We had to replace a radiator today and I used some PTFE tape.
As I like the apprentices to learn and just generally gain knowledge I told him that the PTFE tape was the same thing used to make non stick pans.
And then he asked "Are you sure? My Mum's non stick pans are black not white"
Well he has a point. Wikipedia says PTFE is white at room temperature. Either that of he has burn his Mums pans:-)
What did you say to him after that comment?
PTFE comes in different colours.
I believe you can colour it, we have some teflon pans that are internally grey.
The bonding on the metal is not as easy as you might think. Cannot remember it all but early ones did shed the material, not good for the food.
Brian
Pure PTFE is white. Pan coatings are full of fillers, pigments, bonding agents, etc.
Do the pigments come from bacon?
Joseph and his many-coloured frying pan?
No, that's a pigment of your imagination.
But you shouldn't let that colour your thinking.
Burning teflon coatings is a really _really_ bad idea...
You could have shown him your yellow and pink Polytetrafluoroethylene tape.
At my first job (Northampton Scooters, 1963) the boss's wife had some v. expensive "non-stick" saucepans. She managed to burn food in one and brought it to the workshop for us to clean it. We proved, much to her dismay, that Teflon is indeed non-stick!
It took well over 10 years to work out how to make it stick to sauspans, well into the 1970's. Before then, it was very expensive and very short life.
Yes - I remember my grandfather trying one of these new fangled pans in the early 70's... OK until he burnt it one day.. then he tried to repair it with the non-strick spray-on stuff - that was a disaster, so it was wire brushed (electric drill) and properly seasond with oil.. (maybe lard, but who knows!)
Gordon
Sounds like my late Dad,had is own pan and used for many a late night fry up of whatever was in the fridge that was fryable and some things that shouldn't have been like half a (home made plate sized) pasty. Approx once a year when the crud had got thick it was machine wire brushed and re seasoned .
G.Harman
Gas pipe PTFE tape is yellow. The very first non stick pan my mum got had a grey coating. Not very durable,either.
Exactly so. My largest heart-attack-onna-plate fryer was a good non-sticker for years, but the coating gave up eventually. Scrubbed and seasoned, it's been a bloody good conventional pan ever since.
I was intrigued to read that, in the 1930s, DuPont had invented PTFE and could find no real use for it. Then came the atom bomb programme and it was perfect for uranium hexafluoride gas pump seals. It was a secret for years after that, iirc.
Gas PTFE I have is white, although it's on a yellow spool. It's 10 years old - maybe new stuff changed colour more recently?
Mine is 2 years old, white on yellow spool.
"Not very durable,either."
I hope that does not translate to "I burnt it"
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