Currently, utensils made of opal glass have gained widespread popularity. It is bright, durable, light. She has a diverse assortment: tea, dinner sets, jugs, glasses, wineglasses, salad bowls, glasses, pans, many other various models.
Buying snow-white or exquisitely painted utensils, many do not even think about what is its use, whether it can be used in a microwave, and most importantly, whether it is harmful to the body.
Structure
Opal glass - it is a translucent glass material of a pleasant dull milky shade, called for its ability to reflect light, simulating the mineral opal. In fact, such glass has nothing to do with natural stone, since it is a special type of glass ceramics that appeared as a result of the development of glass-blowing production. Such material Ideal for making kitchen utensils.
It includes components such as quartz sand, limestone, dolomite, soda ash, feldspar or fluorspar, and sometimes bone ash can also be added. Additional elements allow you to create the effect of "turbidity", while it can vary from translucent to matte.
Also, depending on the technology, the surface may be monophonic, and in the case of adding coloring pigment to the mixture, it may be multicolored.
Benefits and Benefits
Characteristics of the material allow the wide use of this glass ceramics in production. The main positive qualities include the following.
- Heat resistance. Due to its good resistance to temperature extremes, objects can be safely put in the microwave.If necessary, the dishes can even be put in the freezer.
- Resistance to blows. There is no fear that objects will fall if dropped.
- Wear resistance. The surface structure for many years remains smooth, not amenable to mechanical damage. Decorative paints applied to objects do not fade even from the frequent exposure to detergents, which also extends the service life.
- Hygiene A hard, perfectly even coating has virtually no pores, so dirt does not get stuck on it, it is very easy to clean.
- Ease. The dishes are much lighter than glass analogues, porcelain, which at first seems unusual. This may be a priority for those who have small children.
- Beauty and elegance. A varied selection of patterns and colors.
Thus, the main useful properties of the dishes are its long service life, resistance to mechanical stress, safety and practicality.
Harm to health, disadvantages
There is no direct harm from these household items. But when buying, be sure to pay attention to the manufacturer and the quality of the goods. Despite the huge number of positive customer reviews, such products have disadvantages. Immediately upon purchase of accessories they are not so obvious. You can identify them when used for their intended purpose. Undesirable features include the following.
- When washing with foaming agents, the products become very slippery, literally “jump out” of the hands, which causes some discomfort.
- Despite the manufacturers' statement about the “eternal” dishes, you should always remember that with strong shocks, sudden changes in temperature, it can break. Several cases have been established when the plates, when heated in the microwave, split into separate parts.
- Some types of plates do not have “sides” at the bottom, which is very inconvenient during capture. When setting the table, serving dishes, dishes can easily slip out of your hands, so you need to be very careful.
- They make models with a rough outer coating. It turns yellow over time, becomes unpresentable.
- Increased thermal conductivity and fairly thin walls lead to rapid heating and create the risk of a small burn, so you need to be extremely careful when cooking in microwave ovens, ovens.
- Many do not like the light weight and excessive thinness of the walls. Because of this, the products seem very fragile.
To avoid unpleasant impressions, you need to carefully consider the choice. When buying kitchen products, you need to pay attention to the fame and reputation of the manufacturer. It is important to choose the shape of objects: they must be not only beautiful, but also convenient.
Operational Features
Follow the necessary recommendations if you want your favorite products to last longer:
- wash them with ordinary means - both manually and in the dishwasher;
- to save space, store plates in the form of a stack;
- exclude sudden changes in temperature in microwave ovens and ovens, change it gradually;
- hard sponges, abrasive cleaners when removing contaminants lead to a violation of the initial shine;
- old stains can be removed with nylon sponges, wooden, plastic scrapers;
- You can remove the burn by simply soaking in warm water.
Having considered the advantages and negative properties, we conclude that the advantages are much greater than the disadvantages. The most significant is a long service life and safety. Feel free to purchase wonderful opal glass products that will delight you for a long time with their beauty and impeccability.
See how opal glass is made.
