Gear

I used a brand new Primus Litech cookset (this one: http://www.lansdaleltd.com/prod.php/prod/PRI731691) at the weekend, as it was quite dirty after cooking up a meal in it, I cleaned it with a white scourer (with water!) that was meant to be suitable for non-stick pans, however just one use of it seems to have wrecked the non-stick coating on the pan and has removed it entirely in places!

 I'm am very disappointed in the durability of the non-stick coating on the Primus pans, but am also wondering what *should* I have used to clean the pans? Hot soapy water and sponge was not shifting cooked-on tomato sauce....

Take it back and complain. If you used suitable equipment to clean it and it has been ruined you might have a duff one?

The worst they can say is "no."

Paul,

if the hot soapy water & sponge wasn't shifting tomato sauce of a so-called non-stick I think you might have grounds for concern already! Possibly you burnt the nonstick coating long before you took the scourer to it...

John

[edit to add.... nice choice of product to attach this thread to! Or have you been cooking in a eVent gaiters instead of your pans... this might explain the problem ... ]

River gravel.  It will take off the non-stick coating, of course, but then at least you don't have to worry about it any more...

Perhaps more usefully, I find non-stick coatings  are something that don't mix happily with detergents.  For our household non-stick I let them soak a little in hot water and then wipe them clean, no detergent, no scouring agent (either mechanical or chemical).  Lightly oiling and wiping afterwards makes them work better as non-stick during cooking, and also makes them easier to clean, while detergents that strip any oils help stuff stick and in turn mean you need heavier artillery to clean them, and so on.  And eventually the more noxious cleaning schedule means you're back with a non-non-stick pan after all.

Every now and then I give the outsides a wash with detergent and scourers, but I try and leave the inside non-stick coating for cleaning with just hot water and soft cloths.  Working like that our main pans are still in good condition after nearly 3 years (and counting) of daily use since we got them.  Must admit I've not really seen the point for outdoors stuff, and really do use river gravel to clean my (never non-stick) Trangia pots.  But they're still okay after 21 years.

Pete.

In response to Frum - on primus.se it states that the Litech cook set has a "multi-layer titanium non-stick surface" - maybe not in this case!

I too would be disappointed with the quality an would , as Atlaslion says, complain.

Okay, I've written to the seller to ask for a refund or replacement. I'm annoyed because I'd heard reports that the MSR Duralite cook set was prone to thr non-stick wearing off and thought that the Litech's ""multi-layer titanium non-stick surface" would be better, obviously not!

 Ideally I'd like a 2l/1.7L Titanium pot combo without non-stick, but the largest I can find without importing from the USA is the MSR 1.5/1.0L set...

On the info given it does seem the retailer is responsible under the Sale of Goods Act - good luck and let us know how you get on...

...and lansdaleltd.com can be placed in one of the regular good retailer/bad retailer threads.

Surprised at Primus though - usually considered excellent quality kit.

> I cleaned it with a white scourer (with water!) that was meant to be suitable for non-stick pans

If I were Primus, I'd be asking for more details of what this scourer was...

I'd never use any sort of scourer on any non-stick surface, because experience tells me that they're too vulnerable, whatever the blurb says.  I can't say I've ever had any trouble using detergents, though, combined with a soak and a bit of hot water and some elbow grease with a simple cloth.

> ...and lansdaleltd.com can be placed in one of the regular good retailer/bad retailer threads.

Manufacturing faults happen, especially in the case of coatings.  Let's wait and see how landsdale and Primus deal with this before we start labelling either as good or bad...

i wouldn't use nonstick coating on any gas stove at full blast. nonstick does not like high temperatures and will peel off.

that said, i don't cook anything with the gas stove at full blast for that way lay burnt on bits.

i think nonstick and camping don't mix. at least until you can cook without things sticking to the pan by which time you don't need nonstick anyway.

BTW I didn't actually order the pans from lansdaleltd.com, was just using that link as an illustation of the cook set, I actually got it from a seller called "subzerotech" on ebay. I've contacted him and he has agreed to send a replacement set if I return the affected pans.

BTW all I'd used the pans for was to boil some pasta, to which I added some tomato-based sauce after it had cooked! The stove wasn't even on when I added the sauce.

> I actually got it from a seller called "subzerotech" on ebay.

That's SubZero's eBay shop, so no issue with imitations.

> I've contacted him and he has agreed to send a replacement set if I return the affected pans.

Don't use white scourers on the new pans...  whatever the 'white scourer' is...

And learn to rinse pans out as soon as you've emptied them; don't let food residues dry out and get stuck.

And learn to rinse pans out as soon as you've emptied them; don't let food residues dry out and get stuck.

The overnight soak is very much your friend for stubborn stuff, assuming it's practical (i.e., you've not just eaten breakfast prior ro being on your way, or you need the pot for something else).

Pete.

Parky,

remind me never to have a breakfast cuppa from your camp stove, OK...

John

(who's uses of urine include as a substitute for surgical spirits on blisters... )

I also avoid non-stick pans for outdoors cooking. In fact, I don't like non-stick pans for domestic use unless they have a good thick base to spread the heat and avoid hotspots.

I've also come to the conclusion that non-stick pans last far less well if you're cooking on electric hobs than on gas...

So, what would people recommend as a good non non-stick cookset (if you see what I mean)? The MSR Alpine cookset looks durable, but is heavy as is stainless steel. The MSR Titan Mini cookset is light, as as titanium (which is more non-stick naturally than steel or aluminium), but the pans are small for 2 people - only 1.5L and 1.0L. MSR do a 2-litre Titan pan, but I can't afford to buy both that and the Titan Mini cookset (ideally I want a 2 litre and a 1.7 or 1.5 Litre pan).

 I guess there's also the Primus Aluminium "Classic": http://www.outdoorfair.de/epages/61191849.sf/en_gb/?ObjectPath=/Shops/61191849/Products/Relags790110

 If it makes any difference, I used an MSR Windpro gas stove

My usual pans are Trangia ones, which have always struck me as good quality and they do separate cook-sets too including non-stick (look for the "Tundra" products) so maybe worth adding to the check list.

One other thing to add to the general usage guide is don't use metal utensils with non-stick.  If that's going to be a problem maybe best to just get out of the non-stick game.

Pete.