Metal tea kettles are great, very durable, effective, and boil water in no time. But whether you have an electric or traditional kettle, you need to clean it regularly.
Regular cleaning is good enough for everyday use, however problems can occur over time. If you regularly use a kettle over a long period, it will develop hardwater stains, rust, and even tea stains. These will affect the taste of your tea, and could potentially damage your health.
Nobody wants that. To avoid problems, continue reading this guide on how to clean metal tea kettles.
The Best Methods for Cleaning Metal Tea Kettles
There are several ways to go about cleaning a metal kettle. Many of them are effective, relatively inexpensive and easy to do. You’ll need some basic kitchen ingredients such as baking soda, vinegar, oven cleaner, or even lime juice.
You already should have most of these things, but if you don’t, just get them at your local store. Also, you need to try out all these methods, as some might be more effective for your kettle than others.
Select either of the methods below, and you’ll likely see great results from the first try. If not, use a different approach instead until you get a squeaky-clean metal kettle.
Using Baking Soda for Cleaning Metal Tea Kettles
All you need for this method is baking soda, some water, dry rice, and some sort of cloth or scrubbing pad. Just follow these steps to clean your metal kettle with baking soda.
1. Add a cup of baking soda to the kettle.
2. Fill the kettle with water.
3. Boil the water and baking soda.
4. Remove the kettle from the stove and let it rest for ten minutes. When the kettle cools off, continue with the next step.
5. Use a scrubber to gently brush the inside of your kettle. You can use a baby bottle brush if your kettle has a narrow neck. Or, alternatively, add a small cup of dry rice to the kettle and swirl it around.
6. If there are still stains, pour out almost all the boiled water, leaving only some in the kettle.
7. Add some more baking soda and mix it in with a scrubber or pad. This will create a paste, which you should use to keep scrubbing from within.
8. The baking soda is like an abrasive here, and it should remove all stains. Once finished, wash the kettle with warm water.
9. Use any clean, soft cloth to wipe down the kettle.
Using Vinegar for Cleaning Metal Tea Kettles
This method is similar to the previous one, only you use vinegar instead of baking soda. You’ll need some rice, a scrubbing pad or cloth, tap water, and white vinegar. Prepare that and follow these steps.
1. Pour vinegar and water in the kettle in a 1:1 (equal) ratio. Put your kettle on a stove and let the liquids boil.
2. Let this boil for three minutes and turn the stove off.
3. Wait until the liquid cools down and then throw it away.
4. Use a scrubbing pad or a cloth to wipe the inside stains of the kettle. Once again, you can add some dry rice to absorb the stains.
5. Wash the kettle and rinse it well with clean, hot tap water.
6. Use any soft cloth to dry the kettle.
7. If there are remaining stains, use some vinegar on the cloth and scrub some more. You can do the same with the kettle’s exterior for an outside polish.
Using Oven Cleaner for Cleaning Metal Tea Kettles
If you want to clean only the exterior of your metal kettle, you can use any commercial oven cleaner. Just don’t use it on the spout or the interior of the kettle. These are heavy chemicals and you shouldn’t get any in the kettle for self-explanatory reasons (it could be a health hazard).
The steps for cleaning the kettle with an oven cleaner are easy:
1. Spray the oven cleaner on the exterior of the kettle.
2. Let it rest for about ten minutes.
3. Wipe it off using a paper towel or a disposable cloth.
4. After that rinse the kettle well using hot, clean water.
Using Lime Juice for Cleaning Metal Tea Kettles
Unlike the oven cleaner, lime juice is perfectly safe and you can use it to clean the insides of a metal kettle. Just follow these steps.
1. Pour a cup of lime juice into the kettle. Then fill the rest of the kettle with clean, warm water.
2. Put the kettle on the stove and let the water boil for exactly ten minutes. Next, let the water cool off for an hour.
3. Use a soft brush to scrub the kettle gently from within. Then pour out the water and rinse once more using clean, hot water.
That’s it, your kettle should be squeaky clean, with a nice lemony fragrance.
Extra Metal Tea Kettle Cleaning Tips
Remember to clean your tea kettle regularly. Fresh stains are much easier to clean than those that have become encrusted to the kettle over time. You can on occasion use some vinegar or lime juice mixed with water, just to make sure your kettle remains spotless from within.
Never use any harsh or abrasive pads, steel wool, or brushes for cleaning your kettle. These will scratch the kettle or damage it. Use plastic or nylon scrubbers, as they’re most suitable for this. Using bleach for cleaning is also a very bad idea for any metal kettle.
It’s very important never to let your kettle boil dry because this will cause some major scorch marks, which will ruin it. Removing scorch marks isn’t impossible, but is very difficult.
Scrub it Away
For some heavy stains, you’ll have to be patient and scrub a lot until you remove them entirely. Keeping your metal kettle clean isn’t that hard if you do it on a regular basis. Otherwise, it can become more problematic, especially if you reuse the kettle while it’s dirty.
Maintaining proper hygiene in the kitchen is very important, not only for looks but also for your family’s health.
Never clean a teapot with harsh and abrasive cleaners that could damage the surface. Steel wool or wire-bristled brushes can scratch your tea kettle s exterior. Bleach can also damage stainless steel. Wiping down your tea kettle every day keeps the greasy gunk from building up on the exterior. An easy way to do this is to wipe your tea kettle when you wipe your countertops. You can use a damp cloth dipped in clean water or vinegar to wipe the kettle.