Try plain, undiluted ammonia. Put a splash on and let it sit for about a minute, then scrub.

You'll be amazed.

Lynda

I havent tried ammmonia I usually use windex. Ill have to check it out. I dont wet the cook top down unless its really dirty. I usually spray some windex on a rough terry washcloth till its just barely damp then I rub the top clean. There will be a very streaks but thats okay. Either way after its clean and dry I wipe on a very very light bit of lemon oil or pledge. Go easy the more you use the longer it will take to buff it off. Then I buff it off with a clean dry microfiber cloth. If I see a spot I missed I spray some windex on my wash cloth and rub just the spot and buff again. I also use pledge or lemon oil on the plastic parts of black and white microwave range hoods and on the cooktops. Once you figure out how much to use it goes quick and it shines like you worked your butt off. Impresses the heck out of my housecleaning clients. LOL.
I keep a miracle cloth soaked in pledge in a baggie under the sink to use on the stove and all the stainless appliances.

Lynda - Thanks, I'll try ammonia. Is it usually available in shops undiluted ? Can you tell I'm not very experienced with this cleaning stuff? We lived in an apartment before this and I had an electric range. When it got really dirty, I would spray some OFF oven cleaner on it and it shone like new. But nothing seems to work on this stove. The grease stains are a little old - I think that's the main reason.

Stanlie - I've tried Windex, it shines the cleaner parts of the stove but does not take out the stubborn grease stains.

Thanks

You can usually find ammonia hear the hard surface cleaners. At Walmart, for example, it is on the very bottom shelf below the other hard surface cleaners.

They carry two brands at Walmart. Great Value (the Walmart store brand) costs about $0.96 for around 56 ounces. It is plain old regular old fashioned ammonia.

They also carry Parson's (made by Arm and Hammer) which is "lemon" (sort of) scented and colored yellow. That sells for $1.28 or so for 56 ounces. I use the lemon ammonia in place of carpet washing solution in my steam cleaner and like having the little bit of perfuminess. I also use it for dirty work clothes laundering.

But overall, lemon or not ammonia smells like ammonia. A lot of folks hesitate to use it because it is so "strong" smelling, but as a general cleaner with a splash of it in a gallon bucket of water it isn't offensive at all and dissipates quickly. It doesn't take much at all in a bucket of water to make the best floor cleaner, counter cleaner, or bathroom cleaning liquid you've ever used.

I'm down to using water, microfiber cloths ($4 for 8 of them in the Wamart automotive aisle), and ammonia for just about everything. A couple of times a year I'll use Pledge or lemon oil to oil the woodwork - but that's it for buying cleaning products.

For your stovetop, use it full strength. It will be strong, so just start with a splash on a small area and run your exhaust fan or open a window. You don't want to hang your nose right over it and snort it in for an extended time, but it also cleans fast so you really don't have to. It just takes using it once or twice to get the feel for it.

The cleaning products companies have scared so many people away from using ammonia and then they sell it back to you diluted at about a tablespoonful to a quart, add some color, a brand name, and a spray bottle, and happily take your money for products that don't work as well as just using the real thing. I always thought that ammonia was supposed to be so harsh and smelly - I wish I had known sooner what a great cleaner it is and how the smell isn't a big deal except for the first 2 seconds as you open the bottle!

Lynda

Being Scottish, I am thrifty!!!! this will surprise you. wet sponge little dabe of toothpast cover top like waxing your car,loosens grease and dirt. Then clean with Sprayway glass cleaner remove with paper towel or cloth.Two reasons I use this window cleaner no Ammonia and part of the sale goes towards breast cancer. Then go brush you teeth then go to Wal-Mart. Weedavie1942

I love Sprayway glass cleaner! It is the best.

What about 409? It's great for grease on stove tops. Unless the grease stains are old and hard..uh..like on my backsplash (soon to be gone, thankfully!) behind my stove. lol.

I bought a can of Clorex Disinfectant Wipes for the kitchen. I always use them in the bathrooms but it said it can be used in the kitchen too. Now I don't even need to drag the 409 and paper towels out. This stuff wipes down great. Even splatters that have sat on the stove for a few days. :)

I fried fish tonight and when it was cooled off, I went over it with the wipes, and voila!, it was spik and span!

I'd try cheap store brand "sudsy ammonia" plus one of those metal scrubbies (or an SOS pad). My stove is 22 years old and still looks okay. One of my "secret" is I buy aluminum pan liners at the dollar store (six for a buck) and replace them almost once a week. Depends on how much cooking I do. Last night we had salad and sandwiches (no cooking).

A word of caution:

Never use ammonia with any bleach based product. The results are deadly. Every year many people die from mixing the two. Use one or the other, never together!

My cleaning lady tried numerous different cleaning products on my black cooktop with no luck. I finally decided to try just baking soda and water. Next time my cleaning lady came over she couldn't believe the difference. It looked brand new! Still looks great and this is over a year later still using just baking soda and water.

Sprinkle on the baking soda and spray/sprinkle on some water. Let it sit for about 15 minutes and wipe it off. Done! I've since replaced nearly all my household cleaners with just plain old baking soda and water.

If the stains are old, first time or two will probably take some extra elbow grease, and a few applications of bs/water.

I agree w/lglslgs. I use amonia for EVERYTHING! It's cheap, and it works. When I clean the stove top after each meal, especially if I fried something, I spray it w/amonia and then "shine" it up w/ rubbing alcohol. It's really cheap too. I use a lint free window towel sold @ Walmart for about $3.00 for 2 towels, they really make a difference in lint issues, which are bad w/black appliances. Rubbing alcohol helps eliminate any streaks left behind and shines it up very nice. I use the same thing on windows.

mystique- is it a flat top stove? I clean for a lady and she has one and I use straight dish soap and rub it on with a paper towel (no water!) and let it set for about 5 minutes then I use hot water and a sponge and clean it right off. I use a little windex and wipe it down and there no streaks.

She also keeps a bottle of cerama-brite (sp) that I have used a few times if something got charred on the surface and you just squirt it on and use this little credit card shaped scraper (no metal blades though) and it comes right off.

my husband baked on a wrapper to my smooth top stove, and now I do not know how to get it off.

Mr. Clean erasers work great on ceramic cooktops! I plan to try the ammonia too.

I use Weimans stove top cleaner and a dry sponge. It will look llike car wax that has dried when you get thru. After the paste drys you wipe it off and buff with the clean side of the rag and voila...no streaks.

Home depot sells a kit for the glass cooktops ceramabrite. Comes with a bottle of cleaner, a scrubber, and a scraper that you can replace the razor blade inside. All approved for use on the glass top.