A greasy kitchen is one of the most frustrating cleaning challenges — grease is sticky, it builds up in layers, and it seems to laugh at ordinary cleaning sprays. The secret is not to scrub harder, but to use the right products and let chemistry do the work for you.
Why Scrubbing Doesn't Work Well on Grease
Grease is hydrophobic — it repels water. Scrubbing with water and a cloth just spreads it around. What you need is a degreaser, which contains surfactants that break the bond between grease and the surface, allowing it to be wiped away cleanly.
The Dwell Time Method
The single most effective technique for degreasing without scrubbing is dwell time — applying your degreaser and leaving it to work before wiping. Most people spray and immediately wipe, which removes only the surface layer. Leaving the product for 1–5 minutes allows the surfactants to penetrate and break down the grease fully.
For light grease: spray, wait 1 minute, wipe with a damp cloth. For moderate grease: spray, wait 3–5 minutes, wipe. For heavy build-up: spray generously, cover with cling film to prevent drying out, leave for 15–30 minutes, then wipe.
The Best Products for Each Surface
| Surface | Best approach | Product |
|---|---|---|
| Hob and surround | Spray, 2 min dwell, wipe | Deepio or Flash APC |
| Oven door glass | Spray, 10 min dwell, wipe | Flash Professional APC |
| Cooker hood filter | Soak in powder degreaser solution | Deepio Powder |
| Oven shelves/trays | Soak in hot water + powder | Deepio Powder |
| Splashback tiles | Spray, 1 min dwell, wipe | Flash or Deepio spray |
| Extractor fan blades | Spray, 5 min dwell, wipe | Deepio spray |
The Soak Method for Heavily Greased Items
For oven shelves, grill pans, and extractor filters that have months of built-up grease, soaking is far more effective than any amount of scrubbing. Fill a sink or large container with hot water, add a scoop of Deepio Powder or a generous squirt of washing up liquid, and submerge the items for 30–60 minutes. The grease will loosen and most of it will wipe off with a cloth — no scouring pad required.
Preventing Build-Up in the First Place
The easiest kitchen to degrease is one that gets a quick wipe-down after every cooking session. A 60-second wipe of the hob and surround with a damp cloth after cooking prevents grease from baking on and building up into a major cleaning job. A weekly spray of the cooker hood and splashback keeps things manageable.
Shop kitchen degreasers and cleaning products at Reign Goods — including Deepio Spray, Deepio Powder, and Flash Professional — with free delivery on orders over £30.