Blackening a woodburner

brodev

Once upon a long long time ago when I was a boy in Glasgow, everybody that I knew had a cast iron fire called a range. All the women were very house proud and kept the cast iron shining black with a cleaning and polishing substance. Does anybody know what that substance was and more importantly is there an equivalent available today? My wife wants it for our wood burning fire cast iron doors. TIA

adouglasmhor

You still get Zebo Grate polish AFAIK

brodev

Thanks I was looking up ZEBRA , I also didn't use GRATE. Both these words Google well

imho

I couldnt find Zebo Grate polish anywhere in the small town i live in.But in Robert Dyas they had Traditional Graphite black grate polish in a tube nearly £5 .75ml

alzibar

years ago every one used BLACK LEAD to shine the range, google it its still available

hex2

I couldn't find it anywhere - and then got it in the village hardware shop. Great stuff - couple of quid I think?

owned_by_2_Siamese

Before you use it check with the manufactuer of the stove - some stove enamel isn't compatible with blacking - for example morso stoves make a huge point about not using it !

vansboy

& when you polish with it, remember the stuff sends fine coating of black everywhere!

Or is tht 'cos i used an old shoe brush & newspaper, as well as a cloth, to buff it up?

VB

Peartree

When I had a wood burning stove, I always got Zebo stove blacking in Wilkinsons. If you have one nearby I'm pretty sure they still sell it, failing that any old fashioned independent hardware store - and I'm pretty sure it wasn't anything like £5 a tube! I used to warm it up a bit and put it on with a paint brush then polish it off with a cloth.

Peartree

PS I've also had black 'stove paint' especially for high temperature situations but can't remember where I picked it up. However, I'm sure the internet would find some.

Poppycat

WE just sprayed ours with heat resident paint from a specialist made for stoves