It's only STAIN-less

Do not even wave a Scotch-Brite® (or similar) cleaning pad in the vicinity of a stainless steel appliance. I did several years ago when stainless steel appliances were a brand new concept for me. Why wouldn’t I? You use scratchy stuff on pots and pans. You use scratchy stuff on stainless steel spatulas with egg cooked tenaciously onto their leading edges. Why would an appliance be different?

Well, they are. They have a grain. A grain which will be tragically disrupted by a well-meaning but aggressive assault with a scratchy pad. We’ve lived with it since then--an abstract swoosh, roughly reminiscent of a cobra under the spell of a snake charmer. Right in the middle of the freezer door. Glaringly obvious.

I don’t even remember what nature of crud inspired the attack, but I’ve considered it irreparable ever since. Until, a few weeks ago, I randomly decided to Google it, and stumbled across a strong and enthusiastic recommendation for Revere Copper Cleaner in just such a situation. The poster had purchased the stuff at Williams-Sonoma.

Sadly, our Annapolis Williams-Sonoma--for all their array of shiny cookware and inspirational gadgets which I would never use in real-time--did not carry Revere Copper Cleaner. Neither did Target. Neither did “Sur La Table,” the charmingly hoity-toity kitchen supply temptress near Target. But I had found it on Amazon, and was shocked by the price. It was almost $40. This must be some kind of hot stuff, I thought, declining to purchase it then and there. But this was prior to my failure at all the brick & mortar locations, and finally--owing to the easy nature of Amazon button-pushing, and the constant in-my-face nature of the refrigerator blotch--I ordered it.

It came today, in a larger box than expected, and I instantly grasped the reason for the high price. I had purchased a case of 12. Well, I need it. And you can’t exactly return 11/12ths of a purchase. And it worked! Mostly. With close examination, or in certain reflective conditions, I still see the scratch. The biggest nuisance was that once I worked for a while on the scratched area, I had to do the rest of the fridge to match. But it’s 95% improved, and I’m pleased.

Now I will be handing out 7 oz. jars of Revere Copper Cleaner like party favors. Tea? Coffee? Copper Cleaner?