How to Clean Rust Stains Off Of A Stainless Steel Sink
From: Sarah R.
Hi Tawra and Jill!
First of all, I would like to say that I am a new wife and your tips and money saving tricks have been extremely helpful now that we are trying to make it on are own! So thank you!
My question is… I left an empty can in the sink and now there is a circle of rust. I have tried using baking soda and scrubbing the heck out of it but it didn’t even fade! Any ideas how I can get this rust stain out of my stainless steel sink?
Thanks so much!
Sarah
Here are a few things to try to remove rust stains from stainless steel:
- Try Comet or Bar Keepers Friend. I had one and it got it out of mine.
- If that doesn’t work Try CLR. Let it sit for a bit then scrub.
- If that doesn’t work then make a paste of lemon juice and salt and let it sit on it over night and then gently rub.
- If that doesn’t work then you can always try sanding it out with 600 grit sandpaper. This worked really well on my porcelain sink that nothing would get it out.
Hi–
Bar Keeper’s Friend is a great rust remover on sinks. I even use it on my Corelle plates (my old dish washer had a few spots where the metal rack was rusting and if the plates touched it, they were marked forever).
Thanks for your blog!
You could also try the Magic Eraser.
I second the Bar Keeper’s friend. It works wonders. It will get metal marks off of a porcelain sink, rust off of toilets (from a can of air freshener) It is safe on stainless and will remove the rust. It’s great on stainless pots/pans if you want to shine them up again.
The new design on your website is fabulous!
Thanks BJ. Love your name. Tawra’s oldest son’s name is BJ so I am a little partial to it. :)
Another vote for BKF – let it sit a bit to do the hard work for you.
There is another product – ZUD – which is a rust remover.
Thank you for letting me know. I just love all the helpful sweet people whom share on this loving sweet Channel. I love this family so much for all they share and do for Others god bless them All :)
I use either an SOS or Brillo pad (soap impregnated, fine steel wool). Scrubs it right off and has never hurt or marred my sink.
I use Sos pads. I love stainless steel. I also try vinegar to clean almost anything.
Use Lime Away. It works wonders on calcium, rust, etc.
I have used either Comet or SOS pads with good results to get rid of rust. I have used a paste of baking soda and a lemon half to shine up my sink before (aside from the rust stain) and it works great. Not only gives it a nice buffed shine it also helps deodorize the drain when you flush it down!
Yes I love Comet and most people don’t know you can use it on everything but glass and ceramic tiles. It is so much better then Bon Ami or Bartenders Keeper because it takes care of rust and it bleaches and disinfects which those don’t do as well so I too love my Comet.
Hi Jill,
If I could only have three cleaning products, I would go for Dawn, Comet (or Ajax) and Ammonia. And of course, never mix ammonia with comet, bleach or anything else containing bleach as it produces a lethal nerve gas! But these were the things my mother used, and they are the best and so cheap! Ammonia for getting grease or any dirt off glass, painted surfaces, formica countertops, stubborn food spills and vinyl, tile or linoleum. Comet for toilets, sinks (go easy as it is abrasive), shower floors, etc. and Dawn for any and all, really. It has a neutral PH, so it doesn’t harm much of anything, including hands! You have heard of Don Aslett, right? He is a big advocate of using dish detergent on everything. Indeed, I use a wet handiwipe with a little Dawn on it for my windows and use a squeegee to wipe them down. Actually makes cleaning glass kinda fun (I don’t get out much, haha). Anyway, I learned a lot from his books back in the 80’s and 90’s, especially that one, “Let your house do the housework”, I think it was called. I hope you have a great day, Jill and thanks to you and the family for being such pleasant, helpful and really, life-changing companions every week!
So, hate to plug a company…. But here goes…
I use Norwex Cleaning Paste. It is the equivalent to Comet but totally Environmentally friendly!
I also use their Micro Cleaning Hand Pads, their equivalent to Mr. Clean Magic Eraser (again Environmentally Friendly).
I started using Norwex when our twins were born… completely cleaned out the house of “Chemicals”, that was 10 years ago!
So, Thank you for this site! And keep the Home Made Recipes coming! I especially love your ‘Poo-Free Shampoo’!!! Thank you!!! https://www.livingonadime.com/homemade-shampoo-recipe/
I had problems with rust ring on the sink. I used Asprin recomended to me by my cleaning lady.It works! :)
Check this link to their website and see more ideas and tips – http://mycleaninglady.us/cleaning-tip-rust-ring-aspirin-rust-ring-on-the-sink/
left a metal can in the sink overnight and it left a ring and normal cleaning did not work.i used lysol toilet bowl gel and a magic eraser which i had around the house and it came right out, no waiting.
And Darren is absolutely correct! It took like 2 seconds and no elbow grease at all using the Lysol toilet bowl cleaner and the magic eraser. I read every suggestion online and his was the only one I had all of the elements for. Thanks Darren!!!
Thanks Darren, works like a charm.
On my stainless steel sinks I use SOS pads and they work great. The other solutions mentioned can be helpful but my first goto is SOS.
Yes I head for my SOS pad for everything. My pans, stove plus anything that has rust
Squirt Whink on it