How can you clean your Teapot without damaging the patina? Today, I'll teach you a practical little trick.
Cleaning Trick for Your Teapot
1. Take one spoonful of edible baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) and put it into the pot. Pour in boiling water at 100 degrees Celsius, fill the pot to the brim, and then cover it with the lid.
2. Wait for about ten minutes, then gently scrub the inside of the pot with a soft-bristled brush. You will see the Tea stains turn into yellow water flowing out. The cleaned pot will shine like new. If you feel it hasn't been thoroughly cleaned after the first attempt, you can soak it for a bit longer and scrub again, but be sure to use a soft brush to avoid damaging the pot.
Note: To prevent damage to the patina, when soaking the pot, only fill it with the alkaline water as you would with tea. Do not submerge the entire pot in a large container filled with alkaline water. This could easily remove the oily substances on the outside of the pot, which are necessary for developing a good patina.
Purple Clay Teapot Care Tips
In addition to the cleaning trick that preserves the patina, here are some other tips for caring for your purple clay teapot.
The Three Correct Steps for Initial Preparation:
First: Rinse the inside and outside of the pot with warm water to clean it.
Second: Warm up the purple clay teapot with water around 60 degrees Celsius.
Third: Place an appropriate amount of the tea you intend to Brew inside the pot, pour in boiling water, and let it steep for half an hour to an hour.
You may know: External care can help develop the patina on a purple clay teapot more quickly, so you always rinse the exterior of the teapot whenever you brew tea.
You might not know: While external care does help speed up the development of the patina, it's important to remember to wipe the exterior of the teapot clean after each use. Otherwise, uneven coloring or blotches might appear. Some people do wipe their teapots, but they don't do it promptly enough, which can be too late for proper care after a few hours.
You may know: Regularly handling and rubbing the purple clay teapot can help form the patina faster.
You might not know: Handling the teapot is fine, but purple clay is very sensitive to oil. Be sure to wash your hands thoroughly before handling the teapot, or else it might develop an unsightly sheen if it comes into contact with oils.