Restoring corroded hob plates

**Chris** · 08-04-2005, 12:16

Hi all ... this week I acquired (for free!) a fully-working electric range cooker. It looks very nice in our kitchen and I'm looking forward to experimenting with the sort of complicated dishes you can only do with two ovens, four hob plates and a griddle

There's only one, very wee snag ... all four of the hob plates show evidence of corrosion. One of them is significantly pitted. The range is no more than 8 years old (judging by the (c) date in the instructions) but has clearly been very well used and not so well loved.

I have done some googling on the subject of repairing hob corrosion and all I have found is pages dealing with Agas and Rayburns (and even these don't answer my question at all, despite promising to in their introductions - frustrating!)

The best I can understand is that you can apparently use a fine grade emery cloth to smooth a hob plate (on an Aga, at any rate), before cleaning and oiling with a proprietory bottle of whatever.

Does anybody here have any experience of cleaning rust off an electric cooker hob plate?

Thanks in advance ....

tick · 08-04-2005, 12:21

Can you not replace them.
Cleaning them might do more harm than goog?

**Chris** · 08-04-2005, 12:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by tick

Can you not replace them.
Cleaning them might do more harm than goog?

Spares suppliers seem not to stock hob plates (those I've seen so far anyway). The top of the cooker appears to be a sealed unit. Besides, the plates are far from dead. They just look permanently dirty! Replacing them would be a little extreme.

08-04-2005, 12:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris T

Spares suppliers seem not to stock hob plates (those I've seen so far anyway). The top of the cooker appears to be a sealed unit. Besides, the plates are far from dead. They just look permanently dirty! Replacing them would be a little extreme.

I don't think you will have much luck trying to use emery, or similar, there will be too much metal to remove to smooth the plates completely.

- initially I would try polishing them up with a brass cup brush on an electric drill, obviously the pitted surface will still be pitted, but it should look a lot better.

Flubflow · 08-04-2005, 12:58

Fine grade emery might be ok for removing surface rust but it aint gonna get rid of the pitting. For that I think you'll probably need to take the hob plate to a machinist and get it skimmed. Then you finish it off nicely with some of this.. www.dmpb.co.uk/hpr.htm
That's all very well if you have know a friend of a friend who can do it on the cheap otherwise it might be cheaper & easier just to get a new replacement hob plate (if they are still available).

AGA suggest this: "The hob surface can be restored reasonably easily in situ by using grinding paste and an oilstone or suitably shaped flat piece of steel. But, what ever technique you use, donÃƒÆ’Ã‚Â¢ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚Â¬ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚Â¢t get the paste on the enamel surface!"
Which is just great if you've got very big biceps and several days spare to grind out any significant pitting

.

Salu · 08-04-2005, 12:58

Wet and dry abrasive paper maybe?

**Chris** · 08-04-2005, 13:19

I think I'll attack it with emery cloth, seeing as nobody seems to believe that would actually damage the hob plate.

None of the various spares websites I have visited so far stock hob plates. It appears they are not seen as a part that needs replacing (or perhaps they just can't be replaced?).

08-04-2005, 13:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris T

I think I'll attack it with emery cloth, seeing as nobody seems to believe that would actually damage the hob plate.<snip>

just be careful to keep everything perfectly square & level - the last thing you want is a wobbly pan that isn't making good thermal contact with the plate.

- and if the element starts to show, it's time to stop

**Chris** · 08-04-2005, 13:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by homealone

just be careful to keep everything perfectly square & level - the last thing you want is a wobbly pan that isn't making good thermal contact with the plate.

- and if the element starts to show, it's time to stop

element .... zoiks! How thin are hob plates? I was thinking they must be a couple of centimetres thick at least. I'm only thinking of skimming a millimetre off them, if that!

altis · 08-04-2005, 13:47

You might want to try one of the Mycal De-solv-it heavy duty citrus cleaners and a wire brush.

http://www.mykal.co.uk/pages/semi_aqueous.htm

http://cpc.farnell.com/jsp/endecaSea...sp?SKU=SA00734

08-04-2005, 13:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris T

element .... zoiks! How thin are hob plates? I was thinking they must be a couple of centimetres thick at least. I'm only thinking of skimming a millimetre off them, if that!

The newer the thinner I would guess - but you will be ok with a millimetre

- we need a 'tongue in cheek' smiley

**Chris** · 08-04-2005, 13:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by homealone

The newer the thinner I would guess - but you will be ok with a millimetre

- we need a 'tongue in cheek' smiley

And a relieved smiley ...

altis · 08-04-2005, 14:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris T

And a relieved smiley ...

We used to have one of them but it got censored!

ian@huth · 08-04-2005, 14:22

How about cleaning the hobs up and then applying a high temperature paint such as on http://www.calfire.com/section.php?s...=new&section=3

Flubflow · 08-04-2005, 15:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris T

element .... zoiks! How thin are hob plates? I was thinking they must be a couple of centimetres thick at least. I'm only thinking of skimming a millimetre off them, if that!

You will never in a month of sundays take off 1mm with emery cloth. You will be extremely lucky even to take off 0.1mm and even then not evenly.
Emery is only good for removing loose surface rust. The grinding paste and oilstone method is better for getting rid of slightly deeper corrosion and keeping the surface truly flat but even that has its limits when you have deep pitting.