All our products are food safe and can be used for serving and presenting both cold and hot foods.
Aluminium
Aluminium does not like extended exposure to water and other liquids (vinegar, oil etc.). This means that all aluminium items exposed to water (liquids) should then be washed or rinsed after use and then thoroughly dried. Dry foods, such as fruit, vegetables, nuts, etc. require very little maintenance. These food stuffs can be left for extended periods with no more than an occasional wipe down. Vases do not require any more than care to avoid surface water sitting on the outer surface of the vase. The inner surface which is not visible will discolour but this has no detrimental effect (other than discolouration) to the aluminium. Never place aluminium products in a dishwasher as the special dishwasher liquids/powders are very harmful to the aluminium. Warm soapy (normal dish washing products) water and a non scratching pad should take care of most cleaning situations. Be sure to thoroughly dry immediately after washing to avoid spots or discolouration.
Polished aluminium may develop a soft patina over time and lose some of its shine. To restore (or maintain) the polished finish a metal polishing product may be used to buff the surface. There are various products available to do this. Most of these products will provide a moderate degree of cleaning and or surface restoration. To remove scratches and some more serious discolouration we recommend the use of a stronger cutting compound such as "Autosol". This is a paste that is applied with a soft cloth and then polished off. The polishing cloth will go black as it cuts through the surface aluminium. "Autosol" is available at many hardware and auto supply stores and is very effective. There are other similar aluminium and metal polishing compounds that will provide a similar result.
Stainless Steel
It's a myth to believe that stainless steel is truly stainless and impervious to marking and damage. Although it is much easier to care for than other metals such as aluminium, it is still neccessary to look after your stainless steel.
We do not recommend placing Malmo stainless steel in the dishwasher. Not if you want to care about the long term maintenance of the product. Dishwashers use extremely high heat and strong chemicals to clean. This is all detrimental to anything you put in the dishwasher, so for items that you care about or have a decorative or display aspect, keep them away from the dishwasher. Use regular dishwashing liquid and a non abrasive pad to clean these items.
Unlike aluminium, stainless steel does not generally react to water, so you can use Malmo stainless steel with water and other liquids, including oils and salad dressings, etc. When you then hand wash them (as recommended) you can even leave them to dry naturally, although you could get some spotting, which towel drying will avoid.
Polished stainless steel does scratch. This is true of all polished stainless steel and care should be taken to avoid scratching, especially if you care about the appearance of the item. Personally my favourite stainless steel peices at home are the well worn and older ones we have that have acquired a patina of age from years of use. It's a personal thing, but unless you are obsessive, a certain amount of scratching over time is almost unavoidable.
There are a number of stainless steel cleaners and polishes on the market, but none that we have tried will restore polished stainless steel to as new. The best product we have found is "Auotosol" the same one we use on our aluminium peices (see above for details).
Wood
Our range of oak wooden products have a natural oil finish. A number of natural non toxic finishes can be used to further enhance and maintain these peices. We highly recommend the range range of "Howard" products. Their Butcher Block Conditioner is especially good, while their Orange Oil is great for cleaning and nourishing and Howards Feed-N-Wax is ideal for peices that are mainly used for display. Other products that you can use on regularly used peices include, vegetable, olive and nut oils, as well as pure mineral oil and beeswax.