Zishta Copperware

May 18, 2022

By satish krishnaswami

Congrats on your journey to bring traditional wisdom to your home. Zishta is glad to be a part of this journey and support you with authentic traditional knowledge gathered through our journeys, discussions with artisans, local communities and scientific information.

Zishta in collaboration with artisans of Maharashtra bring to you most authentic and traditional Copper vessels for storing water that are everlasting. These are made using the most traditional technique honed over centuries by our artisans.

What is the purpose of storing water in copper vessel?

Kills harmful micro-organisms and is called as contact killing to clean water. This process is “oligodynamic effect” and has the ability to destroy a wide range of harmful microbes, molds, fungi etc. due to the toxic effect it has on living cells.
Improves pH level of water: When water is more acidic, Copper makes the water alkaline.
Prana in water: Ancient scriptures mention that Copper aids prana in water.

How to clean

Copper oxidation is normal. Clean with normal liquid or soap on a regular basis. To bring back shine, clean with lemon or tamarind.

Caution for storing water in copper

Copper should not be lacquered from inside as it is harmful.
Do not pour hot water in copper pots - this accelerates copper ions into the water
Do not use acidic water or liquid like citric liquid or alcohol.
Do not keep copper pot on stove.
Ensure your hands reach all inside the vessel for cleaning. It is important to clean inside out very well. We do not want to have ill effects of copper carbonate which is a green like residue in the vessel.

Some frequently asked questions:

Why is hammering in copper pot needed?

Hammered texture increases the surface area of copper on the inside of the copper water pot which makes contact with the water stored in it. Greater the physical contact between water and copper, greater health benefits.

Copper turns black due to oxidation. Is that harmful?

No, oxidation is natural and is not harmful.

We see green / bluish green colour forming inside the vessel. Is that harmful and what needs to be done?

This is formed when the vessel is not cleaned well. Yes, it can make a person ill. Ensure your clean it well from inside.

How long should water be stored in Copper to get the benefits?

More than 3 hours would aid in the benefits from Copper pot.

Should we store water overnight and drink? Why should we do that?

Storing overnight helps in ensuring that the water is purified by morning. So having water from a copper pot first thing in the morning implies that the water is pure without the ill effects of germs and the water has prana infused into it.

The taste of water is a bit different when stored for 24 hours. Why? Is it harmful?

Longer the duration of storage, the water would have acquired a mild metallic taste of Copper. If the water added in the pot is regular one, then it is not harmful.

How much Copper does an adult need per day?

Human body requires 1-1.3 mg per day of copper for adults as per WHO. Normal water stored in copper container even after 3 days shows leaching of only 0.0335PPM. But when the water was high in bacterial content, the copper leaching was a whopping 1.6PPM in 4 hours.

Do we need any pre-work before using the copper pot or copper cooking vessels?

Kindly wash it well before using the same.

Can we use copper vessels to cook and serve food?

It can be used to cook food and serve only if there is tin coating (kalai) on the inside. Do not leave food in tin coated copper vessels for more than 1 hour. Transfer it to another vessel.

Do we need tin coating in copper to store water?

No, we do not need tin coating in copper to store water.