HOW TO REMOVE A STAIN FROM A STAINLESS STEEL SINK  

Letter 19035

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I was spraying this product called "Zap [link is to product info at Amazon]" on a rusty grill and I had this grill over my stainless steel sink. I left the grill over my stainless steel sink with this zap solution dripping into my sink, now my stainless steel sink has this stain in it and I can not get this stain off of my sink, please tell me what should I do to remove this stains.

Doris Johnson
- Charlotte, North Carolina

G'Day,
If you can paint on some pickling gel on the rusted area, you will find that the entire sink will cry out for attention. Be very aware however that the "gel" is extremely corrosive but very effective. Make sure that all trace is well flushed away is this sink is used for food preparation.

Mike Hein
ODZ & SMODZ- Australia

I recently moved into a new home that has stainless steel sinks. They look to be in good condition and I would like to keep them this way. How do I keep them in good shape in the future? But, in one sink there looks to be residue from paint, like from cleaning a paint brush in the sink. So far normal cleaners have not worked. What can I use to clean this stain out.

Thanks,

Carole Peer
- Swartz Creek, Michigan

There is a product called "Barkeepers Friend [link is to product info at Amazon]" that is great for removing stains on stainless steel and also for regular care for ss. It comes in a container like Comet does, is powder form, and is fairly nonabrasive. It is inexpensive and I have found it at some discount stores and grocery stores.

Sally Warren
- Mt Pleasant, South Carolina

Dear Sir,

There are pickling & passivation chemical products that can solve your problems for SS sink. You can use jelly for localised application by brush or spray form to spray on SS sink to remove stains on it. Try to solve your problem.

Vinay Golwala
- Bombay, India

I had a ceramic plate with a silver stain on it from being in the sink with a wet pot, and I found out that the stain could be removed with toilet bowl cleaner. I thought, "where should I clean this?" I decided to do it in the kitchen rather than the bathroom sink. Unfortunately, I didn't read the bottle which states to keep away from metallic sinks, and now the stain on my plate is gone but I have stains from the toiletbowl cleaner on my sink. Can these be removed?

Gabriela Ayala
- Moreno Valley, California

I had the same problem with zap. Did you ever find out how to remove the stain?

Marlene Dagen
- Aliquippa. Pennsylvania

Hi,
I sprayed Kaboom on my refrigerator drinking water drip tray to desolve mineral deposits and some of the product ran down the on the stainless steel facing(Kitchen Aid). This has caused a stain or discoloration on the finish. We have tryed Kitchen Aid stainless steel polish/cleaner, baking soda with mild soap, vinegar, liquid comet and ammonia to no avail. Please provide any assistance as to what we may try to resolve the problem.

Molly Nelson
consumer - West Palm Beach, Florida

I made a bad choice of cleaners a few years ago and have damaged my sink and brushed nickel drain. Any suggestions or ideas on how to refinish or fix the damage?

Jennifer B
hobbyist - Houston, Texas

I was really distressed when I stained my relatively new Franke sink by accidentally spilling a little toilet bowl cleaner. But your posters really helped me by sharing in the use of Barkeeper's Friend. Like magic my sink was restored and polished beautifully. This is the greatest. I went out and bought it for my children who also have stainless sinks.

Thank you for rescuing me.

Victoria Schwarz
- Staten Island, New York

I poured a very poisonous toxic sink unclogger down my kitchen sink, it came back up this black liquid, i let it sit over night, then cleaned it up, but now i have these black stains that won't go away, i haven't tried bar keepers friend yet , i wonder if it doesn't work, what can i do?

fran owen
- palmetto, Florida

Hi, Fran. What is involved is polishing away (rubbing away) the discolored surface to expose the fresh stainless steel. So, it's not a question of whether Barkeeper's Friend will work -- it's a question of whether the depth of discoloration that must be polished away is practical to polish away with a mild abrasive and manual rubbing.

By way of example, you don't need a steam shovel to dig a foundation for a house, you can dig the foundation yourself with a teaspoon, but it might take the better part of a lifetime :-)

If the depth of discoloration is such that you need a power buffer and more aggresssive abrasives to make the procedure practical, you may want to call a professional because these materials can easily remove the brushed look of the sink, or leave an objectionable shiny spot if you don't know exactly what you are doing. Good luck!

Regards,

Ted Mooney, P.E.  finishing.com Brick, New Jersey

I dropped some TarnX solution on our brand new stainless steel sink. The sink now has back spots that would not come off. I tried using baking soda, vinegar, olive oil, and most of the cleaning liquids. The stains are still there. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated

Sally Lich
- Dallas, Texas

I took the above advice and tried Bar Keeper's Friend on some recent stains and it worked beautifully. It not only removed the new stains but also, with a little elbow grease, nearly removed (still working on it) Lime-Away damage from over four years ago that I'd completely given up on. Everyone who has a stainless sink should know about this. Thanks to all who suggested it.

Marsha C
- Henderson, Nevada

Be advised, BarKeeper's Friend is NOT recommended for Stainless Steel. Check out their website. I did have success with removing rust on my silverware, but then there was some in the grooves of the serrated blade still, so I let some barkeeper's friend set on it for awhile. When I went to clean it, the barkeeper's friend had permanently damaged the silver. It works chemically, so I'm guessing that it removed the silver plating from it. So, if you use it, do so sparingly.

Jack Jensen
- Valrico, Florida

September 23, 2009 Hi, Jack. I did check out their website and don't understand your posting. Their website prominently says: "... and is great for cleaning stainless steel.", and "If you're looking for a cleanser you can trust to clean your stainless steel, ..." Regards, Ted Mooney finishing.com Brick, New Jersey October 2, 2009 Ted, Jack began by talking about putting it on stainless steel, but ended by talking about it taking the silver/silver plating off. My guess is it is the silver plating that is not listed on the website. Thanks everyone...I am headed to the store for Bar Keepers Friend. I am sure it can't hurt. Charla Henderson - Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina October 27, 2009 I found this thread because I had purchased a fantastic retro set of brass flatware and immediately stained it with Tarn-X, thinking that it would polish up the metal. (yes I did read the back of the bottle, but did not think the metal was actually brass at the time) I will capitalize the words BARTENDERS FRIEND to make this thread seem like a blatant advertisement for the stuff. It not only polished like I thought the Tarn-X was going to, but also removed the black spotty damage that it did to my now magnificently shiny golden set of flatware. WTF, this stuff is less than $3 a can at a grocery store, go try it. My hands feel kinda funny though, maybe you ought to use gloves. Kelvin Vance - Aiken, South Carolina