I bought this gorgeous tea pot a couple weekends ago that was stained to the rafters with about 60 years worth of tannins. 'How can I clean this?', I thought to myself. Then I went to the dentist.
My dentist, upon further inquiry into the status of my sensitive teeth, revealed to me that the teeth whitening products I was using are mainly marketing propaganda, (which I already knew but ignored). They do clean surface stains but not the down, deep and dirty stuff. To make your teeth white you need it done by a dentist. Well, when I got home, I took an old toothbrush, (which I keep around the house for cleaning grout), put some whitening toothpaste on it and cleaned 60s years worth of tannins off a ceramic tea pot. Just like that, the stains were gone.
So, rest assured, if you find teeth whitening products are making your teeth sensitive, know that you won't need to throw them away! You can use them to clean stains - such as coffee, tea, or red wine - off your beautiful ceramic tableware. Now I think I'll try soaking my silver plated ice bucket in my whitening mouth wash.
How to clean a stained teapot.