OK ... sounds like I need to get a ceramic slow cooker instead of this metal one.
Once I do get a ceramic or glass one, can I re-use the pickling solution or do I have to make it up fresh each time?
Ta oods.
You want cheap? As I don't do much with sterling I didn't want to spend a lot for a pickle pot I only use a couple of times a year...my solution...I'm using a novelty 'Girls Night In' chocolate fondu set which is powered by tea light candles...I have swapped what was a ceramic bowl in the top for a tiny 'one person' ceramic casserole pot with lid that I found in Poundland (the chain that sells everything for a pound) - amazingly it is a perfect fit!! It all works too! It needs 4 candles to get it up towards boiling and then I extinguish a couple to keep it chugging along. Beat that for cheap!! Not much good if you use it every day but it suits my needs!
Barbara
I'd make up a new batch, boiling it in a metal pot might have contminated it (cheap enough to replace).
Nic x
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Am I the only mug who bought a proper mini pickle bath because I didn't hear about the slow cooker option until a few months after I bought mine? Imagine all the tools I could have bought instead!
I used to hate it at uni when people didn't use the brass tweezers and copper plated everyone's work, all had to be sanded off.
Try not to inhale too much of it or get it on your hands... wash your work after pickling.... don't like to be obvious, but its not the friendliest of solutions
I bought a baby bottle warmer from Lidl for £6.99 - it's nice and compact for my tiny space and has varying heat settings. I use a plastic container to put my pickle solution in and that pops into the bottle warmer nicely. Works for me at the moment as I'm only working on tiny items. We do havea slow cooker somewhere, but it's gone missing - must have got lost somewhere when we moved here a year ago as I've been looking for it for about 6 months and had no luck.
For the last ten+ years I have used diluted sulphuric acid for gold and silver pieces ( I am a Jobber /Repairer ) and keep it in a pyrex dish and not warmed either. works quick every time.
I bought one from tescos for my pickle - under a tenner for it about a fortnight ago. But i will certainly keep an eye on the metal edged glass lid now that nic has pointed it out to me!
Su' xx
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Like Barbara I use a little one person pyrex casserole dish and it sits nicely on a single round metal plate warmer, warmed by a tea light. Got the idea from our tutor who used same set up for classes in the local school. As I don't do huge quantities most things sit in it really well. I do my soldering in the kitchen on soldering mat & block on a thick 2ft square piece of chip board on top of the hob. I can then put the extractor on to get rid of the pickle fumes. I find that if I don't put the extractor on my mucous membranes (inside my nose) dry out - so there's definitely chemicals in that there pickle!
Pickle still works if cold but you have to leave it in for several hours rather than minutes. There are also 'recipes' for organic pickle on the internet that are non hazardous - mostly using citric powder (?) if I remember correctly.
Ditto. I was a jobber too, used to quench the pieces straight into cold pickle in a glass bowl, then rinse and ultrasonic. Worked a treat. Just don't put your face near the bowl when quenching!
You absolutely should not let your pickle boil, as the fumes are really quite serious, can damage your lungs. I used to use a stainless steel pot on the stove but forgot about it a couple of times and the room filled up really badly with sulphuric fumes, wasn't nice. The pieces went pink too but the re-heating and quenching worked. You may have burnished the copper onto the surface with barrelling, but hopefully the previous comment about peroxide will work if re heating doesn't.
Remember your high school chemistry when making acid pickle - Always add acid to water, NEVER the other way round. Wear protective gloves and goggles and about 10% acid to water should be sufficient. Top up with clean water every now and then as it will evaporate off.
Hope it all works, there's nothing worse than having to re-emery an entire piece to remove plating...
Nikki
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