It’s a good idea to clean a cooker hood made from stainless steel with a specially formulated product. Stainless steel cleaners like those by Cif are equipped to degrease and remove dirt, and also can help ensure that your cooker hood gleams as though it’s brand new! The cooker hood and extractor fan can seem like one of the trickiest spots to clean, with a build-up of fat and grease making a very sticky mess. But when your cooker hood is screaming for a cleaning, there's no need to procrastinate – this step-by-step guide will equip you with everything you need to know about how to clean an oven extractor hood efficiently, including how to clean a cooker hood filter and other removable components. How to Deep Clean the Cooker Hood If you haven’t cleaned your cooker hood for a while, the build-up of grease and fat from cooking can be very sticky and tricky to completely remove. But if you have the right tools and know how to deep clean an extractor hood effectively, your cooker could be gleaming again in no time.

Ensure that the appliance is switched off and is not hot. First, remove the filter and all other removable parts from your cooker hood. You should check the instruction manual for your specific appliance to find out the correct way of taking these bits off, or look it up online if you don’t still have the original care instructions to hand. How to Clean Cooker Hood Filters If you are cleaning a flat extractor, it will have a paper filter that can be removed and replaced, with new paper bought from a supermarket and cut to size. Carbon filters also need replacing rather than cleaning. However, chimney-style oven extractor fans have a metal mesh filter which is non-disposable and sometimes needs a good clean. How to Clean a Cooker Hood Metal Filter Once you have removed the metal filter from your cooker extractor hood, soak it in very hot, soapy water with a cup of vinegar added to help cut through the grease, and leave for as long as possible, preferably overnight.

After a long soak, give the filter and other bits a careful rub down to remove greasy residue. best vacuum cleaner for hardwood floors 2013You can also use a washing powder soaking solution or a bicarbonate of soda paste to work away at the greasy residue on your oven extractor filter and other components, but remember to take recommended safety precautions and to test any unfamiliar techniques on an inconspicuous spot first. vacuum cleaner ratings good housekeepingWhen cleaning a cooker hood metal filter, it may discolour slightly, especially if using a dishwasher or detergent solution, but it will still work and won’t be obvious once the hood is reassembled.best way to clean upholstery microfiber

How to Clean Cooker Hood Surfaces Kitchen cleaning products specifically designed to deal with particular surfaces, like stainless steel, are your best bet for cleaning the cooker hood. Cif has a wide range of products for the kitchen and for different surfaces – just follow the instructions on the label, and test it in a small area first. Take care to avoid contact with skin and wear relevant hand protection. Most modern cooker hoods are made from stainless steel and sometimes glass. Remember to use products designed for those surfaces for the best results. Also, use a clean, soft sponge or cloth to clean these surfaces – a wire sponge or brush may leave scratches or other marks! Be cautious when using anything more abrasive and always test in a discrete area first A old, clean, soft-bristled toothbrush can also be very handy when cleaning a sticky cooker hood – that way, you can reach all the crevices where grime has accumulated. How to Keep a Cooker Hood Clean and Grease-free

The main key to keeping your cooker extractor clean is to clean it regularly! Wipe over the entire exterior with soapy water or a cleaning product every time you use the hob (ensure oven is off and wait until all surfaces are cool before beginning to clean), and then dry with a clean cloth to avoid water marks. Take out the filter once a month if you can and give it a quick wash in the sink; once you’ve deep cleaned the components once they should only need a brief clean if you do it regularly enough, meaning that the deep clean is rarely necessary. It’s also worth knowing that the main cause of a sticky cooker hood is frying. Not only will cutting down on the amount of fried food that you cook reduce the cleaning requirements of your kitchen, but it will also lead to a healthier diet. This can be a very handy tip if you’re always wondering how to clean cooker hood grime and want to banish the stickiness for good.Step 1: Understanding the direction of the grain Show All Items

Your extractor hood and filter work hard to remove grease, cooking smells and steam from your kitchen. So it’s not surprising that they can get pretty dirty. Cleaning can extend an extractor fan’s life. A regular clean also helps to prevent the extractor getting clogged with grease, which can be a fire risk as it impairs airflow and makes the fan overheat. Ideally you’d want to keep the extractor hood and filter clean as part of your usual cleaning routine. Mark Woollard of The Oven and Hobs Cleaning Company recommends cleaning little and often. He says: 'If you keep on top of it, it means you won't need to aggressively clean painted surfaces, which are easily damaged.' If your cleaning regime has left your extractor needing more attention, Which? Trusted Traders helps you find endorsed oven-cleaning specialists in your area who can take care of it for you. Read on for more tips on how to tackle cleaning your extractor fan and hood. Broadly speaking, there are two styles of extractor fan – flat or chimney style.

The best way to clean your fan depends on which type you have. Each model will be slightly different. It’s worth consulting the instruction manual before you start cleaning, to make sure you’re using the right technique to dismantle the filter and clean the casing. This is normally easy to do, as filters need to be changed regularly. Grease filters are designed to be replaced regularly to deal with the build-up of grease and stains. You should replace a paper filter if it’s saturated with grease, and the pattern on the filter becomes discoloured with a reddish tint.  Mark recommends replacing it every three months to a year, depending on the amount and type of food cooked on the hob. 'Flat-style extractors have grease filters that are made of paper,’ Mark says. ‘You can buy them from a supermarket and then cut to size. Clean the extractor cover by removing it and putting it in a container to soak. It will often need some intensive soaking to remove the build-up of grease.

The best method is to put the cover into an oven-soaking tray or dip tray, with boiling water and soda crystals or a bicarbonate-of-soda paste (Mark recommends one called Astonish or, alternatively, you can make your own). 'Some customers use washing powder,' Mark says. 'If you’re willing to leave it for a long time, overnight perhaps, that will do the trick, as it contains the biological agents that will break down the grime.' Finally, after it’s had a good soaking, wipe the extractor cover with a microfibre cloth and polish. Is your cooker hood past repair? Find out how to buy the best cooker hood and check the Which? guide to the best buy cooker hoods for your kitchen. Read on for how to tackle cleaning chimney-style extractors. Most chimney-style extractors have aluminium mesh that acts as the filter, rather than a paper insert. 'They're spring loaded and easy to remove,' Mark says. 'You’ll be able to see the fan.' If there’s only a light build-up, take out the mesh and clean it in the sink using boiling water and washing-up liquid.

If the grease and grime are more serious, you could put it in the dishwasher - but you should wash it thoroughly with water immediately afterwards, then pat it dry. As well as the paper or aluminium mesh grease filter, some extractors have a carbon odour filter. It’s not possible to clean these, but you can replace yours if you feel it’s no longer effectively removing odours. You can contact the manufacturer for a replacement, or look for compatible spares online. 'Manufacturers often recommend changing these carbon odour filters every three months,’ Mark says, ‘but I would suggest that annually is OK for most people's budgets and lifestyles’. Chimney-style extractors tend to have a stainless-steel exterior, which can get sticky with a build-up of grease. Mark advises: ‘If there is a lot of grime, you’ll need a bit of elbow grease to shift that but, if you’re too aggressive, it can damage the surface.’ He adds: 'Use a very mild bicarbonate-of-soda paste, and work out the direction of the grain on a small area before you tackle the whole thing.