I love vinegar and baking soda!

We bought a wood stove last winter after our power bill was $350! I grew up with a wood stove in our house and we never turned the heater on. So, needless-to-say, I was shocked at how much electric heat costs!

After the wood stove was installed, we were basically broke. Let me also be the one to tell you that you better have a pretty penny if you want to buy a wood stove and wood stove pipe! Holy potatoes!

So, anyways, the air is really dry when you are burning wood heat and you usually need a cast iron kettle to moisten the air filled with water. I stalled as long as I could because kettles are not that cheap either. But, a couple weeks ago I found this kettle at a yard sale for $5.

I used a wire brush to rub off the crusty rust that was all over and inside of it, then rinsed with water. After that I stuck the kettle in the sink and put baking soda all over it. Then, I grabbed my husband so he could see... I poured vinegar (white and apple cider; just for shits and giggles) all over it! It fizzled and foamed and was so cool to watch! I added some hot water and let the kettle soak for about an hour. The above picture is after the soaking (I was dumb and didn't do a before picture!) It was basically orange when I bought it.

Here is the soaking after an hour. EWWW! It was completely black. The kettle is actually in the sink at that moment.

I took the kettle out of the sink and let it dry. Once it was all dry, I sprayed it with high heat spray paint. This little tube of spray paint came with the wood stove we bought for an touch ups. I just sprayed the kettle with it.

And here it is! My kettle looking very brand new! Woo hoo!! Now, I am on the hunt for a trivet to set it on. Wish me luck on my yard sale/thrift shop adventures.