DIY Rust Removal

All you need are a few essential items that you probably already have in your kitchen cupboard. Remove unsightly, damaging, rust with these five clever hacks.

Green Goddess Premium Baking Soda is very alkaline, making it effective on smaller rusted areas. All you need to do is mix it with water to form a thick paste (how much depends on the area you are cleaning) then spread the paste onto the rust and leave for a few hours. Next, take a scrubbing brush and remove the paste and the loosened rust should come away.

Coca-Cola is not at all good for your body, so don’t drink it! Use it to dissolve rust instead. Coke has a high acidic content, and although baking soda is alkaline, both remove rust. Coke works well for difficult to remove rust as it contains citric acid which helps dissolve it. Soak a cloth in Coke and rub it firmly over the rusted area to remove it. If you have a small item you can place it into a shallow dish so it’s covered, leave to soak for a few hours, then rub with a cloth to remove.

Green Goddess Premium White Vinegar is great around the home, the list is almost endless, and it’s very good for removing rust too. Get a bowl or shallow dish and partially fill with an even mix of water and vinegar, this is perfect for small items that you can pop in all together. Watch as the rust starts to flake away, the amount of time needed will depend upon how rusty the items are.

Lemon juice and salt will help lift rust, try this if you don’t have the other products on hand, and if you have an item that’s too big to soak. Sprinkle the salt onto the rusty area and rub in with a cloth, follow up with plenty of lemon juice. Leave for a few hours then rub over the area again with the cloth. For hard to move rust use an old toothbrush and repeat the process.

Lemon juice and Cream of Tartar is good for removing rust from stainless steel when all else has failed. Mix the lemon juice and Cream of Tartar to create a paste (again how much depends on the area you are cleaning), smear it onto the rusted area and leave for an hour. Then rub with cloth with a little lemon juice squeezed on, the abrasiveness of the Tartar will help to move the rust without scratching – as long as you don’t use a scouring pad.