Taking care of enamelled cooker, cookware or bath

(26/11/2009)

Enamel is tough stuff, especially if modern. It is a glass coating on metal and its full title is, 'vitreous enamel'. Older vintage cast iron baths may have a somewhat less durable finish requiring more careful treatment and some of the modern cleaners are probably not suitable to use on them.

Are modern cleaning products safe to use on enamel? Some are. Some are not. How do consumers know whether their newly acquired enamelled cooker, cookware or bath will be harmed by a particular cleaning product? Simple - there is a newly upgraded and illustrated list of laboratory tested cleaners, safe on vitreous enamel, free to visitors at the website of the Vitreous Enamel Association (VEA).

Under Enamel Care, the VEA list Recommended Cleaners For Vitreous Enamel. It includes independently tested and approved household cleaning products from AGA, Astonish, Selden, Cif, Mr Muscle, Fresh & Green, Oven Mate Tableau and Ovenu. VEA Approved and Recommended products are labelled, displaying the VEA Cleaner Scheme symbol.

The VEA maintains the Cleaner Scheme and commissions an independent and impartial laboratory to test and check submitted cleaners do not harm enamel surfaces in kitchens, bathrooms or elsewhere. Only VEA Approved products are listed under ‘Recommended Cleaners For Vitreous Enamel’ and permitted to carry the symbol.

The VEA has a secret to share about a 20-year old cast iron enamel bath that is still almost as good as new. It is has been used every day in a ‘hard water’ area and has been cleaned regularly with approved products. But – and here is the secret - it is dried each time it is used. It is as easy and inexpensive as that. This helpful hint is also recommended in the VEA’s Enamel Care tips. Drying is the key to stopping the build up of water hardness-formed deposits which are often called limescale. These deposits become very difficult to remove if they are allowed to build up and are usually caused by the soap or soap-based products used in the bath, in combination with the water hardness. If the bath is not wiped out each time it is used, a deposit will build up which can become very difficult to remove. It doesn’t take long to do – less than a couple of minutes and an old towel is ideal to use. If a bath is wiped dry, cleaning it with approved cleaning products is required much less frequently, it is much quicker and easier – and costs less.

Related categories:  Baths   Cookers hobs ovens   Kitchen appliances