food safe paint or other coating

[Marlene]

I have a cast iron lard press that I use for a cheese press sometimes but it tends to get a little rusty. The inner basket has a removeable cast iron bottom but the sides might be tin. I would like to paint or coat it with some type of finish to keep it from rusting and getting the cheese rusty. Does anyone have any suggestions on a food safe finish that I could apply myself? Marlene

[fin29]

I would check at www.johnboos.com. They just fabricated a custom maple bakers table for me and coated it with what they advertise as a "food grade" clear varnish. I'm sure you can contact them and order a bottle.

[lacyj]

could you line it with wax paper or plastic wrap?

[Soni]

Aren't most enamels chemically inert once cured?

[River]

Marlene,

Pure tung oil and raw linseed oil are both food safe finishes, being made from edible materials. Make sure they are the pure product, though, as often additives are included to improve drying time, etc. Boiled linseed oil has nothing to do with it being boiled, it has other things added that disqualify as food-grade.

I have never used either of these products on anything but wood, so you might try a little on a small area and see how it comes out. Maybe they won't stick.

Can you, instead, just coat your lard press with vegetable oil or mineral oil after each use?

River

[d-k-g-1]

Don't know if this will help, but Sherwin Williams sells "food Grade" industrial epoxy coatings... they are rated for potable water by the government...

Dave

Lard presses are indeed usually tinned.

The food grade epoxy coating mentioned in the last message sounds like a winner to me.

Will the press have enough internal clearance so as not to peel or scrape the coating off?

On down the road you may wish to spend the money and have it powder coated. I think this is what is used on Kitchenade mixer paddles, and the stand up to wear great.
Bucks and finding a shop to do it though.

[havellostmywings]

Ok... Cast Iron....

One... if you wash cast iron in water it will rust...

You say it is a Pan... have you ever "CURED" the cast Iron?

Clean it well.. rub it down with oil... and put it in oven... on low... and let the oil bake into the iron.. about an hour...

Two... you really should NEVER use soap and water on a cast iron pan... many old times will tell you ... best way to clean cast iron is with sand... but in this day and age.. we all clean with soap and water... This is how i clean My grandmothers cast iron pans I have ... I set them in the sink with no water... I pour some hot water in the pan.. and a little soap.. if the pan is cured, nothing will stick to it... a quick rinse and its clean.. put it on the stove and turn on the fire to dry it... after all the water is out of the pan.. rub a little oil in to the pan and leave for another 5 minutes.. turn it off.. let it cool and its ready for the next use. It should Never rust this way...

I have Two Cast Iron Dutch Ovens and 3 cast iron skillet/pans... They never rust... and this is the way I treat them. The two skillet/pans that were my grandmothers are going on 70 yrs old... and I still cook a roast in them the way she did... put the roast and potatoes and veggies in one with a half cup of water... put that in the oven and cover with the other pan... hour to hour and half later you have a roast that is so tender it is falling a part..

So.. try curing the Pan and treating it as iron.. and see if that helps... you shouldnt need to coat it.

Lynn in Texas

You might consider having the piece re-tinned. I think you can have copper pots/pans redone so why not a pork press?

I picked up an old [ and very rusty] cast iron waffle iron for purely nostalgic reasons- my dad used one to make waffles sunday morning when I was as kid.I haven't seen one since- until I saw this one.It was in pretty sad shape[although that didn't lower the price much-$60[ I could have got an electric one for half that]Anyway, I took it home, soaked it for several days in lye, then rinsed it off, put it in Coka Cola for anothercouple of days, then a good wire brushing, and seasoning it with vegetable oil , baked it in the oven over night- and I have a waffle iron thatwas making waffles longbefore I was born, and will be makingwaffles for generations yet unborn.
ps- I;ve gone through several electric waffle irons......

[Marlene]

Thank you everyone for all the suggestions. I will try seasoning like a cast iron skillet and see if that works. I don't think that will work on the tin though. My next step is to call Sherwin Williams. Thanks again. Marlene

[wr]

Marlene, instead of calling Sherwin Williams, call the nearest farm supply center. They always carry at least one paint that is accepted as safe for dairy facilities and they are listed as food safe. If it doesn't state "food safe" on the can, make sure that it's "dairy safe".