Powertools / Buffer to Clean Stainless Steel Kitchen Pans?

[oldschoolcraft]

I have a variety of power tools that spin and I figure I can connect some kind of a buffer end to help clean some expensive All Clad brand stainless steel cookwear. I don't want to use a wire brush and scuff it up, but I figure some kind of paste or barkeepers friend powder with a buffing head of some kind should be good.

I'm leaning towards an attachment on the m12 die grinder but open to using a M12 cordless drill, M12 cordless screwdriver, or even a corded angle grinder I have.

Anyone have any recommendations? I have zero experience using a power tool to do buffing of any kind though I know it's common in auto work.

 

[BillK]

When ours gets some really hard baked on stuff we just use a sponge with scotchbrite on one side. Maybe some baking soda once in a while. Have never had a need for anything "powered"

 

[CGarage]

I use a very very fine grit sand paper as needed with my French cookware......Dawn dish soap is a wonderful cleaning agent.

P.S. You need to get yourself a chainmail scrubber off of Amazon.

 

[robert6715]

Bar Keepers Friend [Oxalic acid] is wonderful on stainless when combined with a 3M scrub pad & a little water. Back when I was homebrewing a lot this is all I used on my 25-gallon brew pot. It will remove the most stubborn of stains with a little elbow grease.

Do not use anything ferrous. Stainless will become contaminated with ferrous metal from wire brushes, steel wool, etc & WILL rust forever afterward.

If I was dead set on using power tools, I would figure a way to spin green, grey, white or maroon 3M "scotch brite" pads. Possibly with an angle grinder or drill.

I have had some pretty baked-on brew sugars & always used elbow grease along with bar keepers friend & a scoth brite pad when I could not soak an item.

If you can soak an item, the best option is a hot water soak with a generous amount of PBW [Powdered Brewery Wash]. It is a stainless-safe alkaline cleaner that will remove stubborn stains without much effort. I just require's a large enough container for a soak. I works great inside kegs where you can't physically scrub.

Hope that helps & take care of that stainless.

 

[neophyte]

Scotchbrite and sandpaper contain abrasives, usually aluminum oxide.
That is not watch should be used to clean expensive pans, since those abrasives will remove way way too much material.
Stainless steel, or even less abrasive solid copper Chore Boy type metal mesh scourers should be used.
These tend to cut thru gunk buildup to remove burnt on or solidified oil.
The copper version wears out quickly, and can occasionally leave a bit of copper on the surface of pans.
The stainless can burnish the bright finish of pans slightly mat.
Both are far better to use than scotchbrite, especially on expensive pans.
If for dome reason you need to repolish pans, finding a polishing compound used for stainless steel and using it with a cotton buff would be best, but you would need to make sure all the brown burnt on stains are off the pan first.
You should probably find the least aggressive polish and test that first.

Scotchbrite is literally one of the quickest ways to ruin a pan finish.

For really thick gunk on flat pan surfaces, a stainless Chore Boy spun with a slow sander with a felt pad can make things go thicker.
The felt pad is to prevent damaging the hook and loop.

 

[oldschoolcraft]

Thanks for replies so far guys. I will say that the pan gets so dirty that using a green scotchbright pad will take about 3 to 6 hours to fully clean it by hand, along with maybe 30 to 50 green scotchbright pads.

Alternatively I can use a few rolls of papertowels and a ton of barkeeper's friend over several hours.

I've done it! It *****!

I let the black carbon cake on there for a while before cleaning it. I gave up and just let it build up because it's not worth several hours of my time to clean it off and my forearms get super sore.

I dont think either of these ruins the pan's finish, but I could be wrong and maybe I ruined it years ago. It's stainless steel and pretty thick so I dont think I've come close to removing enough material to risk damaging it.

I was hoping for a power tool method that I could get it done in 5 to 10 minutes.

 

[RTM]

Thanks for replies so far guys. I will say that the pan gets so dirty that using a green scotchbright pad will take about 3 to 6 hours to fully clean it by hand, along with maybe 30 to 50 green scotchbright pads.

Someone needs to improve their cooking skills. Even my poor technique has not fouled things up that bad.

Usually, depending on what is burned on, putting a small amount of water 1/4”-1/2”, a couple of drops if dish soap, and bring it to a boil.

Our guys polish SS to a very nice finish using chemicals and power tools, I can look it up later.

 

[robert6715]

Thanks for replies so far guys. I will say that the pan gets so dirty that using a green scotchbright pad will take about 3 to 6 hours to fully clean it by hand, along with maybe 30 to 50 green scotchbright pads.

Alternatively I can use a few rolls of papertowels and a ton of barkeeper's friend over several hours.

I've done it! It *****!

I let the black carbon cake on there for a while before cleaning it. I gave up and just let it build up because it's not worth several hours of my time to clean it off and my forearms get super sore.

I dont think either of these ruins the pan's finish, but I could be wrong and maybe I ruined it years ago. It's stainless steel and pretty thick so I dont think I've come close to removing enough material to risk damaging it.

I was hoping for a power tool method that I could get it done in 5 to 10 minutes.

For what you are describing I would try the PBW, it really works well for tough stains on stainless with near-zero scrubbing, it just requires soaking. The first time I used it I thought I was dreaming, it really works that well.

Use 4oz per gallon of hot water & let soak overnight.

What do you have to lose?

PBW - Powdered Brewery Wash

PBW is a pro-grade brewery cleaner that dissolves caked-on debris. Safe on all surfaces. Biodegradable, easy to rinse, and ready for Star San sanitizing.

www.northernbrewer.com

 

[d.mcfarland]

Soak them in vinegar and they will come out pretty squeaky clean, including the weird haze that never goes away when hand washing them.

 

[oldschoolcraft]

The problem is less the inside of the pan, because I clean that regularly, and moreso the outside of the pain. Has like 1/4" of caked on carbon burnt into it. The problem is I live in an apartment and the electric stove elements are hard to clean, I think so wind up burning residue into the back of the pan.

Not a huge deal, but I'd love to clean it up if possible. I will try the PBW, it sounds interesting!

 

[Tools4Me]

Spray it down with oven cleaner. I use the cheap Dollar Tree aerosol spray oven cleaner myself.

https://www.dollartree.com/the-home-store-heavy-duty-oven-cleaner-13oz-cans/859629

After spraying the pan down, let everything sit for 30 minutes or so. Before the oven cleaner has a chance to dry on its' own, scrub the surface a bit with a non-scratching scrub sponge to remove what you can. The deposits will come off a little bit at a time, like layers of an onion. One round will usually be enough to clean up almost all the amber colored areas of the pan. Thicker black colored areas of baked on grease deposits will take more rounds of oven cleaner. If you have patience, you can get a pan clean again with very little manual effort.

I like using stainless oven roasting pans (with handles) for carrying tools around my shop, and for holding my tools while working under a vehicle, so I have used this technique on multiple stainless thrift store oven pans (they all started out almost completely black) and it has always worked.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Cameo Aluminum and Stainless Cleaner. It is more like a buffing compound. Very little "elbow grease" required. I have been using it for 50 years on Farberware.

 

[gahrajmahal]

On our stainless pans when I carbon up the insides I fill it with a 1/4” of vinegar and bring to a boil. The charcoal just magically lifts off. I then wash it in soap and water so I don’t know about the haze McFarland mentioned. For the outside you could boil it in a larger pan.

I think I’d try the brewery wash, save it in a five gallon pail and use it again next week when they are blackened up again.

 

[no704]

Belt sander with a scotch brite belt?

 

[Qualitytools]

For what you are describing I would try the PBW, it really works well for tough stains on stainless with near-zero scrubbing, it just requires soaking. The first time I used it I thought I was dreaming, it really works that well.

Use 4oz per gallon of hot water & let soak overnight.

What do you have to lose?

PBW - Powdered Brewery Wash

PBW is a pro-grade brewery cleaner that dissolves caked-on debris. Safe on all surfaces. Biodegradable, easy to rinse, and ready for Star San sanitizing.

www.northernbrewer.com

Thanks for the recommendation as the title captured my attention, I just ordered PBW for our pots and pans from Amazon.

 

[JradM]

There's an inexpensive Ryobi 4v power scrubber. Not sure if that would help you or not.



If you're polishing like you would a car, this doesn't spin fast enough. If you're using it to clean or brighten things up with some polishing powder or paste, I think it would work great. Powered-cleaning is the whole point of the tool. Those brushes, mounted to a 1/4" hex, are also available separately in case you want to just put them in your screwdriver or drill, etc.

 

[boom_bap]

All the black is likely cooking oil carbonizing. That is just seasoning your pan. You can choose to just leave it alone if you want it doesn't hurt anything. Another thing you can try is to deglaze your pan during cooking by using a dash of water in the pan and scraping the fond. Honestly though a normal curved pan is going to get carbon build up. I wouldn't waste three hours cleaning since it will just come back. Alternatively switch to cast iron and all those problems with stainless steel go away and use stainless pans for wetter, sausy dishes.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Thanks for the recommendation as the title captured my attention, I just ordered PBW for our pots and pans from Amazon.

Cameo is much cheaper !

 

[Packard V8]

Alternatively switch to cast iron and all those problems with stainless steel go away and use stainless pans for wetter, sausy dishes.

This. All-Clad stainless cookware is wonderful for liquids, for acidic sauces with vinegar or tomato and the like. I don't know many pros who would choose it for saute, fry, browning. As our OP has learned to his dismay, stainless doesn't season well or attractively.

jack vines, who has cast iron cookware in most sizes and shapes and uses them daily.