Solidteknics offers a very simple multi-century warranty on all Solidteknics products, for all defects related to materials or manufacturing occuring during normal cooking. Note that this is a manufacturing warranty for such defects, and not valid for improper use, lack of maintenance, abuse, or 'change of heart', like some retailer's customer service guarantees (see below).
In effect, there is no time limit: we will replace all genuine warranty claims, no matter in which century they are returned. This is not a marketing gimmick: this is just solid engineering.
Why such a confident warranty policy? The Solidteknics vision (and name) is based on developing only world-leading innovations of multi-century durability, manufactured in Australia. Our decades of experience developing equipment for chefs in multiple countries, extensive R&D, design, and all the manufacturing care invested in Solidteknics products gives us a certain confidence that these are the best products of their kind in the world today. Our engineering and materials expertise give us the confidence that durability will be at least several centuries, with normal recommended care. Our cookware is wrought from one solid piece of very tough material, with no coatings or joins, so very little can go wrong.
For our warranty to remain valid, our seasoning and care instructions must be followed (nothing unusual: all the same normal care for bare iron/steel pans, for thousands of years), or at least the advice of one of the many iron cooking experts online: click here for our instructions page.
If there is a seasoning or rust problem, don't worry: the beauty of iron cookware is that it is forever renewable. Simply clean and re-season! Here's one example: www.youtube.com/watch?v=CIU1_pHAxcU
In our engineering/cooking experience, we believe our solid non-nickel ferritic stainless steel is the healthiest (no Nickel leaching into food), and best conducting (fastest and most even) solution for high performance cooking where corrosion resistance is important (eg. acidic sauces, boiling and slow cooking of water-based liquids, etc). The reason other manufacturers use austenitic Nickel stainless steels (then make ply or multi-clad layers to compensate for its poor conductivity) is that these Nickel stainless steels (eg. 18/10, meaning 18% Chromium and 10% Nickel) are the shiniest when polished, and the most corrosion-resistant of the stainless steels (there are many kinds). Because we won't use Nickel for health reasons, one slight trade-off is corrosion resistance. If nöni pans are left in corrosive situations without maintenance, small rust spots can appear. Usually, correct washing and drying is enough to avoid any spotting.
Long periods of storage may encourage some spotting (humidity in the air). Ideally, keep using your pans, or store in a dry place free from condensation.
We don't recommend dishwashers for nöni because they are corrosive to metals in general, but they can be used if allowed to dry with an open door after wash cycle is complete.
If spotting does occur, hand wash and scrub away the spots. More persistant spots can be removed with stainless steel cleaners. Because our cookware was always designed for highest performance, health and sustainability, instead of fashion, we recommend ignoring small spots that don't affect cooking performance.
In the end, if perfectly shiny appearance is more important to you than health, sustainability, and multi-generation durability, that is fine: there are many Nickel-based, clad/multi-ply, rivetted/welded brands available in the marketplace.
Note that our warranty only covers normal cooking situations, not abuse, and doesn't cover small stains and rust spots that may be possible in extreme environments. We haven't seen rust on nöni™ in all our trials (and long-term kitchen use, including dishwashers), except for long duration salt spray tests: way harsher than real kitchen life. In the unlikely event you did develop a small rust spot, don't worry: it will polish off and the pan won't be harmed. In general, don't leave the pan in wet/caustic/acidic environments. Simple care would suffice, like wash and dry, or at least open the dishwasher door after a cycle. Don't leave in seawater, or in contact with wet dissimilar metals (like austenitic stainless sink top). We won't replace a pan, with all the waste involved, for a small, easily-fixed blemish or surface discoloration caused by lack of care.
Like all manufacturer warranties, we do not replace abused products.
Solidteknics is not a retailer, we are an engineering development company. We do not offer a money-back-no-questions-asked guarantee for 'change of heart', like some of the big retailers of imported products. We only replace products that are defective in materials or manufacturing. We of course will honour all legitimate warranty returns received by our retailers.
In Australia we are also happy for our customers to contact us directly with any genuine warranty concerns, and we will replace any defectives directly (via courier exchange of defective product for new). All overseas purchases must be returned to the place of purchase.
Any claims for 'change of heart', purchases from our retailers must be handled by our retailers. In the normal way, we sell to them at wholesale (half) price, in bulk, so they have the margin to give full retail service according to their service policies. This is the regular manufacturer - retailer relationship, which we must all respect.
To check if a claim is deemed genuine, please email photos first to be sure (to avoid a lot of expensive postage if it is not): info@solidteknics.com
We have sold many 10s of thousands of pans (cast iron and steel pans), mostly in Australia and the USA, and to date we've had around 8 genuine warranty failures and 10 complaints about seasoning struggles. A wonderful testament to Australian manufacturing capability. (The warranty failures were for cracks, warping and porosity: rare, but possible. All other complaints about performance were related to lack of understanding that seasoning was required (and lack of interest in learning how), food sticking from insufficient seasoning, overcooking, or insufficient heat/oil. Some customers just didn't know what bare iron and seasoning was, and they expected an infomercial-style synthetic coating.....not the responsibility of real build-your-own seasoning!
Be cool. Please never run first to public social media with an attempted 'exposée' style post/rant. You will probably be wrong about the issue you believe you've discovered, and the issue could have been easily corrected with some seasoning/iron cooking advice, or a fast and efficient replacement of a rare defective pan. We have worked long and hard to develop what we, and many experts, believe are the finest iron pans in the world today, and we've created a whole new cookware industry for Australia where none existed. We believe we have earned a little respect, and we always show respect for our customers. It should always be mutual.
If you have any questions about our warranty policy or need to make a claim, please email: info@solidteknics.com . We are more than happy to replace any genuine warranty claim, because we only want perfect Solidteknics pans to be handed down for many generations with love, by cooks who love everything about them.
Happy Cooking!
AUSfonte Warranty - Since discontinuation -- with the AUSfonte range no longer in production, how will Solidteknics handle warranty claims?
Discontinuing AUSfonte does not change our multi-century warranty. We will always replace any defective product, no matter which century it was purchased in. That is in writing for this generation to follow, and we will hand that on to coming generations as a solemn commitment (our products are designed to go on for many generations because the company was also designed to hand down for many generations). They say the 3rd generation can be tricky, but the values we're passing on now should take care of several generations of integrity and love for our supporters.
We hope they will carry the flame for heirloom cookware (and the many innovative cook's products coming) and pass it on from generation to generation. Everything we do is working towards that vision. For more information please contact info@solidteknics.com
Induction warping: Our iron pans are so efficient with induction that heat can become too concentrated in the middle, particularly when mismatching induction ring size to pan size. Because our AUS-ION wrought iron pans are so efficient on induction, there is rarely any need to go above medium power settings. Small rings and high power can certainly warp any pan, and though ours are tougher than most, it is possible to ruin your pan through warping. The issues can be exaggerated with some high power or very centrally-focused induction. Like other situations of 'abuse', warped pans from overheating on induction are not covered under our warranty.
Thermal shock: warping and cracking: Beware that iron pans can be warped and cast iron has been known to crack (although we’ve never seen it in our pans) due thermal shock from heating too quickly on electric or induction cooktops set on max. So warm your pan a little more slowly on a medium setting for a minute on those stoves before stepping up to higher heats. Thermal shock from cooling too quickly: never apply water to a hot pan. Apart from the risk from boiling water/steam, the thermal shock can crack cast iron or warp steel pans, no matter how thick and tough. Wait until your pan has cooled until just warm to the touch before washing. Like other situations of 'abuse', cracked pans from thermal shock are not covered under our warranty.
Seasoning frustrations: We know it can be a challenge for anyone new to iron cooking and seasoning, but being unwilling to learn or fix personal seasoning problems is not a warranty issue. Please remember: our cast iron and wrought iron pans are the same materials that have been used for thousands of years (and still the best we believe), and many millions of cooks all around the world are very happy with their seasoned bare iron pans. The know they take a little more effort to maintain than synthetic disposable pans, and they aren't quite as nonstick, but they're very close when well maintained, and they have the far greater benefits of being healthy non-toxic, forever renewable, natural nonstick with multi-century durability. First step is to follow our seasoning instructions www.solidteknics.com/ironcare and if that doesn't work for you, change oils and change seasoning advice (links at bottom of our seasoning page). There are many good ways to season iron pans, and ours is only one good way. There are so many variables that in the end everyone needs to find their own combination of oil, seasoning method, washing, cooking, etc. We can only guide from our (extensive and science-based) experience.
Mutual Respect: Our most important request is for mutual respect. We expect all our customers to return the respect that we show for all, by not running first to social media to speculate about your personal seasoning or warranty issues. Please email us first at info@solidteknics.com or at least Direct Message us on social media. After all our years of hard work to develop these new innovations in iron cookware, while reviving an extinct Australian cookware industry, all our acclaim from top chefs and experts, and tens of thousands of happy customers (and millions of happy owners of other bare iron brands), we do expect that you give us first the benefit of the doubt, and an opportunity to help with your personal issue offline first. Almost invariably it is a personal struggle, and not a warranty issue, and we love helping customers overcome their issues and love our iron pans as much as everyone else. It's usually easier than it at first seems, with a little help!
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