This cupboard above the cooker seems handy – fire experts explain why it’s the worst place to store oil

Open almost any British kitchen and you’ll find the same thing: a neat little cupboard above the hob, packed with cooking oils, sprays and the odd bottle of vinegar. It feels logical – oil by the cooker, ready for the pan. Fire investigators wince every time they see it.

Across UK homes, the space above the hob is one of the hottest, smokiest spots in the room. Put flammable liquids there and you quietly turn mild everyday cooking into a much more dangerous situation if anything goes wrong. The fix is simple, costs nothing, and can make the difference between a small scare and a full kitchen fire.

Why the cupboard above the hob is a fire trap

When you cook, hot air, steam and grease rise straight up. Even with a working extractor, a surprising amount of heat and vapour pushes into that overhead unit. Over time, the wood and shelving inside dry out, pick up a light film of grease and warm every time the hob is on.

Add bottles of oil or pressurised cooking sprays and you have three things in the same place: heat, fuel and, just below, an open flame or glowing electric ring. That’s the classic recipe for a rapid, hard‑to‑control fire.

Fire crews describe these cupboards as “silent accelerants”: they sit quietly for years until the one day you really need time and space to escape.

It isn’t just deep frying that raises the risk. Everyday simmering, wok cooking, pan‑frying bacon, even repeated toasting on a gas hob will warm that cupboard again and again. Plastic bottles soften slightly, lids age, and aerosol cans sit in a pocket of heat they were never designed for.

How oil behaves when things go wrong

Cooking oil does not behave like water when it overheats. It has a “smoke point” where it begins to break down and fume, then, a little later, an “ignition point” where it can burst into flames. A distracted phone call, one more email, a doorbell – that’s often all it takes.

Once oil is burning:

• Flames can easily lick upwards into the cupboard.
• Any leaking bottle or splashed residue becomes extra fuel.
• Aerosol cans may rupture or explode in the intense heat.

The cupboard itself – usually chipboard or MDF with a veneer – can ignite quickly, and the fire then runs along the wall units, across the ceiling and into the extractor. At that stage, opening a window or door can actually feed the flames with fresh oxygen.

Water on a pan fire creates an explosive steam cloud that throws burning oil across the kitchen. A flaming cupboard full of oil above that pan simply adds more fuel to the spray.

In real investigations, fire officers often find the most severe damage right where that “handy” cupboard stood. Bottles melt outright, labels vanish, and the doors act like chimneys once they fail, funnelling heat into the room.

What fire services actually recommend

When crews and safety officers talk about kitchen fires, they say the same few things over and over. The pattern is boringly consistent – and very preventable.

• Keep all cooking oils, sprays and spare bottles away from the hob and oven.
• Use the space above the cooker only for items that will not burn or explode.
• Never store aerosol cans, alcohol, cleaning sprays or tea towels in that zone.
• Stay in the room when frying and set a timer, even for “just a minute”.

If a pan does catch alight:

• Turn off the heat if you can do so without leaning over the flames.
• Slide a metal lid or a fire blanket over the pan to smother the fire.
• Do not move the pan, and never throw water on it.
• If the fire spreads beyond the pan, get everyone out, shut the door, and call 999.

The calmer you can keep that area around the hob – clean, clear, uncluttered – the more time you buy yourself to act safely if something goes wrong.

Safer places to keep oil – and what can stay above the hob

You don’t need to banish oil to a distant cupboard and forget it exists. You just need to uncouple it from the hottest part of the room.

Better spots for bottles and sprays

Aim for “reachable but not above the heat”:

• A lower cupboard to the side of the cooker.
• A pull‑out rack or shelf at waist height, away from the hob.
• A cool corner of the worktop, at least 50–60 cm from the rings.
• For bulk bottles, a pantry or under‑counter cupboard.

Pressurised cans – oil sprays, air fresheners, cleaning products – should be kept in a cool cupboard well away from any heat source, including the boiler and tumble dryer.

What still works in the overhead cupboard

The space above the hob isn’t automatically forbidden, but it should be treated as “low‑risk only”. Suitable items include:

• Light crockery, plates and bowls.
• Dry ingredients in sealed jars (rice, pasta, herbs).
• Metal colanders, sieves and mixing bowls.
• Empty glass containers that don’t mind a bit of warmth.

Avoid anything that could act as a wick (kitchen roll, napkins), anything with a low flashpoint (spirits, oils) and anything under pressure (sprays, aerosol cans).

A quick kitchen fire‑risk check you can do today

You don’t need special equipment to make your kitchen safer in fifteen minutes. Fire officers often talk through a simple mental checklist like this:

1. Look up:
   Open the cupboard above your hob. Remove:

   • All oils and cooking sprays.
   • Bottles of spirits, vinegars with alcohol, and flavouring extracts.
   • Cleaning sprays, polish, air fresheners.
   • Tea towels, aprons, spare oven gloves, paper products.

2. Look around the hob:
   Move away:

   • Freestanding plastic spice racks close to the rings.
   • Chopping boards or wooden spoons leaning on the back of the hob.
   • Charging cables, phones and tablets left on the worktop next to the pan.

3. Check your “just in case” kit:

   • Make sure you have a metal lid that fits your most-used frying pan.
   • If you own a fire blanket, mount it on the wall near the kitchen door, not next to the hob.
   • Test your smoke alarm and replace the battery if needed.

4. Rehome your oils:

   • Group all oils together in a cooler cupboard.
   • Put the bottle you use most often at the front so you’re not tempted to keep a “spare” on the hob.

It’s the combination of small adjustments – where things live, what sits above the heat, how crowded the hob area is – that turns a high‑risk kitchen into a forgiving one.

Everyday habits that quietly cut the risk

Buildings don’t cause kitchen fires on their own; habits do. You don’t have to become anxious about every pan, but a few quiet rules make a real difference.

• Stay with sizzling pans. If you must leave the room, even briefly, turn off the heat.
• Wipe as you go. A quick cloth over splattered tiles, hob tops and cupboard doors stops grease building up into a flammable film.
• Keep handles turned in. It makes it harder to knock pans and spill hot oil.
• Use the back rings for deep pans. This naturally protects them a little from knocks and draughts.
• Treat alcohol with care. Add it to pans off the direct flame, especially with gas.

Firefighters often say the safest kitchens are the “boringly tidy” ones: nothing above the hob that doesn’t need to be there, and nothing around it that can turn a small flare‑up into a house‑wide blaze.

Simple kit that earns its keep

You don’t need a wall of red extinguishers, but a few well‑chosen items help:

• A fire blanket rated for kitchen use.
• A long‑handled, solid metal lid.
• A working smoke alarm in or near the kitchen, not removed because it “kept going off”.

Place them where you can reach them without crossing the hob. If you have to stretch over the pan to grab the blanket, it’s in the wrong place.

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FAQ:

• Is it ever safe to keep oil above the cooker if I rarely fry food? Fire services still advise against it. Even boiling pasta or using the oven warms that cupboard over time, and one pan left unattended is enough to make the storage choice matter.
  
• What about olive oil in dark glass bottles – are they less risky? The glass may cope slightly better with warmth, but the oil inside is still flammable. Position matters more than packaging; keep all oils away from direct heat.
  
• Can I use a small extinguisher on a kitchen oil fire? Only if it is specifically rated for cooking oil/fat fires (Class F) and you have been shown how to use it. For most households, a fire blanket and getting out safely are the preferred options.
  
• My extractor has a cupboard built around it – does that change things? The same rule applies: surrounding units should hold only low‑risk items. The extractor itself needs clean filters and clear space so grease doesn’t build up and ignite.
  
• We have a tiny galley kitchen – I feel I have no storage choice. What then? Prioritise safety zones: keep the immediate area above and to the sides of the hob for non‑flammable items, and shift oils to any cooler corner you can find, even if that means a crate in a hallway cupboard.