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The box has just arrived. You have opened the lid and found the two dividers and the spare seal. Now you are wondering whether it can go straight into the dishwasher. It can. One thing comes first, though.
Rinse it once, with the seal taken out.
That is most of what there is to know about the Blockhütte stainless steel lunch box. The rest of this article is the routine in full. First use, dishwasher, sterilizing, packing, the cotton bag and the dividers. Most of it takes less than a minute.
What do I do before the first use?
Take the seal out of the lid. It sits in a groove that runs around the edge. Then rinse the box, the lid and the seal with warm water. A drop of dish soap is fine.
Now the part that matters. Dry the lid and the groove properly before the seal goes back in. A seal that sits in a dry groove seats flat and stays tight. A wet groove works against it. That is the whole trick. It applies to every wash from now on.
Can it go in the dishwasher?
Yes. All of it.
Box, lid, seal and dividers are all dishwasher safe. There is no temperature to watch. The seal can stay in the lid for the wash. When the cycle is done, dry the lid and the groove before the box goes away.
A small habit that pays off: take the seal out once a week and let it dry fully overnight. It is the easiest way to make a seal last. The question that always follows, whether it can rust in there, has its own article.
How do I sterilize it?
In a pot of boiling water, 3 to 5 minutes. Take the seal out of the lid first. The steel comes out hot, so lift it with tongs and give it a minute before you touch it. Then the same step as always: dry the lid and the groove, and the seal goes back in.
And if a seal ever stops sealing, you buy a seal. Not a new box. The spare is already in the box. After that, every wearing part is sold separately here. You will know it is time. The seal feels stiff, or looks flattened. Or a box that used to travel on its side starts to weep.
Why the seal, not the steel, decides whether a box leaks: what makes a lunch box leak-proof.
Stainless Steel Lunch Box - Seal Set
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What should I check before I pack it?
Two things, and both take a second. The seal sits all the way around in its groove, and the clasps are shut. That is what keeps the yogurt in the box on the way to work.
Hot food is the one thing to think about. The lunch box is not insulated, so a steaming meal cools down inside it. As the air cools it shrinks, and it pulls the lid down onto the seal. At noon the clasps open and the lid stays put. Let hot food cool a little before you close the box. Then it opens like it should.
For a hot lunch the job goes to the insulated food jar. It has a care routine of its own.
How do I wash the cotton bag?
By hand. This is the one part of the kit with a rule of its own.
Lukewarm water, about 86 °F, a little soap, then let it air-dry. The bag is 100% cotton, and washed like that it keeps its shape for a long time.
How do the dividers work?
The two dividers slide into the box and turn it into one, two or three compartments. Slot them together and they hold each other in place, so nothing shifts on the way. Greens on one side, pasta on the other, and the dressing where it belongs.
Lost or bent one? Dividers are available on their own, too. The set for your box size is here.
That is the whole routine. Seal out, rinse, dry the groove, seal back in. Everything else, the box can take.
The bottle's routine is just as short: how to care for a stainless steel water bottle. And a box that gets this much care stays out of the trash. Seven habits like it: How to waste less at lunch.
