5 Tips for Maintaining Your Commercial Oven

The oven is the heart of the kitchen but is often taken for granted. Without proper maintenance, the efficiency and lifespan of your commercial oven can be compromised. No matter if you’ve just invested in a brand new commercial oven or if you’re looking to bring your current model back to life, these five maintenance tips can help.

Tip 1: Always Read the Manual

Before tending to any part of your commercial oven, always consult the manual. Read the manual thoroughly so that you know the specifications of your oven and can be guided appropriately to maintain it or repair areas in question. If you are still uncertain about something, it’s always better to consult your supplier before making any adjustments on your own. When you contact your supplier or their service department, have the make, model, or serial number of your unit handy. These numbers can help the service agent attend to your issues easier and faster. Knowing this information about your equipment is key to giving it proper care.

Tip 2: Maintain a Cleaning Schedule

While your commercial oven might come with a self-cleaning feature, you’re still going to have to put some elbow grease into properly maintaining your unit. Utilizing those features in combination with a regular cleaning schedule can expand the lifespan and maintain the efficiency of your commercial oven. To ensure that cleaning happens on a regular basis, ensure that employees or those using the ovens are kept to a schedule. During training or onboarding of new employees, teach them the ins and outs of how to clean the oven. By holding a cleaning calendar and assigning responsibilities per shift, you can keep your unit running strong for years on end. Daily cleaning is a great first step in the right direction. It can also be beneficial to promote a monthly deep cleaning. This will cover any missed areas that daily maintenance might miss. If there are areas that you are unsure how to clean, consult with the manual or the supplier. These tools will ensure you are keeping your unit looking and operating as good as the first day you brought it into your kitchen.

Tip 3: Calibrate Buttons

Think about the daily use that your oven experiences. One of the most frequently used parts of the appliance is the buttons. For hours on end, this is the one feature of your oven that is used and abused the most. Because of this, they need to be re-calibrated over time. With constant use, the buttons can lose efficiency and even affect the way your oven works. Re-calibrating the settings monthly will keep the buttons working as they are intended.

Tip 4: Test for Heat Inefficiencies

Over time, there can be a few heat inefficiencies that come with constant use. If you start to see spikes in heating costs or heat diffusion around your oven, it might be a result of poor maintenance to the heat settings and efficiencies. This can be anything from faulty or worn seals on the oven doors, broken or damaged thermostats, and flawed programs that need to be recalibrated.

Tip 5: Managing Spills & Boil-Overs Immediately

Spills are inevitable. They happen each and every day. While it may not seem like a big deal or maybe it hasn’t ever crossed your mind, to begin with, they can significantly impact the performance of your commercial oven. If spills and boil-overs are not cleaned right away, they can carbonize and tarnish the daily operations of the unit. Creating priorities for cleaning these messes and managing them can help keep your commercial kitchen running in tip-top shape.

Making Maintenance a Priority in Your Kitchen

While commercial oven cleaning may not be anyone’s favorite thing to do in the kitchen, it is essential for smooth and efficient operation. By following these five tips, you can keep your kitchen running its best for years on end.