How to Clean a Range Hood’s Grease Trap

Cleaning a Grease Trap

Use warm water and soap to clean your range hood grease trap; for tough grease, soak the grease trap or grease tray for a few minutes before cleaning.

Is your kitchen air looking murky while you cook? Has excess smoke been accumulating in your kitchen, even with the range hood running? This may be a sign that you need to clean your range hood grease trap or its filters. As grease gathers in the tray, your range hood won’t be venting contaminants out of your kitchen air at maximum efficiency.

To maximize capturing grease, range hoods with filters that are angled include a grease tray to capture excess grease and dirt. At Proline Range Hoods, several of our range hoods come with grease traps or grease trays.

If you have one of these trays, it requires cleaning just like your stainless steel baffle filters. You can do this in just a few easy steps.

With a clean range hood grease trap, you and your guests will enjoy the comfort of a clean and fresh kitchen, while you cook to your heart’s content.

What You Need

• A sink
• Warm water and soap
• Ammonia, Baking Soda, or Vinegar (for tough stains)
• A couple of towels

1. Remove baffle filters.

Lift the stainless steel baffle filters in your range hood and angle them upward to remove them. Proline’s stainless steel baffle filters have handles for easy removal.

2. Remove dirty grease tray.

Behind your baffle filters, you’ll find a grease tray sitting inside the range hood. It is shaped like a long metal tray. Lift this out of your range hood to prepare for cleaning.

3. Fill your sink with warm water and soap.

To clean your range hood grease trap, first fill your sink with warm water and soap, which will break down the tough grease.

4. Soak grease tray in your sink.

The grease tray should soak in your sink for 3-5 minutes depending on the toughness of your grease and dirt. The entire grease trap likely won’t fit in your sink, so flip it over once you are finished soaking the first part.

5. Wipe gently with the soft side of the sponge.

Once you have let the grease tray soak in your sink, wipe it off the inside of the tray gently with the soft end of your sponge.

If you need a new sponge, check out this product on Amazon.

Avoid abrasive cleaners such as bleach and chlorine; these may damage the stainless steel.

Ammonia, baking soda, or vinegar will work great. Baking soda can be found on Amazon, as well as vinegar; just click on the links!

Discover the best kitchen degreaser sprays for a spotless clean.

6. Rinse the grease tray.

You wouldn’t want a soapy grease tray inside your range hood; once you’ve wiped off the tray, rinse it thoroughly.

7. Wipe with a dry towel.

Before setting your grease trap back into the range hood, dry it completely.

8. Insert grease tray and baffle filters into your range hood.

Once you’ve finished cleaning, insert the grease tray inside your range hood, followed by the baffle filters.

Here's a quick video to help you out.

How do you get rid of sticky greasy residue on the grease tray?

There are several methods to break down the grease on your range hood grease trap. Vinegar, ammonia, and other related household cleaners will do the job for you. The following strategies work for range hood grease traps, but also other stainless steel appliances.

Does vinegar dissolve grease?

Vinegar is a great way to dissolve grease from your grease trap. The best way to use vinegar is to apply it to a towel and wipe the grease tray with the towel.

Does ammonia cut grease?

Ammonia is another effective way to cut grease from your range hood grease tray. Make sure you dilute it with water first, though. First, gather your water and then add ammonia. Less is more with ammonia – and it can be dangerous to inhale the fumes too much – so apply it carefully in increments as needed.

Like with vinegar, dampen your cloth with this ammonia solution and wipe the grease tray.

If you use a household cleaner to clean your range hood grease tray, rinse it thoroughly before placing it back into your range hood.

You can also wipe the tray with a wet cloth. This will remove any of the cleaning solution from the tray; after all, you don’t want those chemicals in your cooking space.

Does bicarbonate of soda remove grease?

Baking soda, when diluted with water like the above cleaning solutions, will remove grease from your kitchen appliances. Add 1 tablespoon of baking soda for every cup of water. Simply apply this solution to your towel and wipe the grease away.

Does rubbing alcohol dissolve grease?

Rubbing alcohol can also be effective in small quantities. If you’re struggling with a really small spot, apply some rubbing alcohol to a cotton ball and dab it onto your grease tray. The alcohol will break down the grease in just a few minutes.

Does bleach cut grease?

No. Bleach is corrosive and will not cut grease effectively. It will damage your stainless steel appliances. Consider vinegar and ammonia instead.

How often should I clean my range hood’s grease tray?

Simply clean your grease tray when you clean your range hood filters. This will depend on your cooking style, but generally filters require cleaning every few weeks to a month. If you clean the tray every few weeks, it won’t accumulate tough grease as often, making cleaning easy.

If you have a sticky range hood, it's time to clean it.

For more cleaning advice, take a look at our blog article on how to clean range hood filters.

Is my sink too small to soak my entire range hood grease tray?

No worries. Simply wet a towel with the vinegar or ammonia solutions detailed above and wipe the surface of your grease tray that you couldn’t soak. For extra tough spots, set the damp towel on the tray for 10-15 minutes and it will slowly break down the grease.

You can also just rotate the tray in the cleaning solution to ensure you clean the entire grease trap.

Many of the tips in this article can be applied to other stainless steel appliances. Hopefully this guide on how to clean your range hood grease trap has been valuable. Good luck cleaning!

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