Technical advice needed

Mirro-Matic and West Bend used to recommend using Cream of Tartar to clean aluminum percolators. Try filling the pot to the max fill and add 2 tbls.of Cream of Tartar and run it thru a brew cycle, then unplug the pot and let the solution of water and Cream of Tartar sit in the pot until it has cooled off, or a few hours. Then GENTLY try to move the stem from side to side in all four directions, just a little bit and see if that doesn�t loosen it up. I�m pretty sure that this stem wasn�t meant to be permanently fixed to the heating well. If this doesn�t work, try to GENTLY pry it by placing a long, thin bladed knife point between the base of the stem and the heating well. I think with patience and perseverance you will finally be able to free the stem base from the heating well.

BTW, Cream of Tartar is an acid that is derived from the production of wine, It is best to cleaning aluminum percolators because it won�t blacken the aluminum like dishwasher detergent will.

Good luck and HTH.
Eddie


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Post# 1049366 10/30/2019 at 07:28 (1,637 days old) by Vintage1963 (Ohio)
Checkrate/Likes Hi friends... I recently acquired this percolator from Ebay. As you can see it is in good shape. However, I am puzzled by something. The stem inside the percolator does not come out. It seems to be immovable. Could this be caused by corrosion, or could this percolator have been made with a stem that is not meant to be removed? I have never encountered this before. None of the other percolators I have are like this, no matter how old they are. Thoughts? Photos... < > Photo 1 of 2 View Full Size

Post# 1049386 , Reply# 1 10/30/2019 at 09:43 (1,637 days old) by turquoisedude (.)
Checkrate/Likes 1 I think you hit the nail on the head, Ed. The well may be corroded and has fused the stem to it. Have you tried pouring very hot water into it or letting the perk heat up with water then removing the stem? That's a nice perk, BTW! One I've been on the prowl for as well... LOL

Post# 1049465 , Reply# 2 10/30/2019 at 19:09 (1,637 days old) by Vintage1963 (Ohio)
Checkrate/Likes Paul, Several cycles later and the stem still doesn't move.

Post# 1049483 , Reply# 3 10/30/2019 at 21:01 (1,637 days old) by turquoisedude (.)
Checkrate/Likes 1 Ugh... The only other thing I can think of is perhaps try CLR; it might loosen the build-up on the metal and allow you to remove the stem.

Post# 1049484 , Reply# 4 10/30/2019 at 21:01 (1,637 days old) by kenmoreguy89 (Valenza Piemonte, Italy- Soon to be US immigrant.)
Checkrate/Likes 1 Try with vinegar...or citric acid, it should dissolve scale as well as rust or oxidation.

Post# 1049609 , Reply# 5 11/1/2019 at 09:18 (1,635 days old) by Vintage1963 (Ohio)
Checkrate/Likes I've tried two cycles of CLR to no avail. I'm beginning to think the stem was made to not move at all.

Post# 1049638 , Reply# 6 11/1/2019 at 16:33 (1,635 days old) by ea56 (Cotati, Calif.)
Checkrate/Likes 1 Mirro-Matic and West Bend used to recommend using Cream of Tartar to clean aluminum percolators. Try filling the pot to the max fill and add 2 tbls.of Cream of Tartar and run it thru a brew cycle, then unplug the pot and let the solution of water and Cream of Tartar sit in the pot until it has cooled off, or a few hours. Then GENTLY try to move the stem from side to side in all four directions, just a little bit and see if that doesn�t loosen it up. I�m pretty sure that this stem wasn�t meant to be permanently fixed to the heating well. If this doesn�t work, try to GENTLY pry it by placing a long, thin bladed knife point between the base of the stem and the heating well. I think with patience and perseverance you will finally be able to free the stem base from the heating well. BTW, Cream of Tartar is an acid that is derived from the production of wine, It is best to cleaning aluminum percolators because it won�t blacken the aluminum like dishwasher detergent will. Good luck and HTH. Eddie

Post# 1050818 , Reply# 7 11/12/2019 at 11:53 (1,624 days old) by chachp (North Little Rock, AR)
Checkrate/Likes *Stupid question...* I know this might be a dumb question but did you try turning it? I've seen some over the years that screw in and out.

Post# 1050881 , Reply# 8 11/13/2019 at 11:02 (1,623 days old) by LowEfficiency (Iowa)
Checkrate/Likes Here are some photos from an eBay auction if it helps. It looks like the stem should be removable... Photos... < > Photo 1 of 2 View Full Size

Post# 1050882 , Reply# 9 11/13/2019 at 11:06 (1,623 days old) by LowEfficiency (Iowa)
Checkrate/Likes One more, not very good quality though. View Full Size