Burnt element

[skulltat280]

I've taken a photo of my element that's crusted in black. I've tried soaking it in oxi active plus twice but hasn't made a difference. Even tried a bit of scotchbrite on the 2nd attempt but its not budging

Any recommendations on what to use?

 

[BeerCat]

I turned mine on by mistake without water and most of it popped off. I wouldn't recommend that though so perhaps vinegar and or citric acid.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Looks like citric acid is what you need, have a look at this (post 4 and 6) - https://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/threads/cleaning-kettle-with-electric-element.80096/

 

[the_quick]

I have managed to clean mine with lime scale remover, which proves that citric acid or vinegar. I would lave in it overnight

 

[skulltat280]

Thanks folks, citric acid I'll order then cheers

 

[Dutto]

A 50:50 combination of vinegar (acetic acid) and lemon juice (citric acid) works better than just one acid on its own. (Also, both of them are readily available in Lidl or any other convenient supermarket.)

Don't ask me why but it works for me.

 

[Drunkula]

Thanks folks, citric acid I'll order then cheers

If you've got a Wilkinsons go into the laundry section and they have it in 250g boxes. It works out much cheaper than getting it from the homebrew bit.

 

[Harbey]

Definitely, citric acid will get you shiny again (I'm sure the vinegar and lemon trick works well too). Just be patient. It'll take a good couple of days at least to work it's magic. I found that big sections of the crud floated off as one piece which was very satisfying.

 

[skulltat280]

If you've got a Wilkinsons go into the laundry section and they have it in 250g boxes. It works out much cheaper than getting it from the homebrew bit.

I don't think we have a Wilkinsons here but I'll try the other "big" supermarkets thanks

Definitely, citric acid will get you shiny again (I'm sure the vinegar and lemon trick works well too). Just be patient. It'll take a good couple of days at least to work it's magic. I found that big sections of the crud floated off as one piece which was very satisfying.

LOL excellent

 

[skulltat280]

A 50:50 combination of vinegar (acetic acid) and lemon juice (citric acid) works better than just one acid on its own. (Also, both of them are readily available in Lidl or any other convenient supermarket.)

Don't ask me why but it works for me.

I checked Tesco last night for citric acid and couldn't see any. There were limescale removers but I think they all have perfume in them

Do you add water to your mixture? I'm assuming so as for talk sake if you needed 10 litres of a soak solution it would require a monstrous amount of lemons lol

 

[foxbat]

You can buy bags of it on Ebay. It's probably cheaper at wilko though if you have one nearby.

To use, cover your element in water and start heating. When it's hot just spoon the crystals in until it starts fizzling.

 

[skulltat280]

You can buy bags of it on Ebay. It's probably cheaper at wilko though if you have one nearby.

To use, cover your element in water and start heating. When it's hot just spoon the crystals in until it starts fizzling.

Cheers mate, yeah I'll order it online if I don't get it sorted over the weekend

 

[Clint]

I love elephants an all me...

 

[Dutto]

I checked Tesco last night for citric acid and couldn't see any. There were limescale removers but I think they all have perfume in them

Do you add water to your mixture? I'm assuming so as for talk sake if you needed 10 litres of a soak solution it would require a monstrous amount of lemons lol

The OP was to take the scale off an element; which is normally at the bottom of a Boiler so I don't think you would need 10 litres. However, a bottle of this ...

https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/products/255547279

... and a bottle of this ...

https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/products/254885093

... will give just over a litre of concentrated citric/acetic acid mixture, at a cost of £1.39 from Tesco.

Diluting this on a 1:10 ratio will still give you over 10 litres of product. The pH should be low enough to remove the scale with an overnight soak, but heating up the solution (using the element) will speed up the process.

Enjoy.

 

[skulltat280]

The OP was to take the scale off an element; which is normally at the bottom of a Boiler so I don't think you would need 10 litres. However, a bottle of this ...

https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/products/255547279

... and a bottle of this ...

https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/products/254885093

... will give just over a litre of concentrated citric/acetic acid mixture, at a cost of £1.39 from Tesco.

Diluting this on a 1:10 ratio will still give you over 10 litres of product. The pH should be low enough to remove the scale with an overnight soak, but heating up the solution (using the element) will speed up the process.

Enjoy.

Cheers. The 10 litre was just a number came into my head but now I think about it for my kettle it wouldn't be far off. I'll actually check tomorrow how many litres it takes to submerge the elements, and hopefully get the wife to pick the lemon juice bottle up. I've never seen it before

 

[Dutto]

Get SWMBO to pick up some Chicken Breasts and Chillies as well.

That way, if you don't use up all of the lemon juice you can make "Lemon Chicken" by:

• Cut the chicken breasts into strips.
• Remove the seeds from a chilli and then slice it finely.
• Brown the chicken breasts in some olive oil; adding the chilli slices for the last couple of minutes.
• Add the lemon juice and bring it to the boil.
• Add honey, syrup or sugar to the liquid so that it is hot, sweet and tangy.
• Mix up some Corn Flour with a small amount of water and add it to the pan to thicken the sauce.
• Serve with just about anything that takes your fancy. (Rice, wraps, couscous etc.)

Mouth watering - time to sign off!

 

[skulltat280]

Get SWMBO to pick up some Chicken Breasts and Chillies as well.

That way, if you don't use up all of the lemon juice you can make "Lemon Chicken" by:

• Cut the chicken breasts into strips.
• Remove the seeds from a chilli and then slice it finely.
• Brown the chicken breasts in some olive oil; adding the chilli slices for the last couple of minutes.
• Add the lemon juice and bring it to the boil.
• Add honey, syrup or sugar to the liquid so that it is hot, sweet and tangy.
• Mix up some Corn Flour with a small amount of water and add it to the pan to thicken the sauce.
• Serve with just about anything that takes your fancy. (Rice, wraps, couscous etc.)

Mouth watering - time to sign off!

1 last question, what does SWMBO mean? I've seen it used before but not seen the breakdown of the initials

 

[LeeH]

Once cleaned with citric, finish with bar keepers friend and a microfibre cloth.

 

[Bigcol49]

1 last question, what does SWMBO mean? I've seen it used before but not seen the breakdown of the initials

Hi!
She Who Must Be Obeyed.
It's from the H. Rider Haggard novel She.

 

[skulltat280]

Once cleaned with citric, finish with bar keepers friend and a microfibre cloth.

I've have bar keepers friend, does that help stop build up of crud on the elements?