ingenuiTEA (equivalent) washing

[tissigirl]

I've had the Teavana version of this for many years. I was just looking at some of the reviews for the ingenuiTEA, and many people commented how they washed it in the dishwasher. I was under the impression that they should only be washed by hand, otherwise the delicate parts (infuser bottom) over time would get worn out faster. How does everyone else wash theirs?

I also have heard about washing tea/coffee items with vinegar or just a small amount of bleach then washing well will get rid of the stains and residual "flavors" from them. I have never done this, but was curious if it worked.

[Chip]

Vinegar is our friend!!! Most teaware I simply rinse thoroughly during the week, then wash with vinegar to descale, etc once a week or so.

Vinegar is a must for cleaning/descaling your kettle that you use to heat water. This is where more scale seems to accumulate. Just soak and rinse.

When I started drinking tea around 8 years ago, I used to bleach everything that was bleachable. I just don't really see the need for it any more.

BTW, never use bleach or vinegar on porous teaware such as clay, unless you want to taste then for a few weeks.

[Pentox]

Personally I think using bleach for anything aside from getting white clothes whiter is pretty silly. Considering that bleach isn't exactly good for you, when vinegar is a substance normally consumed by people, I would go with vinegar.

[Victoria]

Mine goes in the top shelf of my dishwasher - no problem.

[betta]

All acids can be used to remove the scale (carbonates) and thanks to their strength, they are abrasive as well. In fact, they are natural bleaching agent.
I will go with citric acid = high concentrated lemon juice, available in any drogerie shop or better a crystal salt of it. I used to clean all of my kettle with it and they don't give smell like vinegar. It is therefore suitable even for porous yixing pot.
Pour hot water, better at 60+ to get even a more effective cleaning.
Chemical bleaching agent could be used if none of the acids works, but please use only either chlor based or hydrogen peroxide based bleaching agent.
I hope it might help.

[caradrake]

How long would you let the vinegar sit in the ingenuiTEA before rinsing it out? Normally when I do vinegar soakings on other items, they smell faintly of vinegar for a long time afterwards; would the smell interfere with tea?

[Mil]

I've been using vinegar (either straight or diluted with water) to clean my coffeemaker for years. It works great, though you have to run clean water through the machine several times to get rid of the vinegar taste. (Eww.) I assume the analogous thing here would be to just rinse repeatedly with boiling water. If you're really worried about the taste, you could try lemon juice instead. I think the pH values are similar.

[Xylina35]

I have tried using vinegar to clean my ingenuTea and didn't like the results. Basically, it did nothing.

I discovered that the best way to remove the stains from both the IngenuiTea cup
and filter is to use good old fashioned baking powder mixed with peroxide. It does and incredible job with no scrubbing or using harsh bleaches and cleaners that could mess with the integrity of the plastic. And it's safe and easy! No harsh fumes, no vinegar smell, no crazy chemicals, no scrubbing! You will need to rinse everything well after using this method.

What you need:

baking soda, peroxide, a bowl, a plate, a bottle cap (bottle cap is for cleaning the cup only)

Cleaning the filter:

For the filter, mix the baking powder (about 3 table spoons) and peroxide in a bowl (a regular soup bowl works fine). You want to have enough peroxide to cover the filter when submerged so it's OK to ad extra if needed. Stir with a spoon. Place the filter in the mixture and cover with a plate (this will keep the filter from floating up). Let it sit for about 30-40 minutes. You can leave it in longer if need be. Remove and rinse thoroughly. No scrubbing required.

Cleaning the Cup:

For the IngenuiTea cup, you will need a bowl and a bottle cap (soda or water bottle cap works perfectly). As with the filter, mix together the baking soda and peroxide and place the bottle cap in the bowl slightly off center. Place the IngenuiTea cup on top of cap in the bowl. You may need to ad a little extra peroxide to make sure the base is completely covered. The bottle cap serves to open the bottom of the cup mechanism to allow the fluid to clean around the rubber stopper and flow into the bottom of the cup. Let the cup sit for about 30-40 minutes. You can leave it in longer if need be. Remove and rinse thoroughly.

You will notice that in the bottom of the bowl a paste-like substance forms. You can, with your fingers, scoop this out and lightly coat the inside of the cup for a thorough cleaning. Be sure to rinse thoroughly!!!

My filter and cup come out looking like new after every cleaning. This may take more time and be a little messier than vinegar, but the results are amazing.

[Mary R]

One of Adagio's first TeaCasts (in fact, I think it WAS the first...) was a tutorial on how to clean the IngenuiTEA. That TeaCast can be found here (will likely require the Quicktime player).

[Xylina35]

This was a very interesting video. However, the method that I propose and use frequently does not require any disassembly of the cup, thus reducing the possibility of breaking parts and improper re-assembly

I have some male friends that have large hands and find it very difficult to reach in just to remove the filter never mind the rubber stopper.

My method also requires NO BLEACH and takes only 30-40 minutes.
Bleach can eventually wreck plastic (even though the video shows very little used).


As always, this was just a suggestion and my method is cost and time effective as well as safe (NO BLEACH) and requires removing no pieces except the filter.

[osadczuk]

One of Adagio's first TeaCasts (in fact, I think it WAS the first...) was a tutorial on how to clean the IngenuiTEA. That TeaCast can be found here (will likely require the Quicktime player).

Cool. Unfortunately it is not helpful to those of us who have an ancient (non-removable filter) one. Any Adagio-ites have advice for us?

(Edited because, well, I accidentally came across as a complete b*tch.)

[Chip]

(Edited because, well, I accidentally came across as a complete b*tch.)

Drat, missed that...I always like to see Tea...ummm...Women (almost said TeaBabes there) behaving badly, even "accidentally!!!"

I am still sold on vinegar...but I own not a fancy, modern, polycarbonate, microwavable, vertical, tea brewing vessel the likes of the ingenuiTEA

[LavenderPekoe]

I take a deep class bowl and fill it with hot water and OxyClean and just let it soak. Comes out looking almost new.

[Victoria]

I'm wondering if denture tablets might be the best and safest way to clean those ingenuitea with non removale filters. Hummm.

[Xylina35]

actually, it would work with a non-removable filter. You just need a deeper bowl. As long as the bottom mechanism is pressed up (thus the bottle cap) and you have enough liquid, the liquid mix will flow up to cover the the filter.

Seriously try it.