January 22, 2020 - 9:44am
Cast iron pitting
I recently bought a Lodge combo cooker to use for baking. I've only used it a few times, and I'm already seeing substantial pitting, inside and out. Is 500F/260C too high for cast iron? Is the pot defective? What's going on?
To be more specific, I'm seeing what look like several pinholes in the surface of the pan. The seasoning is blasted away for a millimeter or two around each hole. I have not used the pan for anything but bread baking, and have never washed it with soap.
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Please post a closeup picture.
Here's one in the interior. The damage to the seasoning is larger than I remembered (ruler with millimeter markings shown for scale).
Here are a couple on the outside.
The detail in the images is unclear, but it is probably casting defects. I’d either get with the company I bought it from or contact Lodge. I wouldn't be surprised if they warrantied this.
Cast iron can handle very high heat. No home oven should be capable of pitting it.
Dan
It looks like it could be a defect during the manufacturing process.
Looking on the Lodge website they say to re-season their cast iron at 450-500F so baking your breads at those temps should not be an issue for the cast iron.
As Dan said, it may be worth looking into returning or exchanging it.