# grey color from peeled kitchenaid beater



## siduri (Aug 13, 2006)

I don;t know if this should go under "cooking equipment" but i'm not looking to buy. I just want to understand what is happening here. 
I keep having to buy new flat beaters for my kitchenaid mixer (the smallest one) because every one i;ve had peels and both leaves cracks where dough disgustingly hides and is hard to clean out, and even when it doesn't, the exposed metal leaves my dough or batter grey. I'm thinking it might be aluminum, and that it's probably really bad to get so much of it in the food. 
So i have a couple of questions
1. How can i prevent it and why do they peel so easily? I can understand the first ones i had probably were due to the dishwasher, though mine doesn;t have a dry cycle, it only rinses with hot water so you can put even soft plastic in it. But then with the last two i bought i never put it in, and they wore down anyway.
2. What is that metal, anyway, and what is it leaving in my food?

they're so expensive i'm getting sick of rebuying them. 
any advice?


----------



## ed buchanan (May 29, 2006)

Sounds to me like Aluminum Oxide, which occurs when aluminum is ruptured in any way. This also occurs when you freeze things in foil for a long time its from the aluminum breaking down. 
It could be that the paddle or hook is hitting the side of bowl and peeling. Most paddles are made out of cast aluminum thats why when they drop and break they cant be repaired. Is bowl SS, or glass, or aluminum??


----------



## wheresthegrub (Oct 28, 2008)

Kitchen aid has a live online support person that may be able to answer yer questions::roll:

https://server.iad.liveperson.net/hc...mages&referrer=


----------



## siduri (Aug 13, 2006)

Ed, the beater didn;t crack, the coating did, leaving a space between the coating and the metal, where batter, disgustingly, would hide. 
The next ones didn;t actually crack but wore off smoothly but they release grey onto the batters. 
My bowl is stainless. 

where's the grub, I couldn;t get the live chat (maybe time zone differences) but sent an email - we'll see what they reply. 

I wouldn;t mind but the beaters are really expensive, and even more so here abroad. 

thanks


----------



## bbally (Jan 2, 2005)

Had the same problem with mine. Switched to the aftermarket beater.... no problem since.

Sideswipe beater



I do not have anything to do with this company, and I paid for mine it was not given to me as a chef. So I am recommending only as a good product. They did not bribe me to do this in any way.


----------



## ed buchanan (May 29, 2006)

I still believe it is Aluminum Oxide, as that is the only thing that will make it grey. This sometimes happens with cheaper wire wisk and whips also. When doing just eggs, it will do it even more.


----------



## izbnso (May 12, 2007)

I had the same problem with my small KA mixer, the coating wearing off at the "point" of the paddle attachment. I believe it had to do with the beater coming in too close contact with the bowl. The beater height can "loosen" over time causing the beater to come into contact with the bowl. It may not be the beater, but the beater height on the mixer.

 I went to the KA web-site (I even called a provided telephone number and got to chat to a real live human being on the phone) and there is a video there that shows how to adjust the "screw" that controls beater height. The test to see if you have he right height out of the bowl is a dime placed in the bowl with the paddle attachment running on low speed. If I remember correctly, the dime is supposed to just barely be touched by the paddle, just enough to move it a smidge. 

I found all of that info through the KA forums. You might want to check there.


----------



## siduri (Aug 13, 2006)

Yes, bbally, i recognize you from another forum i've been following for years (under another name) and wouldn't have thought you'd be paid for plugging this beater - you're always very up front. 
I looked it up online, and don;t understand what "aftermarket" means, i got many sites, some with films, some referring to car parts (!) and others to drums, but didn;t see a specific site to buy it on. is it a different company from kitchenaid? Is the company name 'aftermarket"? thanks

Izbnso - i couldn;t connect to the live chat (my time zone is off) and sent an email but am waiting for the reply. I know the latest one i got is because of the height adjustment, but the others have cracked paint all the way up - not worn, but cracked, and a dough hook where teh white stuff is still uncracked but as shrunk and is detatched from the metal!. would be nice not to have aluminum in the beater at all. I noticed they have a "burnished' beater too, but don;t know if that one is stainless or is still aluminum - it has no white coating, but is that good? it's very expensive, and anyway is out of stock.


----------



## ed buchanan (May 29, 2006)

The white coating is simply baked on enamel paint, and like all paints chips. The cast aluminum blades are normally galvanized. The best are S/S Padle and bowl. Aftermarket means it is sold as a replacement part after the original breaks , and in most cases not by original manufacturer but will work. By useng aftermarket in almost all cases you void guarantee by original manufacturer.


----------



## siduri (Aug 13, 2006)

Hi Ed
i think the problem is not actually chipping but detaching. The help people at kitchenaid told me it was polyester, and what happened is it shrunk, i think, becvause i8n the case of the dough hook, it detached completely from the metal at the top, but is still whole, without chips. The beater, instead, has the paint detached but also cracked.Thanks for the info about after market, i'll have to do a better search i guiess
thanks


----------



## bbally (Jan 2, 2005)

SideSwipe Spatula Mixer Blade attachment for KitchenAid stand mixer

will get you there or you can click on the picture I have in the response.


----------



## dillbert (Jul 2, 2008)

got curious reading this thread. my kitchenaid mixer paddle aka beater appears to be powder coated as opposed to painted.

powder coating is a process where the metal part (beater) is electrostatically charged and fine powder - with an opposite electrical charge - is sprayed on. powder sticks, part goes through an oven, plastic powder melts onto the part creating a continuous coating.

many things can go wrong in that process - but as you've apparently bought multiple beaters/paddles which have failed in a similar fashion, it seems unlikely to be a "bad" batch from the powder coater. more suspect is that the manufacturer (ie Kitchenaid) may have changed their specifications. the sub-supplier (ie the powder coating place) is doing their job to spec, but the spec is not adequate. my KA is about 8 years old, the paddle has multiple dings where it's been rapped against the bowl, but it is not chipping or peeling.

googling about, I find replacement beaters in the 10-20 usd range. some are specifically cited as "nylon coated." glitch: I am not a chemist, but the KA statement that the coating is a polyester does not agree with the generally accepted makeup of "nylon." your mileage may vary.

regardless, a couple of points: 
it's not painted, 
it is not an enamel coating, 
it is not galvanized

if you go down to the local hardware store an buy a chunk of "mill finish" aluminum, it will rub off a gray / dirty / dingy residue.

there is a process called "anodizing" which provides aluminum with a hard surface & finish. the anodized finish does not so readily produce the grungy rub off.

I did find a couple of web sites that offer "burnished finish" replacement paddles / beaters - base metal not specified - note in your searching, check for "beater" vs. "paddle" - terminology varies, salt to taste.

here's one: KitchenAid Mixer Flat Beaters, Wire Whips, and Dough Hooks from MarBeck.com beater whip
see also Amazon


----------



## siduri (Aug 13, 2006)

hi dilbert, 
thanks for your exhaustive reply - i've been very busy with christmas cooking and haven't had a chance to get on line so maybe you wrote this long ago. 
yeah, i saw the other beater, the "burnished" one, but they were out of them and i bought yet another beater of the usual type. oh well. It was really expensive anyway, as, in fact, they all are already. Very annoying because the white stuff - nylon or polyester as it may be - is detaching completely fr0om the metal base.


----------



## forevercook (Apr 16, 2014)

First I notice this is an old thread. I had my first KA standmixer for many years. Always the attachment went into the dishwasher. No problem.

I bought a new artisan mixer. Not cheap but worth the money since my first mixer lasted so long.

Into the dishwasher went the ~~wire whisk. It came out dark and bleeds. Called KA, they told me it has to be hand washed.

Obviously the metal used for the whisk is cheap.

Very funny in this day and age the most important part of the mixer is garbage and no longer dishwasher safe.

Made in China? Most likely.

Bought a new wire whisk, had company....boom...someone put the whisk in the dishwasher for me. Ruined again.

Very nice! Kichenaid is no longer going to be part of my equiptment. Enough is enough.


----------



## Nitrous (Aug 26, 2020)

forevercook said:


> First I notice this is an old thread. I had my first KA standmixer for many years. Always the attachment went into the dishwasher. No problem.
> 
> I bought a new artisan mixer. Not cheap but worth the money since my first mixer lasted so long.
> 
> ...


not sure why you are angry with KitchenAid. The metal is not cheap. The metal is aluminum and subject to oxidation, and when placed in a dishware with an alkaline detergent, turns a crappy grey color. I doubt you'd stop buying a wooden salad bowel that was not dishwasher safe.... and then someone ruined it in the dishwasher. In fact, they are relatively easy to clean!  KA mixers are still the best investment in any household kitchen!....


----------



## foodpump (Oct 10, 2005)

Very old thread, I miss bbally....


If you’re handy you can buff out the oxidized aluminum with a powered buffer, a stitched cloth wheel, and jewelry rouge, good as new. If not, find someone like a knife sharpener who can.

This problem happens all the time in commercial kitchens where the commercial d/washing soaps are even stronger and can stain expensive ($7000.00) meat slicer components or other pieces of equipment such as dough hooks or flat beaters on $8000 Hobart mixers.

As far as I know the kitchenaids are made in the US, but the S/S bowls are made in Korea, don’t know where the whisks are made


----------



## kokopuffs (Aug 4, 2000)

I possess a Hobart N5 mixer that included a paddle and it hasn't cracked in the 4 1/2 years that its been used. Would my Hobart paddle fit a KA mixer?


----------



## foodpump (Oct 10, 2005)

Maybe? K.A. Has been owned by Whirlpool for decades now


----------

