-cleaning feature on your oven?

[Winter Ivy]

I think it would be fine to do during pregnancy, since it is just using the heat and not any cleaners. I had a major exposure to propane fumes when I was 4 months pregnant (freak construction accident in our basement, yikes, thankfully we are all ok) and I called the exposure hotline and they said it was fine, so I am guessing that a simple oven cleaning would be ok.

As far as the ceaning itself, I try to only do it like once or twice a year because we we use propane and it uses up so much gas. I try to remember to put baking sheets under anything I know has a potential to drip over, but I sometimes forget and and have to do the cleaning anyway, lol.

-Diana

[my4boys]

I have only used mine once in 4 years...I try to keep it clean myself cause I hate the smell!!!! FYI to everyone though, If you have a bird in the house, please make sure you remove it or put it WAY out of the stove, my SIL cleaned her oven using the self-clean and her birds were only 10-12 feet away and the oldest of all of them died from the fumes. IT IS NOT SAFE for them at all. I did not mean to be a downer but I just wanted you all to know.

[meganmecrazy]

Funny you brought this up. My mom just used hers a week ago and it totally shattered the door of her oven. Very scary and I'm glad she wasn't standing near it when it shattered glass everywhere.

Our oven is only a few years old and I have used it once (last year).

[shades of bliss]

Great thread. I swear I'm scared of that feature, lol.

[Sharon Kay]

I use ours when we need it...and that is usually only if something boils over in the oven. Since I went on a diet 1 1/2 years ago...we've had no more pies spilling in the bottom of the oven...go figure! lol We usually run ours when we're going out...just because it does tend to get warm in the room...but it's much better than using oven cleaners...boy i used to get bad headaches from the fumes!

[mrs_jb]

I do mine every 6 months or so... and like everyone else said, just do it on a day where you can leave a few windows open, because of the heat and the smell.

[kscwgirl]

I wonder if my oven has such a feature............

[Jennifer]

Last time we did it, we happened to check on it (guess we never had before) and there were FLAMES!!! in the oven. Apparently that's ok, but it sure freaked us out!

We do clean it about once a year.