# Toss chipped china?



## SeekingJoy (Apr 30, 2007)

About 1/3 to 1/2 of my plates are chipped. Do I toss them? Re-purpose them somehow? Are they a safety risk? Is there any reason other than aesthetics that I should toss them?

I don't know if I am being cheap by keeping them. WWYD?


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## maylanna (Jul 22, 2006)

Use them under potted plants?
Under candles?
make hanging art to catch sun in the trees?
list them on ebay?


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## SeekingJoy (Apr 30, 2007)

Yikes. All of those suggestions take them out of my cabinet and everyday use for eating. Really? I was kind of hoping for a "no big deal" response. OTOH, I don't want to take an unnecessary risk that someone would get cut. I don't even know i anything can leach out of the exposed china/ceramic.


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## FoxintheSnow (May 11, 2004)

The unglazed chips are good areas for bacteria to grow. Ive heard you shouldnt eat off them for that reason.


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## SAHDS (Mar 28, 2008)

Break them up and use the pieces for mosaics. So pretty and functional!


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## AngelBee (Sep 8, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *SAHDS* 
Break them up and use the pieces for mosaics. So pretty and functional!

This is what I was thinking.


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## aniT (Jun 16, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Jokerama* 
The unglazed chips are good areas for bacteria to grow. Ive heard you shouldnt eat off them for that reason.

Oh man are you serious? Many of mine are chipped as well. What if the chips are on the edges where we don't eat.







If i bought more the kids would just chip them again.


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## FoxintheSnow (May 11, 2004)

I found this:

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstrac...619C946997D6CF

It's from 1908 lol


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## Sadystar (May 7, 2007)

Really no big deal I reckon - we had a table collapse right after we and another couple had eaten a massive curry (lots of plates and bowls) off of our new dinnerware. There was an almighty mess and what wasn't smashed was chipped. Then we have a huge stone sink which lots of guests have chipped stuff in because they are not used to it. In short, abut half my plates have chips and we are good and healthy (in fact I'd say healthier than most!) - the things I see people get all germ phobic about on this site makes my head spin







, you have an immune system for a reason!


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## TortelliniMama (Mar 11, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Jokerama* 
I found this:

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstrac...619C946997D6CF

It's from 1908 lol

You just don't see writing like this in the paper anymore:

Quote:

flee it as you would the pestilence.








Of course, on the next page there was probably an article explaining how long hair can sap a person's strength.


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## hillymum (May 15, 2003)

If chipped plates aren't safe to use, this family is in trouble! After washing in a dishwasher I figue they are clean and safe.


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## rainyday (Apr 28, 2006)

Yeah, I'm in the just don't worry about it camp. You all seriously throw them out? Good grief, I'd be buying new dishes every month or two, and there's no way we could afford that. Plus it just seems incredibly wasteful to me.


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## maylanna (Jul 22, 2006)

I guess I was confused.... I thought she was saying she was going to get rid of them, unless she could think of a way to refuse them.....

I have a couple chipped plates we use, but the chip is on the edge and not where we eat...


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## Purple Sage (Apr 23, 2007)

I'd keep using them.


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## mrspineau (Jan 15, 2008)

I would toss them. I think that aesthetic is a good enough reason not to have them!


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## Purple*Lotus (Nov 1, 2007)

Several pieces from my Grandmother's china is chipped, and we eat off of them every day. Nothing bad has happened yet. I vote to keep using them. I would not eat off of part that was chipped, maybe. But chipped on the edges? Who cares?


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## aniT (Jun 16, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *mrspineau* 
I would toss them. I think that aesthetic is a good enough reason not to have them!

If you have kids you better have a lot of money if you plan on replacing your dishes every time they chip. Aesthetics is the least of my worries.


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## LaLaLaLa (Oct 29, 2007)

I don't worry about chipped plates; it will happen and I've seen no ill effects yet. I'm assuming our dishwasher takes care of any germs, and the chips are on the edges. I make my kids aware of them if I think of it, because you never know when they are going to get it into their minds to lick their plates or something, but we've had no plate-related injuries yet, either.


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## SeekingJoy (Apr 30, 2007)

Thanks to all for weighing in. We will be keeping the chipped plates.

I posted the question because a guest recently handed a plate back to me (with food on it), pointing out it was chipped. I was so embarrassed.


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## Purple Sage (Apr 23, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *SeekingJoy* 
Thanks to all for weighing in. We will be keeping the chipped plates.

I posted the question because a guest recently handed a plate back to me (with food on it), pointing out it was chipped. I was so embarrassed.

Wow, some people really lack manners.







:


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## SeekingJoy (Apr 30, 2007)

FWIW, I don't think she was trying to be rude; she was sincerely concerned.


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## rainyday (Apr 28, 2006)

You shouldn't be embarassed. She should have been embarassed to do something so rude. I can't imagine handing a plate back to a hostess and telling her it was chipped and I wanted a new one. Talk about presumptuous!


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## melissa17s (Aug 3, 2004)

It is bad feng shui to eat off chipped plates. There are also a couple other reasons... You can trap bacteria, which has been mentioned. The point where the glaze is chipped becomes a weak spot that allow water to get into the more porous clay body under the glaze. If the plate is soaked or washed in the dishwasher, the water can cause it to further chip. Which leads to the final reason... cuts. Some chips may initially not be sharp, but because they are a weak point, they can chip easier and sharper. I would repurpose them.


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