I have a cheap garlic press, which means that after each use garlic is stuck in seemingly every one of its 63 holes. The faucet water pressure is insufficient to free the garlic and I am left with the unsatisfactory process of poking garlic free with a toothpick. This is obviously an irritating problem that needs solving.

Potential solutions

1. Buy a better-designed garlic press in less than a minute online and have it show up in a day or two. This is the optimal solution, except perhaps if you consider the waste generated by discarding the old garlic press and the costs of shipping and delivering the new product. This solution is also not very fun.

2. Design and 3D print a custom-made garlic press cleaner. This was the clear choice.

CAD model

This is a simple design consisting of an extruded base and an array of posts (extruded circles). There are 7 rows of 9 posts, with alternating rows offset from one another. The full model is available on Onshape, which is a free online service if you don’t mind your designs being public.

Outcome

The design required a few iterations in order to perfect the post spacing and post diameter. Version two was particularly disappointing as many of the posts snapped off after the first use. The design was ultimately successful, however, and final product can be seen below. It clears all of the garlic in a single poke, meaning I have realized a 63X improvement in cleaning speed. Time well spent.

2021 Update

After over a year of use, I accidentally dropped the 3D printed garlic press cleaner on the floor, breaking a number of posts. Stubbornly, I reprinted another with Shapeways using the MJF Plastic PA12 Glass Beads material to improve stiffness and structural integrity. Photos below.

2022 Update

I’m still stubborn: After dropping the last cleaner, I had another 3D-printed using Craftcloud. Amusingly, the cumulative cost of 3D printing is now multiple times that of the garlic press itself.

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This work by Derek Croote is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0