Need advice on cleaning Chambers

[berlyn]

I too like so many others, "inherited" my Chambers. We just finished a 5 month kitchen remodel for this stove to fit and give it the justice she deserves. Now here's the problem. The elderly lady who was the original owner had bad eye sight and it's just filthy!! Her daughter-in-law told me she got the first 3" of grease off I have to get the rest off!! That will be ok but how do I do about cleaning the chrome??? What cleaners are safe and which are not on chrome?? What king of cloth can you use, i.e. sponge, cotton rag, brillo, etc...
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!
Thanks, berlyn

I will take before and aftter pics.

[Todd W. White]

Hello Berlyn, and welcome to the [b]CHAMBERS[/b] family!

I cleaned mine, which was also terribly filthy, as follows:

1. For the burners, grates, drip pans, oven racks, the oven bottom , and the small grease pan that goes under the broiler pan ([b]Do NOT use this method on ANYTHING that is aluminum!!!![/b]). This should be done OUTSIDE. -

A. Go to a janitorial supply store and get some gallon jugs of the thick liquid grill/oven cleaner. It's [b]VERY[/b] caustic (USE CHEMICAL-RESISTANT GLoVES!), but it WORKS!

B. You'll need to get a large tub that you are willing to sacrifice (big stainless steel bowls are good, too) to place the stuff in (if it's not big, you can do the pieces one at a time).

C. Take a bristle brush (NOT a metal or wire brush!) and clean off the surface crud as best you can.

D. Place the piece(s) in the container and pour the liquid over it(them) until it(they) are covered.

E. Let sit for a LONG time, then put on the gloves and, using a hard bristle brush (NO METAL), scrub the piece(s) until it comes clean.

F. If it comes clean, proceed to Step G. If not, repeat Step E.

G. Once you feel happy with the amount of gunk you have removed, remove the piece(s) from the container and take the garden hose [b]SET TO [i]LOW-LOW-LOW[/i] PRESSURE[/b] and GENTLY rinse the piece(s) off, until ALL of the gunk and liquid are rinsed off.

H. Repeat Step G. This is important, because the cleaner doesn't like to come off.

I. Place the cleaned part(s) in another container of clear, fresh water. Allow to soak for at least an hour.

J. Repeat Step G.

K. Take the parts to another location where you will not be standing in or near water. Take a blow dryer and set it on high. Dry all of the parts with it as best you can. Place all of the pieces you have cleaned on the rack in the oven and bake dry for an hour at 300 degrees.

L. Place items back in their original location. They should be clean enough to use. If necessary, take a toothbrush or ice pick and clean the holes on the burners, making sure that they are clear and that any of the debris you knocked loose is removed from the inside of the burner.

M. Dispose of the liquid cleaner, gloves, and container in a manner consistant with the product label.

[b][i]NOTE:[/i][/b] Do not be alarmed if you have missing porcelain on the burners or grates - it will not affect the perfomance. If you have them re-porcelained, do so knowing that the newer porcelain is not as long-lasting as the original type. In other words, you're going to be doing it again someday. If you can live with them not being absolutely PERFECT, then save yourself some money and do so...

Also - if you mess up the flame adjustment on the burners, you will need to re-calibrate them (or have your service man do it. Do you need a Service Manual?).

2. For the porcelain panels, oven and service cabinet doors, backsplash, the DuraChrome top, the Service Cabinet walls and shelf, etc., if they are coated with grease, I use the following method (for regular filthiness, use a [b]NON-ABRASIVE[/b] cleaner like Simple Green or ammonia, but DO NOT use scouring pads of ANY kind ANYWHERE on your CHAMBERS!!!!) -

A. Put on protective gloves.

B. Place a small amount of the liquid oven cleaner on a rag and rub the area needing to be cleaned.

C. Have a clean rag in a bowl of clear water handy and wipe down the are you just cleaned. The water neutralizes the cleaner and stops it from eating away at your surface (it will if you don't!). Change the water as necessary.

D. Use a soft cloth or paper towel (recommended) to dry the surface thoroughly.

E. Repeat this process until your CHAMBERS is clean.

[b][i]NOTE:[/i][/b] Under NO circumstances should you use ANY abrasive cleaners or pads of ANY kind! Even if the label says "safe for..." or "gentle", etc., DO NOT USE IT!!!!!!!! Porcelain is glass, and WILL scratch - do NOT use abrasives to clean ANYTHING on your stove!! I have seen many a chrome top on a CHAMBERS that was scratched up by well meaning person who tried to scrub it clean with an abrasive or steel wool (HORRORS!) - don't YOU be the NEXT one!

3. To clean the oven, you may use regular oven cleaner. The same is true for the porcelain box surrounding the broiler pan and the ThermoWell chamber. DO NOT USE ABRASIVES! You may also want to pull out the oven bottom (heavy!), clean it and repaint with HIGH-temp flat black rust-inhibiting enamel. This will make it last longer.

4. To clean all ALUMINIUM parts, which includes the griddle, broiler pan, and ThermoWell pots, I use [b]CAMEO CLEANER FOR ALUMINUM[/b] and a green scouring pad (it won't hurt aluminum). It will take several cleanings to get all of the gunk off of the aluminum if it is really bad...

5. To clean the ThermoWell Lid - [b]NEVER SUBMERSE THE THERMOWELL LID IN WATER!!!!! YOU WILL RUIN IT IF YOU DO!!!!!!![/b] Use the Cameo cleaner to clean the lid top, taking care not to get water inside of the lid. For the porcelained bottom of the lid, use oven cleaner and a rag, as mentioned above, and wipe it down per the previous instructions.

While by no means is this set of instructions complete, it should get you started.

Happy cooking with the gas turned [b][i]OFF![/i][/b]

<font color="#FFFFFF" size="1">[ April 03, 2004 03:24 PM: Message edited by: Todd W. White ]</font>

[berlyn]

Todd,
Thanks so much for all the advice!!
We should be picking up our range next weekend. We are so excited!! I have on order a copy of the service manual. Thanks to your web page [img]graemlins/thumbs_up.gif[/img] I should be getting an original "Idle Hour" cookbook later this weekend. I will have a 90B model. My friend who offered the stove to me after her mother-in-law passed away was the original owner so she pretty much has all the accessories and it's in good condition, just filthy and greasy. We can not wait to cook with it as I has originally wanted a Viking stove, do to the bigger burners. But a Chambers I could not pass up!!! They don't make them like they use too!! And since we have a house from the 1880's both will just complement each other so well.
Thanks again Todd for this wonderful, informative, resourceful web page. I've learned so much more about what a Chambers is capable of!!

[Todd W. White]

You're welcome Beryln!

Viking, I am told, was started, at least in part, by a man who used to work for CHAMBERS after Hobart bought them out.

The BTU's you get off of the CHAMBERS daisy burners is FAR superior to anything on the home market, and as good or better than the ones on the commercial stoves, like the Viking.

In addition, the super insulated oven and ThermoWell make the CHAMBERS unique and more "cook friendly" than any other product available today.

Plus, they look [b]NEAT![/b]

Let me know when you need the Service Manual - I have them in stock, and would be happy to supply you with one.

<font color="#FFFFFF" size="1">[ September 29, 2004 05:07 PM: Message edited by: Todd W. White ]</font>

[BlueBeetle]

Todd,

Can you put this thread up top as a sticky?

I'm trying to consolidate all the cleaning info I can from the site into one MS Word document, but this seems to sum up much of it.

By the way, I got the manual yesterday, and I'm looking fwd into delving into the project this weekend! Thanks much.

Hope you're feeling better soon.

Chris

[dgaskamp]

good info.. just printed and ready this weekend to start my cleaning project..

[maryopal]

These instructions are posted somewhere on the Chambers Stove Website, trouble is I can't find them right now. I would suggest, instead of adding a sticky, these instructions should be very visible on the website or virtual convention. I can't imagine how much time and effort Todd has put into this site, so I hesitate to suggest more work for him, but here goes. How about: 1) adding a site map for the website, and 2) adding Todd's cleaning instructions to the the page titled 'Resources' where other restoration tips & resources are provided. Here is the link to that page. [url="http://www.chambersvirtualconvention.com/resources.htm"]http://www.chambersvirtualconvention.com/resources.htm[/url]

A great big thanks to Todd for being the champion of Chambers Stoves and in turn sharing such an incredible resource with us all! [img]biggrin.gif[/img]

<font color="#FFFFFF"><font size="1">[ June 23, 2006 02:21 PM: Message edited by: maryopal ]</font></font>

<font color="#FFFFFF" size="1">[ June 23, 2006 03:48 PM: Message edited by: maryopal ]</font>

[Todd W. White]

I've got that in the works. Great suggestion!

[Pokey Roberts]

Grease + Lye + Heat + Water + Time = Soap
Grease + Dishwasher Detergent + Heat + Water + Time
= Clean
I still advocate putting all the metal parts that
you can get off into a big Pot outside with a
strong solution of dishwashing detergent, (lye if
you are brave) and cooking them. You still have
to take them out and brush the loose bits off from
time to time but it is still easier than just
standing over a chemical bath wearing rubber gloves
and scrubbing for hours.
It still takes hours but you can chill out and just
check it from time to time. If you use the dish
washing detergent you can even put the aluminum
parts in don't leave them in any longer than it
takes to loosen the crud. and rinse them well.
The parts that can't be removed and the stove itself I have found a
product at autozone called Purple Power a strong
liquid cleaner used for cleaning greasy auto parts using an old spray bottle and sprayed on
full strength and allowed to penetrate works good.
then wiping off with a damp cloth that you will
constantly have to rinse out in clean water.
Another option I havn't seen any one recommend is
your local car wash. The one I use has an engine
and tire cleaning setting. The next time you wash
your car take all of the loose metal pieces you
can get off lay out and spray them with the engine
cleaning soap. Let it soak while you wash the rest
of the car. Then you can spray it off with the
hot high pressure washer. It will not get every
thing but it will knock off a lot of crud and
save you some time.
Pokey

[jsrose]

Hey, BlueBeetle, I just did the same thing in a Notepad document. I found probably fifty entries for cleaning up various parts of the stove. I haven't edited it for redundant entries, but I'd be happy to e-mail it to you if you like.

That's got to be the number one FAQ on this board and would be a perfect fit for Todd's site, too.

Jack