Sooner or later, in the process of use, any dirt, dust and particles of fabric adhere to the iron (to its ironing surface), resulting in the formation of soot, which sharply worsens the slip and makes it impossible to use the ironing tool normally. So the question arises of how and how to clean a Teflon-coated iron, ceramic or metal, from soot. In household chemical stores there is a huge selection of various cleaning products for such cases. But we’ll talk about improvised, home remedies and ways to clean the sole of the burnout. Let's talk about how to clean the iron at home with cheap means, while quickly and efficiently.
Cleaning the iron from carbon deposits at home
The first iron cleaner you can buy at any hardware store is a special cleaning pencil that looks like an ordinary stearin candle. It costs mere pennies, so you can buy several of these pencils in advance in advance and not break your brain when you need it.
This pencil is elementary easy to use. But still we give detailed instructions on how to clean the iron from carbon deposits at home with a pencil.
- We warm the sole to 140 degrees (this is the mode of ironing woolen fabrics).
- Hold the pencil firmly from the opposite end.
- Hold the hot iron in such a way that the sole is turned away from you.
- We rub the dirty places on the sole with a pencil, while all the scum should turn into a dirty molten liquid, which must be removed with an unnecessary rag laid out on the table. This rag will have to, then throw it away.
- We work carefully so as not to get burned, and so as not to inhale the smoke that will come as a result of the chemical reaction of the ingredients of a pencil with hot soot. Manufacturers claim that this smoke does not contain any toxic substances and is absolutely safe, however, you should not tempt fate.
- To clean the steam holes in which carbon deposits have accumulated, you just need to bring a pencil to the holes during steam generation. You will be surprised, but the dirt from the steam holes will be removed, as if by magic. With a pencil, you can clean the iron at home from soot even in inaccessible places, and this is not difficult.
- After cleaning the sole, and this takes only a few minutes, the iron should be turned off and rinsed off from the residual chemicals when cooled.
In the end, you can see how effective the pencil is.The smoothing surface will again be mirrored and perfectly smooth, gliding effortlessly on any fabric. An important nuance - the composition of the pencil does not include abrasive particles, so you can clean the smoothing surface, even if it has a thin coating.
See also - How to remove an iron mark on clothes
The second simple but effective way is to clean the iron with vinegar. They can wash away soot, burnt cloth, limescale (scale) and other dirt on the sole. To clean with vinegar, we need more cotton pads and sticks, which can be purchased at any store that sells cosmetics and hygiene products. So, a brief instruction on how to remove carbon deposits with food vinegar.
- The iron should be slightly warmed up, as for ironing delicate fabrics.
- Wet a cotton pad with vinegar, but not so much that the vinegar drains.
- For greater security, you can work with cotton buds, or take a disk with tweezers. Wet the entire contaminated surface with a wet disc. From the first treatment, the burnout may not be removed, then the procedure must be repeated to finally remove the plaque. Processing should be carried out in a circular motion.
- Particularly carefully you need to clean the burn with vinegar in the steam holes. This is done with cotton swabs and so that vinegar does not leak into the holes in any case, for which it is better to hold the iron with a canopy, the sole down.
- Each time after processing with vinegar, you need to iron a cotton rag, on which the dissolved burn should remain. In this way, you can clean the soles with Teflon, ceramic coating and metal, but this should be done carefully, since sometimes the coating is destroyed from an excess of vinegar.
If carbon deposits are very powerful, ammonia can be used instead of vinegar. They wipe cold surfaces, and then turn on the heat. After warming up, iron the cotton fabric while pressing firmly.
Many people ask how to clean the iron from adhering polyethylene, and what types of home remedies can cope with this type of burnout. This is really a difficult case, and in such cases, to dissolve and wash the soot, you need a nail polish remover or acetone.
See also - How to clean the iron from scale inside
Folk iron cleaning methods
The need for invention is tricky, and each housewife knows several ways how to wipe the burn with improvised home remedies in case you suddenly don’t have any purchased, and the iron needs urgent cleaning. We list the most common ways
- Candle. Many say that soot can be easily removed with a paraffin candle and the effect is almost the same as from a pencil. The methodology and algorithm of actions is exactly the same as with a pencil, only it is advisable to wrap the candle with a rag so as not to burn yourself.
- Salt. With it, you can remove even the most persistent dirt. The thicker the deposit, the larger the salt must be used. It is evenly poured onto a layer of fabric or paper and ironed with good pressure with a very hot sole. This is done until the surface is completely cleaned.
- Kitchen soda. Effectively remove carbon deposits using baking soda. For this, a small amount of salt is dissolved in water. Moisten a cotton swab with a soda solution and treat it with a cold sole. As a result, carbon deposits soften and should be easily removed with a normal rag.
- Laundry soap. Effectively removes fresh, fresh spots. You need to rub these stains on a cold sole with soap and wipe with a cloth.
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Tips for Proper Use
- Each time after the iron has cooled, it must be wiped with a damp cloth. If molten synthetic tissue adheres to it, then it must be removed with acetone or liquid to remove the varnish after cooling.
- We do not recommend sanding smoothing surfaces with abrasive materials or iron scouring pads.Such a harsh effect will definitely leave scratches on the ironing surface.
- Cotton and linen fabrics need to be ironed on the front side, this positively affects the quality of the fabric.
- Silk fabrics should be ironed not dry, slightly damp, or turn on the steamer.
- It is forbidden to iron velor and velvet on the ironing board.
- The steamer should be filled with the purest water possible, ideally distilled.
In this article, we described how and how to clean the iron from carbon deposits and burnt fabrics using chemicals and effective methods of housewives. The most important thing is to understand once and for all that coarse abrasives cannot be used to clean the Teflon sole of the iron, as this leads to damage to the smooth surface and the appearance of even greater problems in the future.
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