Dump a bit of baking soda in the carafe, and add a dish cloth, fill 3/4 full with hot water(not boiling). Put on the lid and shake. I clean my coffee carafe, my coffee pot, my tea pot, and any thermoses this way. Dump out the water. The cloth will be right there so remove it and rinse well

I put mine in the dishwasher. It is fine.

msrose: the Taj majal is gorgeous and right in line with everything I am drawn to for my countertops (I am also remodeling my powder room which also has the travertine floors). So, I think my travertine is the same as the one you are considering. We installed it about a year ago. I absolutely loved it until I started planning my kitchen and powder room remodel. I, too, considered wood as my alternative, but ended up with travertine because of 1) cost and 2) pool. The kids are constantly running in the house dripping wet. Regardless, at this point, I honestly wish I had chosen wood. It is sooo much easier to coordinate countertops, paint, and backsplash tiles with. In addition, I have read on numerous design blogs that the travertine is associated with the tuscany look which is trending out. I am not a trendy person, but we will likely only be in our house for another 8 or so years and need to be considering resale value. With all this said, I love the warmth of travertine and still think mine is beautiful. I will post a link for you in a mintue from a color expert regarding travertine that you might find helpful. Best of luck!

I reckon what happens with thermal shock on the granite is it's the rapid expansion of the hot part. Most slab granite is only 2 cm thick, which means that up and down is an easier way for the stress to go than side to side. But it can't dissipate much up and down if the pot is still there, wood is an insulator, and the heat is pushing out into the cold stone on all sides. Little earthquake :) Granite is crystalline, and rather brittle. Stands to reason it could crack, especially if there are seams of different materials (all the pretty stuff). I know vectors a lot better than geology, but that's what I think is happening. But I've never heard of granite exploding like pyrex! Chloe's Mom, I'm glad you're okay! Melanie, Thanks for explaining why I don't like the new Pyrex. According to Wikipedia European Pyrex is still borosilicate. Hm...