Simple vinegar bath gone wrong?

R

RichM

New member
I found a three notch Lodge number 8 at the local Good Will for 5 bucks. It had some rust but wasn't to bad and I knew I could restore it. I gave it a good lye bath that removed every thing but the rust.

The problem is I put it in a vinegar bath with the intent to remove it after an hour or so....but I forgot about it until I was at work the next day. So it soaked for about 24 hours.

Now when trying to rinse it clean I keep getting a gray film that that washes off but will not completely go away. The more I wash and rinse doesn't seem to change the surface. The gray just keeps coming off.

Did I ruin the skillet? If not, what can I do to fix this.

Thanks in advance for the info.
 
It's not that unusual. It's kind of like flash rust only black. Try washing with some Dawn d/w liquid. It will minimize it, but probably not eliminate it altogether. Rinse and oven dry it and then proceed with seasoning. Wiping off the oil will take some off, too, and then the iron will be sealed off from the air. 24 hours is long, but not ruinous.
 
First time trying vinegar on cast, filled up a smaller container 50/50 with water and vinegar. Put 2 taylor forbes waffle plates in it then slid it in the cupboard. GF was in the process of moving in at the time, forgot about them. Few weeks later (ahem), GF asks what is this mess in the cupboard. It didn't eat the iron at all, surprising but whatever is left on it seems like it will never come off.
 
EdgarLopez said:
That's funny,a few weeks later. That's why I have an e tank,the longer it stays the better it gets.:icon_rofl:
Click to expand...

Have an e-tank as well. But with all the talk of vinegar, I had to try it.

It was ugly, brown and black foam, should have snapped a picture. Should pull the plates out of the lye bath and check them, only been a couple of months. That poor taylor forbes iron.
 
I definitely left a new lodge reversible griddle in some vinegar for about four days.. The portion of the griddle that was fully submerged was fine. However the part that was closest to the surface was ruined. Micro pitting so bad you couldn't see it, but it snagged all steel wool and paper towels. In the end I had to sand it down.
 
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