Tea stains?

[henley]

Just finished washing my teaware when I noticed some of my pieces have tea stains on them, espcially the bottom of my favorite cup. My pieces are porcelain or fine china & a mix of old & new. What's the best way to remove tea stains? I thought about bleach but was afraid it would be too harsh. Any suggestions? Thanx in advance.

~Henley

[Mary R]

Using plain, white vinegar in some way will probably help. Some people counsel to rub the area with plain vinegar until the stain goes away. Some say to soak the piece in vinegar, sometimes with some salt added to the mix. Others say to boil it in a 1:2 vinegar/water solution. There are physical reasons behind each of these suggestions, and some may work better than others, but they will all likely have some effect.

Just avoid using abrasive cleaners (household baking soda, etc) as you don't want to scratch the porcelain glaze--a hard thing to do, but it can be done. Scratches invite future stains.

[Samovar]

I use baking soda and a soft brush. It works wonders.

Samovar

[ABx]

I've heard that denture cleaner works well, although I haven't had a chance to try it. It would make sense, though.

[aqueoustransmegan]

mary thanks! I was noticing some stains in my stuff too. I clean my kettle every week with vinegar and water. I'll just poor that and let it soak in my pot after I boil it

[Chip]

mary thanks! I was noticing some stains in my stuff too. I clean my kettle every week with vinegar and water. I'll just poor that and let it soak in my pot after I boil it

DITTO...I reuse the same vinegar from the kettle to clean my whole teawear line up around once a week or two...just don't use it on anything pourous.

[scruffmcgruff]

It's interesting how some of us are trying to get rid of tea stains, while others of us are doing our darndest to acquire them on our precious yixing!