# Common household items made of iron? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 26, 2012, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802 "2012-03-26T01:25:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/1 "2012-03-26T01:25:56Z")
This is a simple question that is surprisingly hard to google. What are some common household items (though I’m thinking more of items found in a boarding school and on the grounds of it than a literal household) typically made of iron? I’ve come up with cast iron cookware and wrought iron railings. Oh, and old-fashioned bedframes and horseshoes. What else? Just iron, please, not steel. ---
**Author:** ![Marconi\_N.Cheese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Marconi\_N.Cheese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marconi_N.Cheese)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/2 "2012-03-26T01:30:15Z")
Fireplace tools. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/3 "2012-03-26T01:40:05Z")
Does it have to be iron, or can it be steel? ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/4 "2012-03-26T01:40:12Z")
I’m getting a bit of a historical vibe to this question, say turn of the century-ish? If so there are vast numbers of things, iron was the wonder metal of the 19th century and almost everything that could be made of it, was. As a start: Nails. Saws, Hammers, Drills, in fact pretty much all hand tools Pressed “tin” Ceilings. Hinges. Doorhandles. Window latches. Window frames. Gas lamps (I’m thinking of the wall-mounted ones here) Electrical conduit. Water pipes. Gas pipes. Chair and Sofa frames. Andirons. Fireplace grills. Stoves. [QUOTE=beowulff] Does it have to be iron, or can it be steel? [/QUOTE] OP says: > [@](#): > > Just iron, please, not steel. ---
**Author:** ![zombywoof](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/9e8a1a/32.png) [@zombywoof](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zombywoof)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/5 "2012-03-26T01:47:53Z")
If we’re talking about old timey stuff, don’t forget irons. ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/6 "2012-03-26T01:53:37Z")
Drain pipes in houses. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/7 "2012-03-26T02:37:32Z")
> [@Askance](#): > > I’m getting a bit of a historical vibe to this question, say turn of the century-ish? Sorry, I should have addressed this in the first post. Modern day. I’m trying to determine a list of items one would have to find replacements for if you couldn’t use anything made of iron. ---
**Author:** ![JBDivmstr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b4bc9f/32.png) [@JBDivmstr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JBDivmstr)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/8 "2012-03-26T03:11:14Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > Sorry, I should have addressed this in the first post. Modern day. I’m trying to determine a list of items one would have to find replacements for if you couldn’t use anything made of iron. :slightly off topic: I think one of the reasons for the move to steel vs cast iron has to do with the manufacturing processes involved. Steel being easier to work with, than cast iron. ---
**Author:** ![SirRay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@SirRay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SirRay)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/9 "2012-03-26T03:20:32Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > Sorry, I should have addressed this in the first post. Modern day. I’m trying to determine a list of items one would have to find replacements for if you couldn’t use anything made of iron. ? Steel is iron (w/ a small fraction of carbon), and may include various other metals for alloys. How would your idea work if you didn’t have iron? - no iron, then no steel (and steel is used quite a lot in the home) ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/10 "2012-03-26T03:23:27Z")
I remember my parents had an actual iron made of iron. You know, for ironing clothes. It was a small relic from c. 1860. Shaped the same as today’s electric irons, apparently you had to place this one in some sort of heat source to make it hot enough to run over your clothes. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/11 "2012-03-26T03:25:15Z")
if you eliminate things made of iron because of supposing the nonexistence of the element iron then you would also not have anything containing iron. if you suppose the nonexistence of steel making technology and still allow things made of iron. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/12 "2012-03-26T03:26:06Z")
In my household: Griddle pan. Le Crueset. Bacon press! ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/13 "2012-03-26T03:28:53Z")
don’t forget about a 9-iron! ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/14 "2012-03-26T03:47:15Z")
The cast iron drain pipes I mentioned upthread would be found in some modern homes. ---
**Author:** ![zombywoof](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/9e8a1a/32.png) [@zombywoof](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zombywoof)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/15 "2012-03-26T04:07:48Z")
> [@johnpost](#): > > supposing the nonexistence of the element iron then you would also not have anything containing iron. Well without elemental iron there wouldn’t be any human beings (in our current formulation, anyway…) ---
**Author:** ![zombywoof](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/9e8a1a/32.png) [@zombywoof](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zombywoof)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/16 "2012-03-26T04:20:27Z")
How about things like electric motor components? Transformers? Car parts (engine blocks, brake rotors/drums, etc)? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/17 "2012-03-26T04:44:24Z")
I’m guessing that the OP is thinking of fey, who according to legend can’t abide iron. So iron the element would still exist in the world, and iron alloys and non-iron things made using iron tools would still be allowed. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/18 "2012-03-26T04:54:40Z")
Iron supplements. A lot of modern merchandise labeled cast iron or wrought iron is actually made of steel. The terms are used as descriptive of the style rather than carbon content of the metal. ---
**Author:** ![cornflakes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@cornflakes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cornflakes)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/19 "2012-03-26T05:04:55Z")
The crankshaft of a car’s engine may be forged iron for roughly the same reason that the cookware is made of cast iron. Iron is porous, and oil will soak in to help maintain a layer of lubrication (Of course, the oil in a skillet isn’t replenished, so it’s baked on instead.) ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802/20 "2012-03-26T05:16:09Z")
> [@cornflakes](#): > > (Of course, the oil in a skillet isn’t replenished, so it’s baked on instead.) It sort of is, right? Every time you cook in cast iron, you add some oil. Some magnets are made of iron (or, mostly of iron) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-household-items-made-of-iron/616802.md?page=2)