Alkaline paste against ash on a damp cloth

Stove glass cleaners, and what each one is actually for

Stove glass blackens with a baked tar film that ordinary glass cleaner does not touch, and the shelf divides into three answers. Alkaline pastes and gels soften the film chemically and are the type most makers of stoves recommend; they are read on the volume, on whether they are declared non-abrasive, and on what else they may be used on — several are declared for ceramic hobs, several are explicitly not. Impregnated wipes do the same job in a disposable form and cost several times more per use, which is the whole comparison. Abrasive blocks and pads remove the film mechanically, work fast, and are the reason a proportion of stove glass ends its life scratched: ceramic glass is hard but the printed edge band is not. The figure that separates them is therefore not strength but what the maker declares the product safe on — the glass, the painted frame, the gasket, the enamel. A cleaner that attacks the door seal saves an evening and costs a gasket. Then the traditional method that half of these listings mention and none of them sell: a damp newspaper dipped in cold wood ash, which is mildly alkaline and mildly abrasive and is why it works. We compare form, volume, coverage, method, dwell time, targets, chemistry and also stated for.

These parts, set out figure by figure

1. 

   abrazo CeraKlar Glass Pads, 2-Pack

   A dry steel-wool pad used with no chemistry at all — reusable, knocked clean rather than washed, and the cheapest thing in this family.

   Form

   Steel wool with fine elastic microfibre · Knock the soot off rather than washing it out, as stated

   Volume

   2 pads · The maker states the same range exists for car glass, window glass and aquarium glass

   Coverage

   Not published

   Method

   Dry — no liquid, no chemistry

   Dwell time

   The maker does not state it.

   Targets

   The maker does not state it.

   Chemistry

   Stated not to smear or scratch · 1925, as stated

   Also stated for

   The maker does not state it.

   Amazon reference

   B08NPK8WCG (one reference across 5 Amazon marketplaces)

   EAN

   4003364606617

   • No liquid at all, which removes the run-off and the drying time
   • Reusable, with the maker stating how — knocked out, not washed
   • Steel wool on a ceramic pane is a mechanical method, and the maker’s no-scratch claim is its own

   Best for: Regular light soot on a pane that gets wiped often, by somebody who would rather not spray anything

   Check price on Amazon
2. 

   HG Stove Glass Spray, 500 ml

   The only listing here to publish a dwell time — three to five minutes — and the only one stated as working on sooted brickwork as well.

   Form

   Spray, in a ready-to-use bottle

   Volume

   500 ml · None required

   Coverage

   Not published

   Method

   Spray on, leave, wipe off with a damp sponge

   Dwell time

   3 to 5 minutes, as stated

   Targets

   Soot, tar and grease

   Chemistry

   Stated as non-toxic

   Also stated for

   Removing soot from brickwork

   Amazon reference

   B007PCI03K (one reference across 5 Amazon marketplaces)

   EAN

   8711577009274

   • Publishes a dwell time, which is the one instruction that decides whether a cleaner works
   • Stated for sooted brickwork as well as glass, which no other listing here claims
   • A liquid spray on a vertical pane runs, where the foams in this family are formulated not to

   Best for: A sooted pane and a sooted surround, where one bottle should handle both

   Check price on Amazon
3. 

   RAKSO Glass Pads, 4-Pack

   Four dry steel-wool pads from a maker that has made steel wool since 1901, stated to work on the pane cold or warm and against resin spatter.

   Form

   Steel wool, professional sponge · Knock the soot off rather than washing it out, as stated

   Volume

   4 pads, in two packs of two

   Coverage

   Not published

   Method

   Dry — no chemistry

   Dwell time

   The maker does not state it.

   Targets

   Cold or warm, as stated · Deep-seated soot, and resin spatter from resinous wood

   Chemistry

   Stated not to smear or scratch · 1901, as stated

   Also stated for

   The maker does not state it.

   Amazon reference

   B07VT2JQRV (one reference across 6 Amazon marketplaces)

   EAN

   4003364307507

   • Four pads rather than two, at a price between the two-pack and the liquids
   • States that the pane may be cold or warm, which no other listing here does
   • Steel wool on a glass-ceramic pane is mechanical, and the no-scratch claim is the maker’s

   Best for: A household burning resinous softwood, where spatter rather than flat soot is the recurring deposit

   Check price on Amazon
4. 

   Reinhorn Glass Foam, 300 ml

   The only listing on this shelf to publish how many cleanings a can gives — about twenty — in an active foam formulated to hold on vertical glass.

   Form

   Active foam, in a 300 ml can · Stated to hold on vertical glass, unlike liquid sprays and gels · None, and no steel wool, as stated

   Volume

   The maker does not state it.

   Coverage

   approx. 20 cleanings, as stated

   Method

   Under 2 minutes, as stated

   Dwell time

   The maker does not state it.

   Targets

   Soot, smoke resin and combustion residues

   Chemistry

   Made in Germany, as stated

   Also stated for

   Wood stoves, pellet stoves, ovens and barbecues

   Amazon reference

   B0CX6V83FT (one reference across 5 Amazon marketplaces)

   EAN

   4251862201562

   • The only listing in this family to publish a number of cleanings per container
   • A foam formulated to stay on vertical glass, which is where a liquid runs
   • The smallest container in this family at 300 ml

   Best for: Regular cleaning where knowing what a can actually lasts matters more than its volume

   Check price on Amazon
5. 

   Prinox Glass Cleaner, 550 ml

   A 550 ml spray with a three-step method — spray, sponge, polish — and a lifetime return offer stated by the maker.

   Form

   Spray

   Volume

   550 ml

   Coverage

   Not published

   Method

   Spray on, brief dwell, work with a sponge, polish with a cloth

   Dwell time

   Stated as brief, without a figure

   Targets

   Soot, smoke resin and baked-on residues · Stated for every kind of stove and fireplace glass

   Chemistry

   Stated not to attack the glass surface and to leave no residue · The maker states a lifetime return option

   Also stated for

   The maker does not state it.

   Amazon reference

   B0BG2L6ZD2 (one reference across 3 Amazon marketplaces)

   EAN

   4260760850178

   • The largest single spray bottle in this family at 550 ml
   • A three-step method including a polish, which the other liquids do not describe
   • A liquid on vertical glass runs, where the foams here are formulated not to

   Best for: A pane cleaned thoroughly a few times a season rather than wiped every week

   Check price on Amazon
6. 

   ABACUS Glass Cleaner, 2 × 750 ml

   The only listing here to name its chemistry — an alkaline formulation — and to state what it does not attack: rubber, plastic and most metals.

   Form

   Spray · Stated not to attack rubber, plastic or most metals

   Volume

   2 × 750 ml

   Coverage

   Not published

   Method

   A few minutes, as stated

   Dwell time

   The maker does not state it.

   Targets

   Soot, tar, ash and baked-on residues

   Chemistry

   Alkaline formulation, as stated · Stated to develop no toxic fumes and not to be environmentally hazardous · Developed and produced in the maker’s own laboratory and plant, as stated

   Also stated for

   Stove doors, boilers, other fire-resistant glass and metal surfaces; grills and ovens

   Amazon reference

   B09G6Z4991 (one reference across 4 Amazon marketplaces)

   EAN

   4250606718519

   • Names its chemistry, which nothing else in this family does
   • States what it does not attack — rubber, plastic, most metals — which is the seal and the frame
   • An alkaline cleaner is a chemistry to keep off skin and away from aluminium trim

   Best for: A household cleaning several appliances, where the material-compatibility statement is the reassurance wanted

   Check price on Amazon
7. 

   HOTREGA Glass Foam, 2 × 300 ml

   A high-performance foam with the one instruction other listings omit: spray from about twenty centimetres, then leave it briefly.

   Form

   Active foam · Stated to hold on vertical glass and to reach awkward places

   Volume

   2 × 300 ml

   Coverage

   Not published

   Method

   approx. 20 cm, as stated · Spray, brief dwell, wipe off · Ready to use — no dilution, no preparation

   Dwell time

   The maker does not state it.

   Targets

   Stubborn soot, grease and smoke resin

   Chemistry

   Stated for glass, metal and plastic, and other heat-resistant surfaces

   Also stated for

   The maker does not state it.

   Amazon reference

   B01N6T37HK (one reference across 6 Amazon marketplaces)

   EAN

   4260465360705

   • The only listing here to publish an application distance
   • A foam that holds on vertical glass, stated to reach awkward places
   • No coverage figure, where the other foam in this family publishes one

   Best for: A door with recesses and corners, where a foam that holds where it lands is the point

   Check price on Amazon