Cleaning Rust from Cast Iron Antiques

[Big T]

Just got this how to from a person off of ebay. Don't know if it works but I guess its worth a try!

Cleaning Cast Iron Rust.
Don't know if this will be consider helpful or not but since these tend to sell better in good condition I thought I'd offer a tip on getting it cleaned fairly easily. :o)

Use olive oil and a little pile of salt! Heat the pan, pour in the oil then dump in a small pile of salt. Turn the heat off once the pan is quite warm and use the salt to scrub the rust out - and there you have it! Works on the inside and the outside as well but I do the outside of pans over the sink. The more rust the more work of course but it's a great way to salvage an old cast iron pan that could be worth considerable money. ;o) I've saved many pans from the garbage with this trick I learned from a chef, and made a lot of money off them once they were clean where nobody would touch them with that rust!

[C. Dianne Zweig Editor's Desk]

Sure would like to see all this good inforamtion also posted in the Group about care and repair of collectibles, thanks .....Dianne

[tomsantiquesetcetera]

I use "Naval Jelly". Brush it on, let it sit for a few minutes, use a very fine steel wool and off comes the rust. There are other ways also. Google "how to remove rust". Regarding using salt I would think it would be more abrasive and might scratch the surface of the item being cleaned.

[C. Dianne Zweig Editor's Desk]

Hi Big T,
Thaks for your post. You can also post this in our new group Protecting Your Collectible Treasures: Care and Repair of Antiques and Collectibles (With a Twist of Humor) http://iantiqueonline.ning.com/group/protectingyourcollectibletreasurescareandrepairofa

Dianne, Editor