Best method for cleaning glass

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Wingerr

New Member
Jan 16, 2018
14
Islip, Long Island
What is the general method recommended for cleaning the glass of the soot and residue? Is it simply wiping with a damp paper towel after it's cooled down, or can any additional solvents be used like a bit of vinegar in the water?
I have some buildup on the corner sections that are pretty resistant to wiping, wondering if it might be safe to try the stuff used for ceramic cooktops, or if that may cause problems by being abrasive.
 
zig said:
I just wait for the glass to cool and use Windex and a paper towel.
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I use the same method I've used for years for cleaning window glass. Wet newspaper with no additional chemicals. Spots of heavy accumulation may require a little elbow grease to wipe away completely. Once wetted initially, hard baked-on soot and creosote softens up and comes off easily with subsequent wiping.
 
Wet paper towel and wood ash slurry. Then just a wet towel, then a dry towel. Woodstock said to use steel wool. I won't do that even though it may work. My Progress never has black so it's fairly easy to clean.
 
Thanks all-

I'll try the different methods next time. I had some kind of baked on residue, a tough brown/black coating probably from some subpar wood, that didn't respond to damp towels, though I didn't really give it any soak time if that's needed.

I did some careful scraping with a single edge razor blade, which took off the residue in swaths, after making sure it didn't affect the glass surface. Maybe it was akin to an extremely thin coating creosote. I used some ceramic cooktop liquid to get any lingering deposits, which seem to work as it normally does on my cooktop. The door glass seemed unfazed, with no scratching that I could see on close inspection.

I'll see about getting some of that specialized Rutland cleaner to try if using water on a more regular basis doesn't keep up.
 
I just dip a damp cotton rag into the wood ashes and then rub it into the residue on the glass. It does not take a lot of scrubbing to take it off. Then I just use a clean part of the damp rag to clean the surface off. Wash out the rag and save it for the next usage. For me this works better than any glass cleaner and you don't have to buy it.
 
I'll try the ash next time; it may be okay because the build up probably was from my closing off the air controls improperly. I should have realized it would cause the heavy deposits when I saw the thick smoke obscuring the whole interior. I'll avoid that in the future so a light maintenance cleaning will be all that's needed.
 
Wingerr said:
I'll try the ash next time; it may be okay because the build up probably was from my closing off the air controls improperly. I should have realized it would cause the heavy deposits when I saw the thick smoke obscuring the whole interior. I'll avoid that in the future so a light maintenance cleaning will be all that's needed.
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Yea, the only time I really have to clean the glass is during the Spring and Fall when I am burning the stove at lower temps. Otherwise the airwash does a pretty good job.
 
Woodstock uses 2 panes so the inner pane gets super hot and somehow by magic it keeps the brown/black off.
 
Wingerr said:
What is the general method recommended for cleaning the glass of the soot and residue? Is it simply wiping with a damp paper towel after it's cooled down, or can any additional solvents be used like a bit of vinegar in the water?
I have some buildup on the corner sections that are pretty resistant to wiping, wondering if it might be safe to try the stuff used for ceramic cooktops, or if that may cause problems by being abrasive.
Click to expand...
I've been using this stuff for years and I buy it at Lowe's it is very good it's a spray but it's a gel in a sense where it stays on the glass instead of running off. I've tried other brands and they just run off like Windex and you have to do 5 applications just to clean it this when you do one and let it sit and wipe it off when the glass is cool I've done it warm and it's been fine.
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Last edited by a moderator:
Wingerr said:
What is the general method recommended for cleaning the glass of the soot and residue? Is it simply wiping with a damp paper towel after it's cooled down, or can any additional solvents be used like a bit of vinegar in the water?
I have some buildup on the corner sections that are pretty resistant to wiping, wondering if it might be safe to try the stuff used for ceramic cooktops, or if that may cause problems by being abrasive.
Click to expand...
If you are getting a lot of soot build-up in your Corners check your stripping your gasket to make sure that it is sealing properly
14e4e252d4ed2f8d15114547635135d3.jpg
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Rutland Glass Cleaner works great and a bottle will last forever.
 
Mr.Clean white sponge, wet it and just hold on the soot and watch the soot run away from whatever is in the sponge....of course glass needs cooled down before wet Mr. Clean ....it works great on My Jotul if needed:)
 
griam01 said:
Someone recommended this on another thread and I tried it and it really worked well. Melts right off. And the foam stays mostly in place.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Goo-Gone-Oven-Grill-Cleaner-14-fl-oz/23704284
Click to expand...


A friend of mine recommended this and I listed it on the Regency CI2600 thread. This is the best stuff to use if you get baked on creosote that doesn't easily come off with water and ashes or typical stove glass cleaner.

Prior to the oven cleaner the only other product that worked for me was a CLR product that needed to soak for 30 minutes to loosen up the buildup.... But it was a liquid so you had to take the door off and lay it flat.
 
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I use fireview from spray nine. Years ago we would blacken the glass so bad you could't see the fire. And that was daily. Same stove, same people running it, now get no more that a white haze. We clean that with a wet paper towel. It's all about seasoned wood. Get a hot fire box before choking the fire down. Burn the wood don't let it smolder. And if you due blacken the glass burn a hot fire and burn it off.
 
Fly ash: Damp paper towel

Fly ash and some sooting: Damp paper towel dipped in fine ash.

Hot fire . . .
 
Wingerr said:
What is the general method recommended for cleaning the glass of the soot and residue? Is it simply wiping with a damp paper towel after it's cooled down, or can any additional solvents be used like a bit of vinegar in the water?
I have some buildup on the corner sections that are pretty resistant to wiping, wondering if it might be safe to try the stuff used for ceramic cooktops, or if that may cause problems by being abrasive.
Click to expand...
Burn dryer wood. Then use a moist paper towel.
 
Wet ash and a paper towel...works every time...and CHEAP!
 
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