Keep your kitchen appliances clean with these easy tips

The room where food is prepared and eaten must be kept clean, and so do all the kitchen appliances. Here are some tips to keep the stove, oven, fridge and freezer clean.

• Wipe up splashes and spills on your stove top immediately; you'll save yourself a lot of extra work.
• If food gets burned onto an electric heating element, place a cloth damp with soapy water onto the cold element for two hours and then wipe it clean. Deal with spills in the grooves of the heating element by slightly heating the element and sprinkling on a little baking soda, then rubbing it in with a sponge. Wipe it off with a damp sponge or cloth.
• Ceramic glass stove tops are especially easy to clean. For everyday cleaning, simply wipe them with a damp sponge. If food is burned on, dribble a little lemon juice on it, let it set in for a few minutes, wipe, and if necessary, remove any residue with a glass scraper. To preserve an attractive shine, polish your stove top with a little vinegar. And to keep scratches from forming, lift pots and pans from one burner to the next, rather than sliding them.
• Lightly rub dried-on deposits on a gas stove's non-removable parts with a moistened dishwasher detergent tab, then wipe dry. Use gloves to protect your hands.

• Put a heatproof container of water into your still-hot oven; the moisture will make it easier to wipe clean.
• If you're worried that the contents of a baking or roasting pan will well over, place aluminum foil underneath to save yourself some elbow grease.
• Clean burned-on foods in a still-warm oven with salt and wipe the surface dry with a piece of newspaper or a paper towel.
• Use a damp cloth to soften burned-on food remnants so they can be easily scrubbed away.
• Rinse cake pans with dish soap and water. Clean tough stains using salt and vegetable oil.
• Scrub burned-on sugar with newspaper and salt, then wash with soap and water.

• Maintain rubber seals by rubbing them with talc so they don't become brittle.
• Regularly clean the inside of your refrigerator with vinegar and water, or wipe it down with a solution of baking soda and water.
• If you're not lucky enough to have a frost-free freezer, mini-icebergs may form. If so, it's time to defrost. Empty the contents of your freezer into a cooler, then place a pot of boiling water inside and close the door until the ice melts. Wipe with soap, vinegar and water.
• To prevent rapid ice buildup, after you defrost, wipe down the inner freezer walls with cooking oil or glycerin. When you defrost next time, the ice will easily separate from the walls.