How To Unstick A Glass Stuck Inside A Cup.

Greetings for the New Year, friends! I'm back -- haven't been here for a bit but thought I'd start off the new year with something kitchen-like where the solution has dogged me for almost a year. FINALLY, I was able to unstick a glass from within a cup!

I know -- I need a life but, I just got it today and thought I'd let you know MY way to do it. I've had bad luck with ordinary glasses lately...I like to do the dishes in the sink with soap and my spouse likes the dishwasher which, IMHO, simple doesn't get them clean. Nothing like good 'ol soap and hot water to do the trick. I put glasses in and they get banged around a bit, and end up cracking when I start to clean them, from weak spots where they get chipped. The worst case scenario was when I was hurrying to watch something on TV during a commercial break, grabbed a glass to clean it (I use a sponge), and the top broke and in the process I sustained a deep cut that required stitches. Just was too hard on it but, I learned from that.

To the topic, somebody put a thin glass inside a porcelain cup, and it got stuck there. It got wedged in and no amount of gentle twisting or manoeuvering would dislodge it, and again I was scared to come on to it too hard in case it would snap in my hand and cut again. So, I tried putting some soap inside and twisting a bit, some water, oil -- nothing worked.

But TODAY, I got it out! Here's what I did:

I was doing the dishes again (what a husband, eh? *s) and saw the cup with the glass inside it sitting there as it has for a year. I took the whole unit and placed it in the freezer for about two hours. So far, so good.

Then when completely frozen, I took it out and ran piping hot water on the OUTSIDE of the cup, grabbed a towel and twisted the glass gently. Nothing happened and the cup got cold again. So, I rinsed the outside of the cup again with very hot water, grabbed the glass with the towel and twisted a bit and gently and CLICK!....cup came out. I'm good! You just have to make sure the very hot water doesn't come in contact with the frozen glass, as this could cause the glass to shatter.

I relied on some basic physical principles. By freezing the unit, everything contracted and by heating just the outside of the porcelain cup, there was enough expansion (just on the cup) to free up a miniscule of space where the glass was stuck inside, still frozen and contracted. I also assumed that some of the pressure(s) were relieved as well to allow just a fraction of movement. And, it worked!

So, this made my day (yes, I DO need a life *s). The cup was my daughters' with a picture of her and our lazy Bassett hound that she adores - and I tolerate. It was her cup and we had the picture emblazoned on from a local shop that puts pics on cups. Pretty cool process, really, and we had more of them made with our own pictures...just send him the file and they put the picture on the cup. Made a great gift for her TWO Christmases ago.

Hope this helps if you had or have the same problem. You have to be careful and very gentle in order not to break the glass and cause you any unnecessary harm. But I was bound and determined to do something about it, and didn't give up.

Thanks for the fun all and when I get something REALLY interesting to talk about, I'll be back again!