Amazing, Super Inexpensive, and Easy Copper Bottom Pot Cleaner

My old copper bottom pots are great, and they take just a little bit of extra effort to keep the bottoms clean. All it takes is a minute and two simple household ingredients: vinegar and salt!

• Vinegar: I purchase the largest bottle of vinegar at my favorite shopping club. It’s about $3 for a 1.3 gallon bottle.
• Salt: I purchase the 4-pound box of salt at my favorite shopping club. The table salt is $1.59. Pickling and canning salt is pure salt, so I tend to use this so there are no additives. (Yes, there are additives to table salt!) I put the salt in a small canning jar with a spouted lid (reCAP) to make sprinkling easy and keep moisture out of the salt.
• Spray bottle: I use vinegar for many other things, so I always have some in a large spray bottle. This costs $1-3 at Wal-Mart.

Method:

1. Wash as normal.
2. Spray the bottom of the pot lightly with vinegar.
3. Sprinkle a small amount of salt (I use about 1 teaspoon) over the vinegar.
4. Rub, dry, and admire the shine!

No more chemicals, no more powdery cleanser! If the spots have been on the bottom of the pot for a while you might want to consider using a copper cleanser first to remove the spots, and then use this vinegar/salt method thereafter to maintain the shine.