Need Help Cleaning Porcelein

[Dwayne Henson]

Obtained a Porcelein covered Cast Iron Skillet. Any ideas on how to clean it up? Thanks

[fatfutures]

Dwayne... I've cleaned porcelain with good old oven cleaner and with electro. Both with good results. The piece I cleaned with electro was in very good shape, no cracks or chips. I think I've read here that if there are cracks some of the porcelain can come off with electro.


Just FYI... I've never been able to find lye here but, I have found that Kroger carries a brand of oven cleaner, Everyday Living, that still contains lye.

[C. Perry Rapier]

Michelle, thats interesting that you have cleaned porcelain with electro and have achieved good results. What was on the electro that you cleaned off? I mean, it couldn't have been rust, right?

Also, I have always "assumed", thats a bad word, that porcelain is not a conductor of electricity and so it just won't work. Also, the talk about electro damaging porcelain is that, if the porcelain is coming off and the electro gets underneath the porcelain, the electro will push off the bad porcelain, in other words if the porcelain is already coming off, the electro will intensify the coming off.

But, what you are saying does not bear that out. As for me, I have never tried electro on porcelain. So thanks for that information. :)

[fatfutures]

Perry, I've got an old ( I think its Lodge) skillet. It's interior is enamel/porcelain. The outside is plain ol cast iron, that was a bit rusty.

As far as any porcelain/enamel coming off in the cooker, I'm fairly certain (as dangerous as "assume") that I read that tidbit in a post here.

I should have clarified that the piece I put in the electro was plain cast iron on the outside. Sorry... Only had one eye open at taht point and the coffee was still brewing  ;D

I doubt that a cast iron piece that was entirely coated with porcelain would come clean with electro. For the reason you stated, Perry.

[C. Perry Rapier]

Perry, I've got an old ( I think its Lodge) skillet. It's interior is enamel/porcelain. The outside is plain ol cast iron, that was a bit rusty.

As far as any porcelain/enamel coming off in the cooker, I'm fairly certain (as dangerous as "assume") that I read that tidbit in a post here.

I should have clarified that the piece I put in the electro was plain cast iron on the outside. Sorry... Only had one eye open at taht point and the coffee was still brewing  ;D

I doubt that a cast iron piece that was entirely coated with porcelain would come clean with electro. For the reason you stated, Perry.

Ah! Thanks for the clarification darling.  ;) Lest there be any doubt I do read the posts you post and will ask questions if I do not understand. And Michelle "taht point", sorry I just had to do that since you said you only had one eye open "then".   ;D

[fatfutures]

Unfortunately, "taht" is the way I normally type! LOL! Damn dyslexic fingers!

[Steve_Stephens]

If you put porcelain in lye keep the time to a minimum and don't forget it for days or weeks on end.  I "think" that lye will etch porcelain and don't personally put porc. in lye if I can help it.

steve

[fatfutures]

Steve, I agree that left too long in lye, porcelain can become etched. However, for normal cleaning it should be fine... I've got a 50 year old oven that's been cleaned with some sort of lye product it's entire "life" and it's not etched in any way.

Another product that I forgot to mention... Dawn Power Disolver! This stuff ROCKS! You might want to try this on your piece, Dwayne. Depending on the level of funk involved, this might be a nice easy, non caustic way to go.

[Dwayne Henson]

Thanks y'all.  Wasn't quite sure how to procede with this one.

[Brian Vick]

For what it's worth I got a big porcelain skillet that was as funky as they come, got it free and there were no chips just years of crud figured nothin gained nothin lost...put it in my lye tank and pulled it a few days later and it came out just beautiful shiny as could be maybe I was lucky but it worked for me
OB ;D

[maloney108]

Lye does etch glass and porcelein, but it's a slooooowww process - Chemists keep strong caustic solutions in glass bottles and eventually they get etched, but it takes weeks and months.  The organic crud will be gone in two or three days.  A little of the smooth top range cleaner should bring out the shine.