Have We Determined How To Unblacken Aluminum?

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whirlcool

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Last night Karen put our aluminum Mirro Pressure cooker in the dishwasher for cleaning. She used STTP in the detergent mix(Walmart GV powder), but when the cycle completed the polished aluminum came out of the DW looking like the pot has been overheated.

No more luster to the finish and it's a gun metal grey now.

Have we here ever determined if this damage can be reversed and how to go about it?
 
Bar Keeper's Friend

Bon Ami, Bar Keeper's friend, SOS, Mother's metal polish alone or in any combination will all remove the oxidation along with a fair amount of elbow grease.
 
Have some for show

and have some that you actually use for real cooking. Or just don't use stuff made out of aluminum for cooking->problem solved.
 
if I am remembering right,

you can boil an acid, such as cream of tartar, in water, and that will brighten it up.  Try boiling a spoonful of that in water in the pot - and if it works, you can put in a bigger pot?

 

 
 
Darkening

If you cook ingredients with a low ph in a darkened pan it will remove the discoloration from the pan and transfer it to the food.  As Hunter said, cream of tartar will remove discoloration provided you have a large enough pot and enough creamof tartar to fully submerge the vessel in a concentrated solution.  Cream of Tartar does remove the coloration but the surface of the pan will still rough.  Polishing with one of the other methods help to smooth and rebuff the aluminum.
 
Do Not Scrub Aluminum With Steel Wool

Least of all harshly in an attempt to remove the blackening.

The black oxidation of aluminum is caused by the chemicals contained in automatic dishwashing detergents, along with prolonged contact with (hot) water. This is why almost every single product for such use clearly states it is *NOT* to be used on aluminum, and one is advised not to soak such things very long.

Whilst there are various recipes for removing oxidation from aluminum they can be of limited use. Since what has occured is a chemical reaction (see: Atomic Hydrogen), you have not just the surface but a change that goes deep down which will make it hard if not impossible to remove.
 
59 Years of Stupidity

I have no knowledge to speak to Laundress assertations but I own a lot of aluminum that is as old as I am and you can part your hair in the gleam, a result of steel wool.
 
It is my understanding that steel wool can not only scratch aluminum but any bits left behind may rust.

Being as all this may assume it depends upon what grade of steel wool, and or how the thing is done. If it works for someone far be it pour moi to stop them.
 
Today I tried Bon Ami and when that didn't work an SOS pad.
No luck.

Since what has occured is a chemical reaction (see: Atomic Hydrogen), you have not just the surface but a change that goes deep down which will make it hard if not impossible to remove.

I think you may be right, Laundress. There wasn't any change after I used elbow grease with the cleaners. The pot did shine up, but the color didn't go back to the highly polished clean looking aluminum.

Strangely enough, the only areas that changed color were the highly polished aluminum areas. The interior of the pressure cooker did not change color, only the exterior.

I think it's time for a stainless steel pressure cooker. But we use them only for a few items, maybe 3 or 4 times in an entire year.
 
Aluminum Is Only Second To Copper

For being a bugger in kitchens. *LOL*

Have only two pieces of alumium cookware (vintage Sidney Magalite) and once they are done, so am I. *LOL*

Pure aluminum is a great conductor of heat, and makes for nice heavy pots and pains,but it comes with so many restrictions. Can't go in the dishwasher, cannot cook certain foods, no acids, blah, blah, blah.. Of course aluminum is cheap which is why so much was made from it for household, especially kitchen use.

As for pressure cookers, nabbed a nice SS Magefesa set off fleaBay, and haven't looked back. Both the pot and fry pan can go right into the dishwasher, and can make tomato dishes without worry.
 
I really like Mirro pressure cookers, but they all tend to be made from aluminum.
Presto makes them in stainless steel. But since we use these only a few times a year I wonder if it is even worth spending the money on a new one?

The only thing we really make in the pressure cooker is spareribs and pot roast.
 
Presto SS Pressure Cookers

Before purchasing the Magefesa set did lots of research. IIRC the Presto SS models do not have a core sandwich base, rather simply the entire pot is made from SS. This has lead to some consumers complaining about things burning to the bottom.

The weight of my Magefesa pot and pan (set came with a stock type pot and a smaller "fry" pan, both use the same PC lid) has more heft than the aluminum "pressure fryer" I've got (aka "Chicken Bucket").

Check out Miss Vickie's website. The self proclaimed "Queen of Pressure Cooking" there lots of good information and comments there. Also Chow.com (or is it Chowhound.com?) is good as well.

Once you get a really great PC you may find your range of dishes expanding. If you love corned beef brisket there simply is no better way to make one than in a PC.
 
Yes, we do love corned beef & cabbage and haven't made it for a number of years.
No reason why, I think we forgot the fact that we like it! We used to make it in the slow cooker.

Thanks for the links, I'll take a look over there.
 
CB&C

First thing I made in my new PC was corned beef & cabbage!

Usually this is an all day or at least afternoon affair, not something you decide to make for weeknight dinner at 4PM! *LOL*

Purchased a brisket at local supermarket at around 5PM and had dinner on the table by around 7PM. After cooking the brisket in the PC, put my favorite glaze (mixture of brown sugar and honey Dijon mustard) on top then popped the thing into broiler for a bit to melt.

Here is a link to the model I have (Magefesa Rapid II), which though no longer sold in the United States (the company is based in Spain), you can find the set often MIB at estate sales and fleaPay.

Once you start researching pressure cookers soon enough the debate about spring valve versus jiggle top/counter weight comes up.

The Magefesa is a spring valve and have to say the touted advantages of being able to use less water in such things was not only true, but gave excellent results.

With jiggle top pressure cookers you have to compensate for the amount of steam that is released by the counter weight. Usually this calls for using "lots" of water, which in turn causes persons to feel items cooked in such things taste boiled to death.

Spring valve cookers release much less steam and safely reach a higher pressure than jiggle tops. This not only translates into faster cooking,but less flavor and such are leached out into the water.

To make corned beef my unit only requires enough water to barely cover the top of the meat.

http://www.kitchencookingrecipes.com/forum/cooking-forums/81432-pressure-cookers-update.html
 
Personally, I like the jiggle top models. It brings back memories of when I was a kid on Sundays my mother would usually pressure cook dinner and I'll always remember that jiggling sound.

Do the spring loaded models make any noise? When we cook we just add enough water to cover the top of the meat too.

But I will admit that those Magefesa models do look very nice. They are a bit pricey though. But you get what you pay for these days.

Now that you brought up the Corned Beef & Cabbage that's what we are going to have for dinner Sunday night.

I was looking at the Mirro Recipe booklet that came with our pressure cooker and was surprised to find recipes for Rabbit, Squirrel & even Partridge in it!
 
No Noise

Which to some pressure cooker fans is not up there street. They claim the "noise" is what keeps them alert they have something on the stove. IMHO one shouldn't leave a PC alone on the range whilst going off to do other things, but that's just me.

I got my Magefesa set for a very good price. Though was initially considering having something sent from Europe. Spring valve PCs have been the rage there for ages because they are deemed safer than jiggle top/counter weight versions.
 
3 liter Hawkins PC

Here about 8 years ago I got from the Thrift Store a never used in the box Pressure Cooker for a dollar or 2.

It is a 3 liter Hawkins Pressure Cooker by Bay City International of Green Bay Wisconsin. Its recipe manual has a March 1997 print date. The UPS labels has a 1997 date, the lady had it shipped in 2nd day AIR 14 years ago. The family on the back page has a 1970's look, guy with big sideburns, lady with 1970's hair; 2 perfect Brady bunch kids. The back of the recipe book has one writing to a lady in Bombay India if one wants to add any comments or a new recipe.

My older pressure cooker went under in Katrina and was tossed due to gobs of corrosion. This old spare was really forgotten about until this thread; it was way up high in a cabinet in the laundry room and did not get ruined.

http://just remember 8! machines exploded, not 8000000... ...yes, but how many exploding drums in Miele, Bosch, Zanussi or even Indesit machines do you hear of in comparison?

3beltwesty++4-9-2011-18-22-14.jpg
 
A used replacement via ebay might be nil in cost

In my the aluminum cooking stuff that went under in Katrina's salt water, much got to be pitted and spotted. A *NON* metallic pad is what I used to fix some, ie scotch bright type pads, or just sand paper.

Often many cheap Aluminum items are easier to just toss the stuff as Aluminum scrap than "fix".

Here much of the salt damaged Aluminum stuff was just experimented with. I ended up saving only the oddball/rare molds of my moms, more as preserving childhood memories than being practical.

Here I am mostly a Revere Ware Stainless/copper bottom pots and pan person than Aluminum user. I probably threw out 2/3 to 3/4 of the Aluminum stuff due to Katrina.
Old Aluminum *ITEMS* that you really want to save/FIX are often cheap on Ebay, thus weigh some quest of fixing versus just buying another EXACT used item at a token cost. I did this with many items that I was torn about tossing. Ie gut wants to fix it, but a similar/exact replacement can sometimes be NIL in cost.

Search ebay for that ruined Aluminum item, its cost used many be little. Gobs of old nick nacks, books and other household items here were just bought on ebay after Katrina. In some cases the cost was super low. ie an old wimpy Kenwood 22 watt stereo intergated amp I got in the 1970's for 125 bucks new was just 27 with freight on ebay after Katrina.
 
I like my Mirro cookers but Prestos are easier to find parts for on store shelves.  I just recently picked up a barely used aluminum finish Mirro 404 cooker at Savers to replace my scratched up avocado 404 from the 60's that apparently developed a bit of a warp some time ago.  I had been looking for that exact cooker for quite a while, and in the interim found a model 394 which I like too, as it's more substantial and sturdy than the later 404, but it's even harder to find parts for a 394 anywhere but on line.

 

My Presto is the biggest of the three at 8 quarts.  Bought it about ten years ago.  It works well, and although it's aluminum and not stainless, I use my cookers about as often as Allen does so it's not worth it to me to spend the extra money for stainless.  I've never put any of my cookers through the dishwasher.  Presto parts can be found in hardware stores like ACE and OSH, which is why I chose that brand when I was shopping for a larger size. 

 

Allen, we must have similar vintage Mirro instruction/cook books.  Mine has squirrel and rabbit recipes too!  Who did they think were buying their cookers, the Clampetts?  Or are squirrel and rabbit regularly featured on Wisconsin dinner tables?
 
The thing that gets me about the pressure cooker we ruined the finish on is that is WAS a very recent e-bay purchase. In fact this was the very first time it was being used! It was offered as a new in the box never used vintage item, and true to the listing it was spotless and shiny!

It's a 6 Qt unit but it was so big it would hardly fit in the kitchen sink for hand washing, that's how it came to be put in the dishwasher in the first place.

Ralph:
That's what I thought too when I saw those odd recipes.

Miss Gulf Coast:
There are those people who get pressure cookers as gifts but refuse to use them because they are scared of them. I know quite a few people who wouldn't even let one in the door because of this. I imagine that's how some of those get into thrift stores.
 
I Feel Your Pain

Have had my share of runied "NIB" treasures found from eBay or other sources. *LOL*

Being as that may, as suggested upthread there are quite allot of new/unused vintage or new PCs on eBay and or thrifts.

Often given as gifts and never used pressure cookers were simply packed away. Another source is from store stock that was simply never sold.

Pressure cookers probably had their last huge heyday during the 1970's recession. Food prices were high and a housewife often had to make her food budget stretch, especially as far as meat was concerned. A PC allowed her to whip up tasty meals from not so great cuts of meat. This was in a time when many a man felt at least dinner had better have some form of dead and cooked animal before him! *LOL*

Also with women entering the workforce pressure cookers promised a way to may fast and easy meals. However soon as microwave ovens entered the kitchen in a big way, pressure cookers were mostly kicked to the curb.

Another reason pressure cookers weren't used is that many equate the results with what their mothers or grandmothers served, food that was "boiled to death". Hard rubbery meat and mush veggies comes to mind. And yes everyone and their grandmother seems to have a story about a pc that exploded .
 
Congratulations

You've just modified your pressure cooker with a custom anodized finish.

Nothing really functionally wrong with it. In fact, the anodizing is a harder finish and the pot may well last longer because of it.

Anodizing is simply a controlled oxidation of the aluminum surface. Pure aluminum is highly reactive and more or less instantly creates a very thin layer of oxide on it as soon as it is exposed to air. Thicker layers can be created with appropriate chemicals/temps. Various colors are added with dyes when the finish is still porous. What happens in the dishwasher isn't textbook anodizing but it gives a similar result. The aluminum oxide (the same as the grit material on most sandpapers) is very very hard and is considered desirable for a number of applications. A lot of the cookware one buys these days is teflon coated on the inside and anodized on the outside. Magnalite cookware used to be anodized inside and out. I routinely stick aluminum cookware with anodized exterior finish in the dishwasher. It might change appearance a bit but I consider it preferable to a dirty pot.
 
Gem

I remember Miracle Maid and other cookware coming out of West Bend in the 70's as well as the earliest Caphalon with an anondized looking finish upselling it by saying it was coated with a mixture that included garnet to give the cookware a permanent finish.  In my experience with these styles of cookware it is extremely difficult to remove any carbonized greasy residue that forms on the outside.  When I found Calphalon that was discolored with grease I tried putting it in the self cleaning oven.  It would come out looking new although the heat gave a blueish tinge to the aluminum handles and rivets. Pans with anondized finish subjected to regular dishwasher cleaning begin to look more like concrete with a whitish hue.  It baffles me that some cooks prefer to spend a small fortune on All-Clad LTD with a stainless liner and anondized exterior.  Some of looks like the dog wouldn't eat from it after a few years being run through the dishwasher.  I have also learned the hard way that glassware, cookware and colorized Pyrex can look wonderful in a second hand store or yard sale and once home it turns white, etched and ugly after a good washing.  Using a something as simple as canola oil to polish etched glassware and anondized cookware masks the damage.  In those cases when I've been had they are usable as a display but can never be resold.
 
To me it's all about stainless-steel.

Aluminum and copper are not allowed in my kitchen.

With SS one can throw any chemical include lye-based oven-cleaner and have perfect results.

To clean the inside of an aluminum pot add a peeled potato, water and lemon juice. The oxidation will transfer to the potato as the water is boiled.
 
Yes! We have.

At least, others have and I have learned from them.

 

I collect and use pressure cookers. Have a personal weakness for the Presto/National cast aluminium pressure pans from the late '40s and the early stainless steel cookers. The ones with the springs, just like the 'modern' European style.

 

Obviously, I rarely get them in anything but post-dishwasher shape.

 

Here's what works for me:

1) Since I'm going to be cleaning thoroughly, I don't worry about using steel-wool cleaning pads. Get some (the dollar store blue soaped ones are fine) and scrub away for a few minutes. Rinse thoroughly.

2) Pick up one of those polishing kits for various metals at The Homeless Despot or Habor Fright - they have a black stick, a red stick and a white stick as well as two or three polishing wheels and arbor for your drill.

3) Clamp the drill into place, load on wheel with a fair amount of olive oil (the cheaper in this case, the more acidic, the better) then rub the black stick onto the wheel, not the pressure cooker. Using gentle pressure, rub the entire surface over the wheel. This will take a few minutes to cover everything, with frequent stops to reload the wheel.

Wipe the mixture of oxidation, black polish and oil off with an absorbent cloth then clean well with either window cleaner or DAWN hand dishsoap and lots of water or WD-40. All of these work well.

If you've removed the tarnish, go to the next stick, the red one and continue the same way, using a clean wheel. If not, repeat the process.

You'll probably need twice the time with the red stick and oil.

If the finish is now nearly right, switch to Mother's Mag and Alu polish to finish up. If it's not quite there, yet, another run with the red polish will do it.

The white polishing compound is really good for Bakelite handles which your pot won't have.

 

I've done this over the years on over 30 pressure pans/stove-top espresso cookers* and always been happy with the results.

 

Oh, the ads about 'sapphire' finishes are true - look up aluminium oxide under precious jewels some time. Deceptive, but true.

 

As to the whole Alzheimer's nonsense, it's just that - one will absorb far more aluminium with medications and food than through aluminium cookware, first. Second, there is now and never was a link between the aluminium salt deposits in the brains of those with the disease and consumption of the metal.

 

*Yes, I know. It's not really espresso, etc.
 

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