Evaporated pickle pot

[angela_ajootian]

Hello there. I head up a little jewelry lab in a craft center. We allow [er, we Did] folks to come in after orientation and use the torches etc.. However some git left the pickle pot on, I don't know for how long, I've been away on vacation. Long story short, I get back and it's still ON [yikes!] and crusted with filthy acid crystals. Is there any decent way to slog through the cleaning of this mess? I've been doing this for 7+ years and never have I left the pot on so I've never had to deal with this. Any suggestions? My thanks, A-

{insert "witty thought" here}

[peterrowe]

Long story short, I get back and it's still ON [yikes!] and
crusted with filthy acid crystals. Is there any decent way to slog
through the cleaning of this mess? I've been doing this for 7+
years and never have I left the pot on so I've never had to deal
with this

Just add hot water and let it soak. Depending on how hot the pot
got, it's possible the stuff will simply redissolve leaving you with
usable pickle again. If it got hot enough to degrade the acid, it
still dissolves, pretty much, and can then be dumped and replaced. it
remains water soluable, just like the dry acid compound was when new.

Peter

[Lee2]

some git left the pickle pot on, I don't know for how long, I've
been away on vacation. Long story short, I get back and it's still
ON [yikes!] and crusted with filthy acid crystals. Is there any
decent way to slog through the cleaning of this mess?

Why not just add water to the previous level and turn it back on?
The acid is still acid, and once it dissolves you should be back in
business again without having to battle the filthy crust.

Lee

[Karen_Christians]

Yes. Take it to a sink and fill it two thirds with water. Slowly add
some baking soda. Add a little more water, a little more baking soda
until the mess is neutralized. Rinse the entire pickle pot and then
throw the old pickle pot in the garbage. Run the water for about 2
minutes to flush out the sink.

Go to the store and buy a new pickle pot. if a pot is left on that
long, you have no idea what the elements are like or how corroded
they are. Don't risk your safety.

[bericho1]

Angela - I don't have any suggestions for cleaning up the pickle pot,
but would suggest to plug the pickle pot into a timer. I have mine on
a timer and it assures that should I, for some unknown reason, forget
to turn it off, it is automatically turned off at end of day. Of
course it will turn on again the next morning or afternoon, whatever
time you have it set for, but even so, you won't get the situation
you got (unless you are gone for days and days).

[Ed_Art2]

Angela: I don't think it's a big deal? I've done it to my self+ +!
{All air head, all the time!} As at University, I use citric acid
(sour candy coating), and a removable crock, crock pot. But any acid
dehydrated just needs to be rehydrated, I think? My new self defense;
I wired the pots outlet with a 0 to 12 hour countdown timer, normally
set it for 1 to 4 hours, or projected work period, then one less
worry. My timer cost me just under $6.00 USD, cheap peace of mind.

Ed

[jeranor]

Go to the store and buy a new pickle pot. if a pot is left on that
long, you have no idea what the elements are like or how corroded
they are. Don't risk your safety.

In my experience those fears are groundless. I regularly :-[
unintentionally leave my pickle pot on 'til it dries out the acid,
sometimes for as long as three or four days with no particularly bad
effect except that the fumes cause nearby steel to develop a fine
coating of rust. I simply refill the pot with hot water, turn it on
again and wait for the crystals to dissolve. I've been using that
same pot for probably seven or eight years.

Jerry in Kodiak

[Karen_Christians]

What we have noticed with our picklepots is pickle that had splashed
from taking objects in and out of the pickle. One of ours finally
shorted out.

If you are talking about a single picklepot that is in your studio,
fine. When you are dealing with an electric element which many people
use on a daily basis, then why risk it? When I mean picklepot, I am
talking about a $12 crockpot, not a fancy picklepot which costs more.
$12 is just not the worth liability or risk at Metalwerx.

-k

Karen Christians
M E T A L W E R X
50 Guinan St.
Waltham, MA 02451
Ph. 781/891-3854 Fax 3857
http://www.metalwerx.com/
Jewelry/Metalarts School & Cooperative Studio

[Ken_Weston]

...Also, if you replace the cover with a concave glass saucer, the
water condenses and drips back into the pot rather than escaping as
steam. Sometimes, I can leave the pot cooking for almost a week
without needing to add water...

Ken Weston