How do you clean a sieve?

[enthusiast]

i was going to strain some lemonade over the weekend when i looked into my fine sieve and saw some tiny aliens hiding in the mesh and i thought: one of those experts on eGullet will know the answer to this imponderable...

[howard88]

After I powerwashed my deck, I was looking for more stuff to clean. Have someone hold your sieve at arms length, take careful aim and your powerwashing.

[elyse]

And when all else fails, wave it back and forth over a flame. Then brush again after it cools. My own technique.

[bloviatrix]

Someone must be reading my mind, because I need help getting wayward blackerry seeds out of my double mesh strainer. I don't have a spray attachment on my sink and the dishwasher isn't an option. I've tried a toothpick, but it's not working.

Any thoughts?

[KateW]

Powerspraying sounds like the best idea. And I like the image of the person holding it at arm's length.

[Jinmyo]

I turn it upside down and whack it on the edge of the sink a few times.

[Stone]

Before I had a dishwasher, I set mine in a pot of boiling water for a few minutes, then a slight sponging.

[JFLinLA]

Never tried the flame method.

Put warm water on the bristles of you dishwashing brush. Then squirt a little liquid detergent onto the brush. Scrub both sides of the mesh. Rinse. Yes, you sometimes have to do this more than once.

[sparrowgrass]

I am going for the flame treatment. Yeah, buddy!!

[tonkichi]

I turn it upside down and whack it on the edge of the sink a few times.

Same here. Works every time.

[Clerkenwellian]

I turn it upside down and whack it on the edge of the sink a few times.

Same here. Works every time.

doesn't work with my double mesh one. Neither does the dishwasher: I just get bits of grit (from the other stuff in the dishwasher) stuck in the mesh.

[oraklet]

Never tried the flame method.

Put warm water on the  bristles of you dishwashing brush.  Then squirt a little liquid detergent onto the brush.  Scrub both sides of the mesh...

...leave to soak for 3 min., then put in boiling water. worked for my m-i-l's age old sieve which before cleaning served well as a bowl.

wouldn't the flame method make the metal too brittle?