Cooking For Engineers

[jillelaine]

Has anyone tried pneumatic tools in the kitchen? Why am I scrubbing pots by hand when there are rotating brass brushes available? My husband says such a brush would fling water & suds all over. Really?

Also, I use compressed air for drying rust-prone kitchen tools, cleaning strainers, and such. I would like compressed air piped into the kitchen for these tasks.

And I discovered I can use compressed air to remove pests (aphids, cabbage loopers) from our garden's kale leaves and broccoli...though this is best done outside.

Opinions? Experiments?

[Dilbert]

....fling water & suds all over. Really?

yup, really. not only will the brush/whatever be operating at higher 'speeds' / rpm / strokes - all that compressed air....it exhausts at the tool head.....down at the bottom of the pot....and then blows upward....

there are some other issues you may want to consider:

compressed air systems collect moisture. then the really really stale and filthy dirty water specklets spatter all over your food....

alternative: expensive refrigerating unit which 'super-dehumidifies' the compressor air - at best before it goes into the steel storage tank where it makes rust....

many compressor use oil for lubrication - so in addition to the really unlovely moisture, you get oil in your food. you will see "oil-less" compressors - no clue if they could be considered 'food safe'

not the best idea I've heard this week (g)

[jillelaine]

I hadn't thought about the cleanliness of the air coming out of the compressor. It does have a tiny bit of a petroleum odor. When using air to clean pests off produce such as kale, the produce is later washed thoroughly, so I'm not too concerned about that.

But the kitchen tools that are dried with compressed air would end up less than perfectly cleaned. I've made a mental note of this to at least rinse these tools before using.

Talked with husband who said he could add a 'dryer filter' near the house, which would take out moisture and some of the oil in the compressed air. He said that the amount of oil in the air is very small anyway. especially after the 60' run of air line to the house.

I decided I need to test scrubbing a pot to see how much water is flung around. I will report back! I'm also curious about using air tools for cleaning the kitchen floor. Heh, maybe I should make a video!

Looks like there are several types of kitchen appliances converted to run off air rather than electricity, mostly for off grid folks. The novelty would be entertaining, but otherwise no advantage for us on-grid folks. http://hubpages.com/living/Air-Powered-Kitchen-Appliances-Kitchen-Counter-Appliances-Use-Compressed-Air

I know I'm full of good ideas...but pneumatic tools may not be one of them. Thanks for the information and discussion! :-)