Help: Smelly, gunked up Wagner Dutch oven

[Crisby8591]

Hey guys, I'm new to this forum and I need some help. I picked up this old Wagner Dutch oven at an estate sale. It's in pretty rough shape, but I figured it was worth trying to save. I've been trying to clean it up for a week now, but it's just not working. The inside is caked with this black gunk, and the lid has some rust. I tried scrubbing it with steel wool, but it barely made a dent. I even left it in a vinegar bath for a day, but the smell that came off it was so bad I had to put it outside. I don't know what the previous owner cooked in this thing, but it smells like a dumpster fire. My garage stinks just from it sitting in there. I'm worried it's a lost cause. Is there anything that can be done for a pan this far gone, or should I just cut my losses and toss it? I've seen some people talk about using lye baths, but I'm a little intimidated by that. Any tips would be a huge help! Thanks a lot!

 

[SweetAndSpicy]

Is there anything that can be done for a pan this far gone, or should I just cut my losses and toss it?

dude, don't toss it! that's a Wagner Dutch oven, a classic, high quality piece of cast iron. It's almost impossible to truly ruin one, no matter what it's been through. The smell and the gunk are par for the course with an old, neglected pan.
I know a lye bath sounds intimidating, but it's the gold standard for stripping old seasoning and gunk. Think of it as a chemical cleaner for the pan. Lye (sodium hydroxide) dissolves organic matter, so it'll eat right through that caked on gunk without hurting the iron.
Just get a large plastic tote, add a few pounds of lye to water (always add lye to water!), and put the pan in. It's more like a "set it and forget it" process that's much more effective than a vinegar soak

 

[bellionaire]

Yo! @Crisby8591 don't toss it, Wagners are worth saving and a lye bath is actually the best way to strip that old dirt, then follow up with electrolysis or vinegar for the rust

 

[charli3do3s]

Hey guys, I'm new to this forum and I need some help. I picked up this old Wagner Dutch oven at an estate sale. It's in pretty rough shape, but I figured it was worth trying to save. I've been trying to clean it up for a week now, but it's just not working. The inside is caked with this black gunk, and the lid has some rust. I tried scrubbing it with steel wool, but it barely made a dent. I even left it in a vinegar bath for a day, but the smell that came off it was so bad I had to put it outside. I don't know what the previous owner cooked in this thing, but it smells like a dumpster fire. My garage stinks just from it sitting in there. I'm worried it's a lost cause. Is there anything that can be done for a pan this far gone, or should I just cut my losses and toss it? I've seen some people talk about using lye baths, but I'm a little intimidated by that. Any tips would be a huge help! Thanks a lot!

How's this going? I hope you haven't given up on that Dutch oven just yet!
What you're dealing with is likely years of built-up carbonized grease.
The best way to tackle this without going to lye is with Easy-Off Heavy Duty oven cleaner.
Spray the piece down, bag it up in a thick trash bag, then seal it tight for a day or two.
The gunk should soften up and be much easier to scrub off with a nylon brush.
You might need to do it twice, but it should get the job done!
Once it's clean down to bare metal, don't forget to season it!

 

[BigBob75]

Hey guys, I'm new to this forum and I need some help. I picked up this old Wagner Dutch oven at an estate sale. It's in pretty rough shape, but I figured it was worth trying to save. I've been trying to clean it up for a week now, but it's just not working. The inside is caked with this black gunk, and the lid has some rust. I tried scrubbing it with steel wool, but it barely made a dent. I even left it in a vinegar bath for a day, but the smell that came off it was so bad I had to put it outside. I don't know what the previous owner cooked in this thing, but it smells like a dumpster fire. My garage stinks just from it sitting in there. I'm worried it's a lost cause. Is there anything that can be done for a pan this far gone, or should I just cut my losses and toss it? I've seen some people talk about using lye baths, but I'm a little intimidated by that. Any tips would be a huge help! Thanks a lot!

If all else fails and you give up, give me a shout and I'll buy it from you. I'm old and stubborn and would welcome the challenge of cleaning this Cast Iron. God Bless. Bob

 

[mushka]

Take it to a business that sand blasts engine parts. I've taken two bad dutches to them and they cleaned down to the metal. Had to retreat the metal for cooking but they turned out really well for cooking.

 

[Alan]

Did you end up using lye bath?

 

[BigBob75]

Take it to a business that sand blasts engine parts. I've taken two bad dutches to them and they cleaned down to the metal. Had to retreat the metal for cooking but they turned out really well for cooking.

Also a tombstone manufacturer may have a sandblast room. I used a local tombstone manufacturer (no longer there) to clean my antique radiators and car parts . Some auto garages have small sandblast cabinets too. As mushka stated the cast iron must then be re-seasoned, but the cast iron will look brand new. Good luck. God Bless. Bob