How to Clean a Tea Kettle

A tea kettle is an electric or stove-top appliance that is used for boiling water. The boiled water is then used for making tea or other hot beverages. Tap water is hard and contains a high mineral content, which creates scaly deposits on the interiors of tea kettles. Over time, these deposits can become tougher to remove. Stove-top kettles also look worn and stained with long term use. You can, however, make your kettle look like new with a few common household ingredients. A clean tea kettle will work better, and also last longer.

Step 1 – Clean the Inside of the Tea Kettle

Before using any corrosive cleaning agent on your tea kettle, refer to the user manual if you have one, or else test a small part of the kettle with the cleaning agent before using it on the entire kettle. Lime juice works well for removing mineral deposits from tea kettles. Add 1 cup of lime juice to the kettle and fill the kettle with water. Leave the mixture in the kettle overnight. Most of the deposit will have loosened. Alternatively, you can boil the lime water and then dispose of the mixture after 10 minutes.

Another useful material for cleaning out mineral deposits is white vinegar. Fill the tea kettle with a vinegar-water mixture, using equal amounts of each liquid. Boil the diluted vinegar and then let the hot mixture stay in the kettle for about 1 hour. Dispose of the hot mixture after 1 hour.

Step 2 – Clean the Outside of the Tea Kettle

Stove-top tea kettles can get very messy on the outside, because of grease and food stains from the stove. To remove these stains and grease, use baking soda and a wet scrubbing pad. After cleaning, wash with water and repeat, if necessary. Finish by wiping the tea kettle with a paper towel dampened with white vinegar.

Step 3 – Remove the Cleaning Residue

Using lime juice or vinegar to clean your tea kettle will give you sparkling results, but may affect the taste of the drink prepared with the boiled water. It is, therefore, important to completely eliminate the taste of lime juice or vinegar before you use boiled water in a drink. Fill the kettle with water and thoroughly boil. Dispose of the boiled water. Repeat until there is no smell of vinegar or lime juice in the tea kettle.

Step 4 – Maintenance

Regular cleaning of your tea kettle will make it work more effectively and keep it looking like new for a longer time. It is best to tackle the mineral deposits on the tea pot before they become really tough to remove. For regular cleaning, just wipe with a paper towel dampened with vinegar.