How can I remove melted plastic wrap from a pan?

Plastic wraps are usually made from either PVC or LDPE. PVC is soluble in MEK (sold at Home Depot in the paint section), and LDPE is soluble in acetone (also sold at Home Depot in the paint section.

This won’t be a matter of just wiping it off with a solvent-soaked paper towel, though. It will need some soaking in the solvent. And both of these solvents are highly volatile and stinky.

Wet your finger and dip it in baking soda. Rub the edges of the stuck area with the baking soda on your finger. It will come up. I had a bread wrapper stuck to a metal sided toaster and this is how I got it off. Some areas will be stuck harder than others.

Baking soda is amazing because it works like scouring powder, yet it dissolves instantly in water and never scratches. You can dip a wet toothbrush in baking soda and use it to detail about anything you can name. It’s awesome.

Wow, @snowberry, what a great tip! I knew baking soda has lots and lots of uses but I never heard this one. Next time I have @hug_of_war‘s problem I’ll try it.

Haha..I am dealing with the same issue, only the plastic wrap melted on a glass bowl of pizza dough I was making the other night. I have been using steel wool but still have a long ways to go. I can only turbo scrub for about 2 minutes before my fingers seize up. I wonder if Goo Gone would work too?

I’ve never had this particular problem, but after baking soda and all else fails, I resort to a spray can of EASY-OFF oven cleaner.

But, for maximum effectiveness, after thoroughly coating the area with the EO, let it marinate overnight before trying to scour it off.

For a glass bowl with melted plastic, I’d start by scraping a razor blade along the area and lifting as much of the plastic up as I could. Then once I’ve got lots of “edges” of plastic, it’s easier to switch to the baking soda.

I couldn’t do that with the metal toaster because I would have scratched it. I have done this with glass before, but you may find it takes longer.

If it’s a small bit of plastic, just turn the oven/stove hood up, put the pan on the stove full of water, and heat until the smell goes away?

Plastic should never be on a stove or in an oven. Never. Not when it is off or on.

Sounds like there are some good suggestions above. Some I never heard of and I am glad you asked this question.

I might have tried just letting it burn off, but I don’t know if that would definitely work.

Or if the noxious fumes from the burning plastic would sicken you or kill your pets.

I’d be pretty cautious about that approach.

The fumes from Easy Off and other chemicals probably warrant an open window, and even possibly a mask if you are really prudent, the same as burning the plastic.

snowberry is a genius. Worked like a charm with minimal effort.

Thanks for the update. Good to know what worked.

oxy acetylene torch hit the O2 when you see it start to ignite the plastic. cutting head of course