How can I clean the soleplate of the iron?
In any hardware store, to your question,how to clean an iron from carbon deposits, you will be offered special cleaning pencils. With their help, you can easily clean the surface of the sole. To do this, you need to turn on the iron and let it warm up a little. Then you need to apply the pencil to the entire dirty surface, without turning off the iron. As the sole heats up, the applied layer of pencil will begin to melt and collect all the dirt and scale. When you are satisfied with the cleaning result, turn off the iron and wipe it from the remains of the pencil with a clean, dry cloth. You may need to repeat the entire procedure more than once before the surface of the sole becomes clean again. Remember, cleaning with a pencil is quite toxic, and you can poison yourself with fumes emitted by the product during heating. In order to avoid caustic fumes getting into your lungs, it is right to put on a protective bandage.
How to clean the iron at home?
In fact, the problem of cleaning irons is completelyis not new, and as soon as people started ironing with this device, the question of how to clean the iron from carbon deposits does not let diligent housewives sleep. Over several centuries, many methods have been developed with which you can properly clean the surface of the sole of the iron and provide your home with ironed things. We decided to voice the most popular methods.
- Method number 1 - salt in the help
You will need a newspaper (you can take today's one, or another one)unread, and do not spoil your mood with news) and finely ground salt. Unfold the newspaper and pour a heap of salt on it. Position yourself so that there is a socket nearby - you will need to turn on the iron. Leave the iron on for a while and let it heat up well. Now start "ironing" the salt. Try to press it hard enough, but do not overdo it and do not scratch the sole. After a short period of time, you can notice that the salt is darkening. This means that the process is underway and the cleaning is going well. At the end, do not forget to wipe the sole with a dry cloth and remove any remaining dirt.
- Method number 2 - soda from scale
If after the previous method the question about cleaningiron is still relevant, so let's move on to cleaning with soda. This method does not require heating the iron. Take a pinch of baking soda (the amount is approximate, focus on the degree of contamination of the iron) and dilute it in a small amount of any dishwashing detergent. Apply the resulting paste to the sole of the burnt iron and begin to rub off the dirt little by little. Do everything intensively so that the soot does not have any chance. If it is too difficult to rub off, leave the paste on the sole for a while, and then try again. At the end of the procedure, be sure to clean the sole with a clean, dry cloth.
- Method number 3 - you can use vinegar
Practical people will definitely have vinegar in their pantrieshousewives. In order to clean the iron with it, we will need the help of a rough cloth. Take a piece of burlap or just any canvas fabric and thoroughly wet it with vinegar. Wipe the dirtiest spots on the sole with the cloth, pressing hard on them. You will have to rub until you are satisfied with the cleanliness of the sole. You can warm up the iron a little, then the dirt will be cleaned better, but the vinegar will evaporate intensively and you can poison yourself with its vapors. After the iron has been cleaned, it will need to be polished. This is easy to do by simply carefully ironing a small piece of any fabric. The main thing is to set the temperature correctly, otherwise you will have to clean the sole again.
Oh, this scum
Rusty spots on the sole of the iron indicate thatthat the water you pour into the ironing tank is very hard. Ideally, you should take distilled water, but if you prefer to use what is at hand, that is, tap water, then you cannot do without special descaling agents. You can use an industrial version, as all manufacturers advise, or you can try to remove scale with citric acid. Dilute one tablespoon of citric acid in warm water. Pour the resulting cocktail into the iron and heat it to the maximum limit. Now take an unnecessary piece of fabric and iron it, allowing the steam holes to clear of scale. Do not iron until the water has completely evaporated - the remains must be drained and the iron rinsed with clean water. But once again, we warn you, when asked how to clean an iron at home, manufacturers of household appliances recommend contacting professionals and not doing it yourself, otherwise you can not only remove scale, but also damage the heating element.
Better prevention still did not come up with anything
So that in the future you will not have any problemsquestions about cleaning the iron, it is better to pay attention to the sole immediately after each ironing. Wipe it with a mixture of lemon juice and water and finally wipe it with a clean dry cloth. And cotton swabs soaked in hydrogen peroxide or vinegar will help clean the steam holes. And most importantly, always observe the temperature regime during ironing, then your iron will serve for a very long time!
