I cleaned my greasy oven with Oven Pride and Elbow Grease -- 1 clear winner

Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info If, like me, you have a love-hate relationship with cleaning you'll often find that the outcome is satisfying but the process is dreadful. This is never more true than when it comes to scrubbing the oven, particularly the racks. I try to go for the natural route where possible but if I've left the oven racks accumulating burnt-on grease stains for months, Oven Pride is my go-to saviour. However, as well as containing harsh chemicals, Oven Pride is also on the expensive side. I recently picked up a box of Oven Pride from Asda for £3.44, and sitting right next to it was a box of Elbow Grease Oven Cleaner, which was more than £1 cheaper, retailing for £2.25. With four racks in need of a clean, I cleaned two with Oven Pride and the other two with Elbow Grease. Both Oven Pride and Elbow Grease Oven Cleaner are marketed very similarly as heavy-duty, fume-free cleaning solutions designed to remove burnt-on grease and carbon deposits from ovens, grills, and hobs. They both use powerful formulas to effectively deep clean without the need for intense scrubbing. These cleaning products supply you with bags that you put oven racks in, along with the cleaner, before sealing, leaving them to soak and eventually rinsing off. After putting them both to the test, I noticed that they both did a great job, but the winner was clear. For this test, I used both products at the same time and used the same amount of cleaning solution that was provided in each of the bags for each basket. Opening up both products, they both came with their solution, gloves, and a plastic bag. It was clear to see which was the most expensive here, as the gloves and bag were of better quality in the Oven Pride box. To clean the racks, I started by removing them from the oven and placing two in each of the bags. Both oven cleaning products also advise only placing two in the bag at once. I then put on some gloves and poured in three-quarters of the Oven Pride solution into one bag and three-quarters of the Elbow Grease Oven Sleaner into the other. Oven Pride had no smell to the product; however, the Elbow Grease one had a very strong, almost fishy odour to it. I'd definitely recommend opening the windows before using these products. With the racks and cleaning solutions in the bags, it was time to remove air from the bags, seal and fold them, before tilting the bags back and forth to make sure the trays were coated in the liquid. Instantly, I noticed that the liquid in both bags was turning brown and the stains on the racks had started to soften. Both brands recommend leaving the racks in the bags for about four hours; however, it is best to leave them overnight, which I did. I left them outside overnight just in case the bags decided to split and spill. The next day, I checked in on the racks, and both solutions were dark brown, almost black. Without rinsing, the Oven Pride racks looked sparkling, whereas the Elbow Grease racks still had brown marks on them. To get a better look at both, I put on some gloves, partially filled the bags with water, sealed them again and tilted the bags so the solutions collected in one bottom corner. I then cut one corner of each bag and lifted them back to allow the solution to be safely poured down the sink immediately with running water. I wiped both pairs of racks down with washing-up liquid, and was amazed that the racks in the Elbow Grease solution came straight off without scrubbing. Upon further inspection, the racks cleaned with Oven Pride, which were not as badly stained to begin with as the other two, were shiny, but they did have a few minute stains left behind. The racks cleaned with Elbow Grease, however, were spotless - not a stain in sight. Overall, both cleaning products did an amazing job at cleaning my oven racks, but despite the smell, I'd have to say the winner was Elbow Grease Oven Cleaner. It's cheaper and does a more efficient job, so I'm prepared to put up with the odour from time to time.