Carl: I've run into the same problems with calcium deposits over the years. I like Pauline's preventative approach
with the baby oil treatment. That is the most practical.
But for those deposits which are already present, I've found the best results from using a pumice stick. They
are sold for cleaning sinks or toilets of calcium deposits. It is a very friable pumice, not like your wife uses for
her foot callouses! It seems to do a good job and does not scratch the surface of the pot like you might think it
would. There's a bit of dust to clean up at the end, but not so much that I've ever felt I needed a respirator for
protection. I don't kick up that much dust doing it manually.
lan Walker, Lake Charles, LA, USA
http://LCBSBonsai.org http://bonsai-bci.com
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Carl L Rosner wrote:
Dear ABS members, I have also shared this Email with the IBC:
In our area (southern New Jersey), the water leaves a white ugly residue on all the Bonsai pots. I believe it
is calcium carbonate; after about two years the accumulation is decidedly bad looking and is very hard to remove.
I have tried many commercial products to clean the pots, but nothing works. I even left a pot in a solution
called lime-a-way for over three months and another in CLR, and they did absolutely nothing! I read here on the IBC
that if you bury them in the ground that they will come out clean in a couple of years. I do not have a place to
safely bury them, so that idea is out. I have even tried elbow grease using a product called Scotch Brite. It will
scratch away the deposits, but it is a very slow process. Obviously, someone out there might have found a solution to
this problem, but I have never heard of it.
I finally hit upon a solution, and it does work! I was able to
completely clean two of my pots yesterday in less than a half hour.
Today I cleaned up another five in the same amount of time. I mounted my electric drill in a vise. Attached a wire
brush into the chuck, and was able to clean off the white residue. I wore safety goggles and gloves, and I was able to
make them look as good as new. One pot was glazed and the second was a non-glazed pot made by Dale Cochoy. The pots
cleaned today were all glazed pots. I was drenched in perspiration, but it was worth it. I only have another thirty or
forty pots to clean. Sounds like a job for the winter eh?
Carl L. Rosner - near Atlantic City zone 6/7

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