I have had this teapot about 3 months and in this last month it has been in constant use and yesterday these stains appeared, is it rust? Should I throw away the kettle or can it be saved?
Even if it is, some iron oxide wouldn’t hurt. Some cast-iron teapots even depend on it for improving taste, I’ve heard.
Though there are different flavors of iron oxide. Gun bluing is iron oxide, but so is rust. One is protective and the other is detrimental.
I was talking about human consumption lol
Assuming it’s stainless it might be rust or it could just be dirty. Just take a scotch Brite pad and scrub it off with some elbow grease. Even if it is rust it will come off and be fine. Source: metal trades person
I’m not sure I’d recommend an abrasive pad though for a kitchen appliance. Every kettle or distiller recommends using a soft cleaning pad. Critic acid to break up limescale, or CLR, and then a soft pad. Abrasive ones put scratches into the metal interior of the appliance which gives more surface area for dirt to take root. Makes it harder to keep clean and harder to clean in general.
This isn’t limescale though. The stainless surface isn’t perfectly smooth already and appears to be a light brushed, though may just be spun. A kitchen scotch brite pad isn’t going to increase the surface roughness any. That said, I’d use barkeepers friend for this particular issue.
Yes, that is rust, but it’s in no way dangerous, and you can also scrape it off with any abrasive scrub if you don’t like the look of it
I’m not a health expert, take this with a grain of salt. I’d be disappointed it was rusting, but also mostly shrug it off and keep using it unless it gets bad and flaky/scaley
No thanks. I prefer my tea without any salt. Even one grain would be too much salt.
Ugh
Whatever it is you can get rid of it with some steel wool
Looks like it could be rust. Even if it it’s, that’s not really a problem. You can probably get rid of the rust by cleaning the teapot a bit better next time.
I don’t see any problem with continuing to use it in the future. If you’re worried about microbes colonizing the place, remember two things:
- When not in use, keep it empty and dry.
- Clean it every now and then.
BTW, aren’t teapots usually ceramic?
Could be rust or some minerals that ended up on the bottom. Try boiling a mix of vinegar and water and see if it wipes off after. I’d keep using it anyways though, nothing to worry about.
There is a product called CLR, calcium lyme and rust remover, available at hardware stores.
Isn’t CLR basically vinegar? All the other stuff in it is just to obfuscate how cheaply you could achieve the same effect.
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I find it amusing how no one points out how ridiculous it is for ops first reaction to 3 spots of brown in his brand new kettle is for him to throw it away and get a new one
Well, I’m using it to heat water for a newborn, so I’m being little over careful, that’s why I’m asking.
Fair is fair I guess, I’m just from a third world country so seeing things as disposable is just plain wrong for me
Shit, shirts dirty. Better throw it away.
