Cleaning stained teaspoons

Hi,

I've noticed that very many of my teaspoons are badly stained, and in the small creasing at the back, is black with what can only be tea stain?

A friend said that only scrubbing them with steel wool and detergent would clean them. I don't mind that, but it isn't easy to reach inside the moulded creases at the back. I wondered if there was a solution (such as borax or sodium bicarb or ammonia eg) that I could leave them soak in overnight to bring them all up nice and shiny? I *do* have a "silver cleaning" tray that is supposed to clean silver only by soaking the silver on top of it with added sodium bicarb (I think). Would that do it?

By the way, they are a cheap stainless steel. Not really good quality.

Thanks,

avril

Reply to
av
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Since they are stainless, I don't think that the silver cleaning tray will work. That device deals with tarnish, but your spoons have some sort of deposit, not tarnish. Since they are inexpensive, I would try using some ammonia. Put a test spoon in a plastic container with a tight fitting lid and pour in some ammonia. You don't need to cover the spoon as it is the fumes that will do the work. Leave the spoon in there with the cover on over night. If all goes well, it will rinse clean in the morning. This will work with stainless cookware also. Since you think it is may be a tea stain, you could also try soaking a spoon in some laundry bleach. I wouldn't recommend the steel wool as it will just scratch the flatware and that will accelerate future staining. If bleach or ammonia don't work (don't mix them as that will produce deadly chlorine gas!) you might try some oven cleaner. If the stainless is 18/10 it should do a good job without harming the flatware - just test it on a single piece first!

Reply to
Vox Humana

stained,

good

cleaning tray will

some sort of

using some

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morning. This

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first!

Thank you for your advice. I think I will try the bleach on one first, then if that doesn't work, I'll test the ammonia.

avril

Reply to
av

Flatware should be cleaned by soaking overnight. You could add some baking soda to the soaking solution. After soaking, try cleaning off the stain using a toothbrush dipped in vinegar, then dipped in salt. Vinegar and salt will polish most metals. Alternatively, you could try CLR or Brasso to remove a stain from stainless steel. I would not use abrasive cleaners. I doubt household ammonia will do much good.

Reply to
Phisherman

A squirt of thick bleach in a tea stained mug and topped up with hot water. Spoons should be clean within a minute along with the mug. FWIW I use the same mug for my tea all the time six or seven mugs a day. I immerse the spoons I've used all day in that mug, rinse well then wash up as normal ready for the next day.

Reply to
Dawn

some

cleaning off

salt.

could

would not

good.

Thank you also for your help. It gives me different options to try :) avril

Reply to
av

with hot

mug.

mugs a

well

Thank you. Yes, I'm sure I've cleaned my cups that way. I never thought of it for the teaspoons. I can top your six or seven cups a day by almost double that! (No wonder the spoons are stained!) All the best, avril

Reply to
av

Be careful about household bleach and stainless steel or any metal, which I do not recommend. Using household bleach on stained cups and mugs for a minute soak works great and won't harm the (glass or porcelain) cups.

Reply to
Phisherman

Good warning! I have read that bleach will eat away stainless steel if left in contact for hours on end so any valuable spoons should not be treated with bleach "just in case", However I did have a stainless steel sink before my Astracast one that I used for soaking whites and other things in bleach and I had no problem, the sink was always gleaming. I've noticed over here that a lot of public toilet pans/urinals are now vandal resistant stainless steel. I don't know if they use bleach to clean them, whatever they use leaves a dull finish, they never look bright and clean.

Reply to
Dawn

Try soaking them in a solution of tide and water. Should clean them nicely.

Reply to
Boca Jan

Thank also for your help.

I don't know what 'tide' is. I live in Melbourne, Australia. Do you know what other name it goes by, or what are its ingredients?

Again, thanks,

avril

them nicely.

stained,

easy

if

ammonia

all

is

it

good

Reply to
av

ooops, sorry. Tide is a laundry soap.

Boca Jan

Reply to
Boca Jan

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