The V Word
I used it today!
“Why?” I hear you ask.
Well let me explain and then I will show you……
I know I told the world to vacuum the iron every so often to clean out the dry rusty deposits. Well between use and the moist damp weather in these parts my iron never had the chance to dry out properly in the past fortnight. It does have a ’self-clean’ mode and I decided to use it. To do this you need to fill the water chamber. Sitting on the counter at the time just happened to be my spray bottle of Vinegar.
Hmmm, I thought add a splash to the water. I added three splashes and proceeded to fill the water chamber. Plugging in the iron I left it to stand on end at full heat for a few minutes. Three minutes became five before I came back to the iron.
Holding the hot water filled iron over the sink I began the process of self cleaning. The grunge that came out the spray holes in the sole-plate was unbelievable. Once empty I took this photo to show you. That looks like a crusty lime deposit. We are not in an area for furry deposits on the elements of the kettle or coffee maker.
It was not easy to remove once the iron cooled. I used an old toothbrush (never throw them out when you replace them in the bathroom) it was just right for the job. When I was happy that I had removed all the deposits, I refilled the iron with clean water and repeated the process. The wash through was cleaner but to be sure I did it a third time and cleaned the sole-plate once more.
Now I am all set to iron the Roman blinds from the kitchen, since I took them down and washed them the other day.
Did anyone see that ladder?
Rummuser said,
December 15, 2009 at 1:01 pm
I wish that you had posted this a few days ago. I would have then used the v word in my last comment addressed to BHB!
Nancy said,
December 15, 2009 at 2:18 pm
Gosh,GM thank you for the instructions on how to clean the iron.
They will come in very handy if I ever find my iron again. When polyester came into my life, I misplaced my iron and have not seen it since 1985.
See all the trouble I save myself? And vinegar! Your 500 gallon tank of vinegar will be going down rapidly if you continue to wash your iron three times.
You’d better call your vinegar man to come with his truck and refill your tank for the Winter….
Grannymar said,
December 15, 2009 at 2:54 pm
Ramana -
Nancy - I had the tank filled with oil, so the vinegar delivery has had its chips!
Nancy said,
December 15, 2009 at 3:17 pm
Wow! GM all you need now is the fish…..
MelRoXx said,
December 15, 2009 at 5:31 pm
very handy! thanks GM!
Grannymar said,
December 15, 2009 at 5:45 pm
Nancy - What I need is a good catch!
Mel - Glad to help!
Brighid said,
December 15, 2009 at 7:11 pm
My mom always made me clean the iron with vinegar. I had forgotten until now. Now I just use distilled water and save the vinegar for fish & chips.
Magpie11 said,
December 15, 2009 at 7:38 pm
Vinegar rides again! Yee Haa!
Baino said,
December 15, 2009 at 7:50 pm
Ah it’s been a while since vinegar starred on your blog and next time I have a spare half hour, I’ll clean my iron . . .or maybe I’ll buy a new one hehe!
Grannymar said,
December 15, 2009 at 10:47 pm
Brighid - If the size of the bottles become any smaller, there will not hold enough for chips. ;(
Magpie - Vinegar is ever present in my world.
Baino - I thought it was time for a reminder from the vinegar kid!
Alice said,
December 16, 2009 at 3:31 am
This site looks different! And I haven’t been able to link from my blog for several days, so today found you here through google. Have you changed up things? Oh and thanks for the advice about the iron. I’m sure mine badly needs vinegar and water cleaning because we do have mineral deposits in our water here. It just slips my mind, like remembering to clean the car only when I’m going somewhere and thus not having the right stuff with me to do it. I’ll check it out tomorrow!
Helen McGinn said,
December 16, 2009 at 10:17 am
Can’t I just throw it out and buy a new one?
;O)
Grannymar said,
December 16, 2009 at 10:47 am
Alice - I did have a touch of the gremlins at the weekend but I thought it was sorted. More work needed I think.
Helen - Sure if you do so when nobody is looking…. !