Re-using old bread pans
When I purchased Excelsior Bakery it came complete with a hundred or so bread pans- not the modern aluminum or coated steel type but black steel, and extremely heavy gauge, which were ideal for surviving the rigors of a wood fired oven.
I am guessing that some if not all of these would have been in use for 50-60 years, and are still in good general condition, however they are very heavily coated with carbon from years of what ever pan release agent was used, as well as being filthy from 35 years of storage in less than ideal conditions.Now I know the general consensus is that last thing you should do is to remove this patina, but I would like to reuse them if possible, but could never bring myself to use them in this state so I am wondering on peoples thoughts on soda blasting them, and then re-seasoning them which I feel would be an option. This is a gentle option that will remove any carbon and surface rust spots but will not etch the steel, and apparently is or was done in large bakery's before coated pans came along.
Any thoughts please?
Ian
I am not a commercial baker but I have had plenty of old,steel pans, having inherited some bakeware from a grandmother married in1919. I would do a hot,soapy surface scrub to get rid of surface filth( being stored in a barn, or whatever). Dry them in heat so they don'rust and then take care of any rust spots using the best method that gets rid of the rust spot without damaging the pan. Preserve as much of the patina as possible. It takes years to get that back.
Please show a close-up photo before you do anything to them.
Thanks Guys,
I ended up borrowing a high pressure industrial water blaster (not a toy like you see in the local hardware) and it has brought them up to an acceptable std.