Why use oven cleaner

My procedure is to spray it on thick at the end of one day and then pressure wash it off the next day. Prior to pressure washing I use some Phosphoric acid to neutralize the lye in the oven cleaner so I don't kill the grass with the runoff. The Phosphoric is handy to get rid of the rust after the oven cleaner does its thing. (Get it at Home Depot in the paint dept.)

Paint usually comes off clean, leaving nothing but bare metal. Where there were several coats, I have had to do it twice. Even little items benefit from this. I use it as mentioned, neutralize it, then use the wire wheel to grind off the paint. After the oven cleaner no effort is required with the wire wheel to remove the paint. By the way, EZ-Off doesn't seem to bother rubber or plastics, but I have been carefull not to test it too thoroughly on anything important.

Phlogiston