How to Clean Range Hood Filters
Deep-clean greasy range hood mesh filters using boiling water, baking soda, and dish soap to restore kitchen ventilation and reduce fire risk.
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🧰 Required Tools & Equipment
- ✓ Rubber cleaning gloves
- ✓ Soft-bristle scrub brush
- ✓ Large kitchen sink or roasting pan
- ✓ Microfiber drying towels
- ✓ Electric kettle or stockpot
📦 Materials & Supplies
- ✓ Baking soda
- ✓ Degreasing dish soap
- ✓ Boiling water
⚠️ Safety Checkpoints & Warnings
- • Ensure stovetop burners are completely off and cool before reaching overhead.
- • Wear rubber gloves to protect skin from scalding water and dissolved grease.
- • Add baking soda slowly to boiling water to prevent violent bubbling and splashing.
📋 Step-by-Step Guide (6 Steps)
Remove filters from range hood
Locate the metal latch or finger loop on the underside of each filter. Pull the latch back toward you to release the spring mechanism, then tilt the filter downward and slide it out of the rear track. Set the filters aside flat on a protected counter.
- • Empty rectangular cavities visible in the underside of the range hood.
- • Filters resting flat on the counter with mesh intact and unbent.
- • Yanking directly downward without disengaging the metal spring latch.
Prepare the soaking basin
Seal the kitchen sink drain tightly with a stopper. Squirt a generous circle of degreasing dish soap (about 2 tablespoons) across the bottom of the sink and sprinkle 1/2 cup of baking soda evenly over the basin floor.
- • Drain firmly plugged with no water escaping.
- • White baking soda powder and colored dish soap spread across the basin floor.
- • Placing the filters into a dry sink before adding cleaning agents, causing uneven distribution.
Add boiling water and submerge filters
Pour freshly boiled water directly into the basin over the soap and soda until the mixture foams vigorously. Carefully slide the greasy filters into the bubbling water using gloved hands until they are completely submerged.
- • Filters completely covered by steaming, soapy water.
- • Active white foam layer rising and floating yellow grease starting to separate.
- • Using lukewarm tap water instead of boiling water, which fails to melt solidified cooking oils.
Soak to dissolve grease
Allow the filters to sit submerged undisturbed for 15 to 20 minutes while the alkaline solution breaks down baked-on oil. If the filters only fit halfway, flip them over at the 10-minute mark to ensure both halves soak equally.
- • Water turns cloudy, brown, or yellowish with grease globules floating on the surface.
- • Mesh wires visible through loosening slime layers.
- • Pulling the filters out prematurely before the chemical reaction dissolves hardened grease.
Scrub the mesh gently
Lift one filter at a time above the water level and scrub the wire mesh in circular patterns with a soft-bristle brush. Apply moderate pressure to dislodge softened residue in corners and around the latch without pushing through the mesh layers.
- • Mesh openings clearly visible with light shining through the grid.
- • No yellow buildup or sticky gummy residue remaining around the metal perimeter.
- • Using steel wool, abrasive scouring pads, or wire brushes that rip and fray the delicate aluminum mesh.
Rinse, dry, and reinstall
Rinse the filters thoroughly under hot running tap water until no suds or grease film remain. Prop the filters upright on clean microfiber towels to air-dry completely for 1 hour, then slide them back into the hood tracks and click the latches into place.
- • Clean, silver, shiny mesh with zero water droplets or soap film.
- • Filters securely seated flush in the range hood with latches engaged.
- • Reinstalling filters while still damp, which traps moisture inside the range hood ducting.
Credit: inspired by an original tutorial by Clean My Space — watch the original on YouTube.
Don’t have everything?
- No Soft-bristle scrub brush? Old nylon toothbrush
- No Large kitchen sink? Deep metal roasting pan or plastic utility tub