How to Clean a Kettle Without Chemicals

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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There is no reason to buy store-bought chemicals to clean if you can use natural items you already have. If you're green planet conscious, thrifty or you have children and pets around, you may want to find alternative ways to clean. A metal, brass or copper kettle always takes some elbow grease and there are ways to clean it without destroying your hands with harsh chemicals. Read on to learn how to clean a kettle without chemicals.

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Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Step1

Cut a lemon in quarters and use them as natural sponges to scrub the kettle.

Step2

Combine lemon juice and a tablespoon of baking soda to make a paste. Rub it on with a rag or a wet paper towel and then rinse. Polish it off with a soft, dry cloth.

Step3

Buy some cheap distilled vinegar from the supermarket. Acetic acid in vinegar can dissolve mineral build up. You can see how quickly vinegar will clean a copper kettle by simply testing a little vinegar and salt on a tarnished penny. The acetic acid eats away the oxide layer on the surface.

Step4

If you don't have any vinegar in the house you can actually use Worcestershire or ketchup since they're vinegar based.

Step5

Soak the kettle in hot vinegar and some table salt before cleaning if it's extremely dirty. You can also use wet, fine sandpaper if you're very careful to have a light touch.

Tips & Warnings

When using salt, make sure to clean it all off with water or it will continue to eat away at the brass or copper.
Make sure that the kettle isn't plated or you may rub off the surface.