My method for cleaning very dirty yixing pots is to scrub with baking
soda and a soft cloth to remove the grime and boil like crazy in
distilled water (better solvent action but not critical) through about
3 changes of water. This has worked on a number or old/forgotten pots
I've had to clean.

The denture cleaner sounds interesting as long as it's not the minty
kind :-)

Cameron

Bill Wolfe wrote:
> I went ahead and took the plunge on two old "zhuni" pots that will run
> a bit less than $60 each with combined shipping. I'll report the
> results. I've seen references to using denture cleaner and dilute
> chlorine bleach for sanitizing and "resetting" old Yixing teapots.
> Awhile back, there was discussion in this group of using white vinegar
> for the purpose, with at least one contributor reported a residual
> vinegar smell. Anyone have experience with more than one of these
> methods?
> BW
> wrote:
> > I have bought 9 pots from Anling and found them to be excellent,
> > although I couldn't verify their authenticity. He will sell you a
> > certificate of authentification if you ask for it. At least three seem
> > to be of pure zhuni clay, and a few other a quality clay mix. They
> > were all very grimy but treatment with denture cleaner, toothbrush and
> > q-tips cured them all. One is my best sheng puer pot, another brews
> > delicious da hong pao, and a third is ok, really high-pitched ring with
> > handmade indicators but I haven't figured out what tea works best in
> > it. It has a flat shape. A fourth, thicker-walled is the one I use
> > for high-mountain taiwanese oolongs and it really brings out their
> > aroma. I have gifted 2 of the pots, and three are too big for daily
> > use so they are sitting around my house.
> >
> > What you can't tell from the pictures, but what Anling will answer to
> > you if you ask, is how thick the walls are of the pot.
> >
> > I had a great experience with him. But get ready to spend time
> > cleaning.
> >
> > Bill Wolfe wrote:
> > > Does anyone have experience buying teapots from the ebay store
> > > http://stores.ebay.com/5000friend ?
> > > They have a large selection of yixing listed as pre-1960 at what look
> > > like reasonable prices, even allowing for ~$30 shipping. They also
> > > seem to have decent feedback and several repeat customers. Everything
> > > I read about buying Yixing--old or new--screams caveat emptor, but some
> > > of those pots look pretty neat to me.