Crusty Griddle / Lye Bath How To's and Q&A's

[Karen Kale]

Before and after pics are a dime a dozen … I like a good “during” picture!

My boyfriend gave me this crusty griddle for my birthday (well, he gets points for effort!) and the crud is far beyond anything I have cleaned yet. I took it out of its first round in the garbage bag and found that while it has started coming clean (“Holy cow, there’s actually iron under there!”), there are spots so hard and thick, particularly on the edges and under the lip, that I fear they may never succumb to the oven cleaner method. (I know, time for a lye bath!)

It’s back in the bag for round 2 with fresh spray, and I’ll be patient, but in the event there are pieces that won’t come loose, are there any safe tricks to chipping away at? At this point it seems like I’d need to take a screwdriver to it to dislodge some of the petrified gunk, but of course I don’t want to damage it.

[Brian Vick]

Karen,
Don't fret...I just cleaned a wok for a friend it was in and out of my lye tank 5 times between scraping and more scraping!!!
It was the WORST thickest crud I've ever come across. Sometimes it just takes time.
OB ;D

[Ken Davis]

Scrape with a piece of hardwood, like oak or hickory.

But as Brian said ...   

[C. Perry Rapier]

Remember this, 'IN THE END CARBON IS YOUR FRIEND'. This piece looks beautiful. Thats the way I like to buy a piece. Some lazy person has owned this piece and just let it go and not cleaned it. And that carbon has protected it all this time. I'm thinkin you'll be surprised when you eventually get it cleaned. My advise is don't scrape it with anything, nothing, let the lye do its job. The problem with the trash bag cleaning with lye is that you may have more money in cleaning a piece than what its worth. I'd be anxious to see this piece when you get it cleaned Karen.

BUT, if you had that lye bath you could pick it up out of there every couple days, rinse it off, hit it a lick and a promise with a SS scrubbie and you'd be amazed at how fast that carbon would come off of that piece. But from what I see, thats good carbon.  ;)

[Cheryl Watson]

Karen, honestly... go to Lowes, buy a 5 gallon paint bucket with lid.... then pick up a boot tray at Home Depot (to sit the bucket on).  Buy one container of Rooto or Roebic, and mix it (outside).  After fumes are dissipated, snap on the lid, bring it inside and sit in the boot tray(out of high traffic area)....
Be Safe, eye protection and gloves........ I had this set up in my kitchen from last December until April. (in a high traffic area... but my guys are old enough to respect it!)

Guys... tell her how paranoid I was 2.5 years ago, about even mixing up ONE lye bath!! ;D ;D ;D

It will cost you about the same as 3-4(maybe 5) cans of oven cleaner.... but will last forever.

And that crud will be gone lickety-split........

[Karen Kale]

Perry – I think you and the others confirmed what I had already suspected … that stuff WILL come off, given enough time. It’s just hard to imagine right now. Your point about the carbon protecting it really makes sense, when I think about it. Once that thick layer was on, it was protected from rust, corrosion, etc., right? I don’t need to finish cleaning this piece to be surprised by it … I couldn’t believe how different it looked after just that first round. I will certainly post a picture once it’s cleaned, hopefully it comes out as well as you think it might. I don’t think this griddle is anything unusual; it’s unmarked, and the only thing I saw when I first got it was a number 7 on the bottom, though a smaller 7 revealed itself above it after the initial de-crudding. I know I’ve seen this before, but darned if I can remember what it was. I’m curious as to what it is, but I don’t care if this has any collector value. It has sentimental value (oh, and the value of all that oven cleaner!)

Cheryl – yep, I’m paranoid about the lye bath, but this might be my breaking point. Not only is the oven cleaner method more expensive, but it’s also a giant hassle fighting with those bags and the clogging spray cans. Then there are the times when the wind catches the spray and leaves you with immediate pinprick lye burns above the length of your gloves. I am very respectful of the dangers of lye - gloves and eye protection ALWAYS.

I had thought a lye bath had to be larger, but I can handle a 5 gallon bucket. Mine would need to be in the basement, near the furnace. Is that safe?

[Chuck Rogers]

Karen, my lye bath is within a few feet of my oil burner furnace. There are no issues at all. Just like you, a few years ago, I was worried about setting up a lye bath, but after Perry convinced me of the benefits, I broke down and put one together in a short time. What a time saver !!!  Just set the piece in, and forget it. No wires, no electricity, and the pieces comes out super clean. I still use electro for rust, but have found out that in most cases, I don't need it, and if I do, there is no gunk in the way of rust removal. I've tweaked the lye mix a bit, but always remember the safety equipment mentioned. It's well worth the minimal expense.

[Stuart Lowery]

I had thought a lye bath had to be larger, but I can handle a 5 gallon bucket.

5 gallons is a good size, but I prefer a flat rectangular Rubbermaid type tote over a bucket. A bucket is tall & narrow, I like to be able to fit a #10 or #12 skillet in to soak which the tote is ideal for.

[Brian Vick]

Remember this, 'IN THE END CARBON IS YOUR FRIEND'. This piece looks beautiful. Thats the way I like to buy a piece. Some lazy person has owned this piece and just let it go and not cleaned it. And that carbon has protected it all this time. I'm thinkin you'll be surprised when you eventually get it cleaned. My advise is don't scrape it with anything, nothing, let the lye do its job. The problem with the trash bag cleaning with lye is that you may have more money in cleaning a piece than what its worth. I'd be anxious to see this piece when you get it cleaned Karen.

BUT, if you had that lye bath you could pick it up out of there every couple days, rinse it off, hit it a lick and a promise with a SS scrubbie and you'd be amazed at how fast that carbon would come off of that piece. But from what I see, thats good carbon.  ;)

CPR,
I had mu friends WOK in the tank for three weeks and it still had sheets of stubborn carbon that would only come off if I scraped it..no doubt if I left it in for a couple of months it would have come off but my friend would have been WOKless for that amount of time :'(
OB ;D

[Gary Salsman]

I just cleaned an Iron Mountain #8. It had about the most carbon gunk I had ever seen. Underneath all the gunk was also some of the worst sulphur pitting possible. Sometimes under all that gunk is rust.

[Cheryl Watson]

I have had more positive experiences with "Crud is your Bud" than negative.

The more experience you accrue, the more you learn how to 'read' rust patterns, and even 'crud' patterning.  And then there are the painted 'mystery' pieces......  hardest of all to 'read'... ;)

[Cheryl Watson]

Karen, if your griddle fits in a 5 gallon paint bucket, start there...
You can always upgrade to a rectangular Rubbermaid (18 gallon) in the future... sit the paint bucket inside the Rubbermaid and tip it gently to empty the liquid into the larger container... (been there, done that.. ;) ;))

And then when you feel more comfortable, double strength!! ;D

How far have I come, guys???......... ::) ::)

[C. Perry Rapier]

Karen, if your griddle fits in a 5 gallon paint bucket, start there...
You can always upgrade to a rectangular Rubbermaid (18 gallon) in the future... sit the paint bucket inside the Rubbermaid and tip it gently to empty the liquid into the larger container... (been there, done that.. ;) ;))

And then when you feel more comfortable, double strength!! ;D

How far have I come, guys???......... ::) ::)

You've come a loooooong way Baby.  ;)

[Karen Kale]

I'm thinking I may not even need a lye bath to finish this griddle ... round 2 took a WHOLE lot more crud off (plus, I don't have much appetite right now to mix a lye bath outside in a snowstorm ...  :-/ ) I guess it's true you never know what you'll find underneath, but crud has indeed been my bud here, it's looking really nice, smooth, no pitting at all. We'll see how round 3 turns out.

Just because I may not use a lye bath this time doesn't mean I'm giving up on it, because I really don't feel like doing this again. I can definitely see the benefits of a larger Rubbermaid tub, but baby steps for me! I don't have a 5 gallon bucket handy ... any general guidance as to the largest skillet size I could do in it?

I'll post a picture of my griddle when it's done. I know it's a little silly, but it's my first griddle. :)

[Cheryl Watson]

any general guidance as to the largest skillet size I could do in it?

Karen, just tested out my Lowes Paint bucket... #8 Skillet is the Largest that will fit... if you have the space, the rectangular Rubbermaid would be a better, more versatile size.
I use this size frequently for vinegar baths when needed, and this is the best price I have found:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Rubbermaid-18-Gallon-Roughneck-Tote-FG2215H2MICBL/100644802

You don't have to fill it completely with solution.

[C. Perry Rapier]

CPR,I had mu friends WOK in the tank for three weeks and it still had sheets of stubborn carbon that would only come off if I scraped it..no doubt if I left it in for a couple of months it would have come off but my friend would have been WOKless for that amount of time OB

Hello Brian. The results from your lye bath sound like they are totally insufficient, for some reason. I have been using lye to clean cast iron for many years and I have never encountered what you describe. Some on here double the lye strength so that it will clean faster, but I don't do that cause I ain't in that much of a hurry.

As for containers for a lye setup, I would recommend half of a 55 gallon plastic drum. So get a plastic 55 gallon drum and cut it in two. I would recommend using the bottom half. You can get plenty pieces in it, big pieces if you want, and it is easy to get pieces in and out. And be sure and cover it with a nice big piece of plastic, I use one of them big green garbage bags, so your solution will not evaporate. Good luck.  :)

Hello Brian. The results from your lye bath sound like they are totally insufficient, for some reason. I have been using lye to clean cast iron for many years and I have never encountered what you describe. Some on here double the lye strength so that it will clean faster, but I don't do that cause I ain't in that much of a hurry.

As for containers for a lye setup, I would recommend half of a 55 gallon plastic drum. So get a plastic 55 gallon drum and cut it in two. I would recommend using the bottom half. You can get plenty pieces in it, big pieces if you want, and it is easy to get pieces in and out. And be sure and cover it with a nice big piece of plastic, I use one of them big green garbage bags, so your solution will not evaporate. Good luck.  :)

[Karen Kale]

The griddle is crusty no more, and I didn’t even have to take any tools to it, though it did take some time with the oven cleaner. It is indeed quite a journey going through those layers. Turns out there IS some pitting on the surface, and what I’m pretty sure is fire damage on the bottom (after de-rusting in vinegar and tons of scrubbing, I still saw red, so I gave up and seasoned over it). Even with the flaws, I’m pretty happy with how this turned out … I had my doubts that Easy Off could really clean this.

I guess that’s why people post before and after pictures, so here we go! And if anyone knows what this is, I’m really curious. [ch61514]

Before:

[Karen Kale]

After:

[Roger Barfield]

Your griddle is an older Lodge.  I don't see the pitting.  Looks nice to me. 

[Jim Glatthaar]

Karen, I was afraid of lye buckets even though I was using oven cleaner.  After hours of scrubbing one night, Cheryl & Perry convinced me to try a lye bucket.  It has made my cleaning so much easier.  I join in their recommendation to make your hobby so much easier.