A coffee maker is becoming a necessity to every household in this generation. This product is loved by many. It however doesn’t come without its own challenges. The main challenge associated with the coffee maker is the cleanup process. You will absolutely enjoy the presses that are made using these coffee makers. You definitely don’t want the aftermath of the party to be spoilt by the stress of cleaning the coffee maker that isn’t just becoming clean. Below are some steps that need to be made a habit if one’s coffee maker is to be maintained in good shape for a prolonged great tasting coffee.
Clean After Each Use
The main parts that need to be washed after every single use are the filter basket together with the carafe. These are thoroughly hand washed by the use of a mild detergent after every single use or rather at least on a daily basis. It takes just half a minute to do this but is very essential and so important to be ignored. This simple act keeps your coffee maker not only clean but also germ-free in addition to ensuring that your coffee doesn’t end up tasting stale. Would you drink your coffee or any other beverage from a dirty mug? Absolutely not at al. so it’s not just wise but important that you frequently rinse the carafe for about thirty seconds daily.
The Monthly Coffee Maker Cleanup Routine
The oil residue of coffee has a great impact as far as the coffee flavour is concerned. The right detergents will clean out all the residues from the machine thus ensuring that your coffee always tastes better. All the removable parts of the machine should be washed and rinsed. Quickly wipe the coffee maker immediately after washing and rinsing it up. The approximate time that will be taken is about twenty minutes. Below, is a step by step procedure followed when doing the monthly coffee maker cleaning process:
1. Start by emptying the carafe together with the filter basket of any residues and leftover grounds.
2. By the use of a soft brush such as a toothbrush, or a paper towel, gently clean any dirt from the filter holder area to remove any residues of coffee grounds among other dirt.
3. This is followed by running a few rinse cycles by the use of only fresh water. The use of Cleancaf in addition to the pure water makes the cleaning process even easier and the end results even better. Cleancaf is a specially designed detergent that removes coffee oils from the machine’s parts especially the filter basket and the carafe among other parts. It’s majorly designed to be used in cleaning dirty French presses and coffee pots.
4. After you are done, the carafe together with all the other removable parts is removed and then hand washed with the use of mild detergent. Alternatively, the dishwasher safe parts can be placed and washed on the top rack of a dishwasher.
5. With the use of a damp soft cloth, the unit is then wiped.
6. Place all the parts back to position and you are thereafter ready to prepare your coffee.
Washing after Every Three Months (Descaling)
Scales, which is essentially calcium deposits often, builds up in most of the coffee makers. Depending on the usage together with the mineral content of the water used in your area, the amount of build up will vary from one place to the other and from home to home. It is recommended that descaling be done after every three months. It is a common trend for people to use vinegar, though the best recommended product is the commercial descaling solution. Other than being quite involving to rinse and remove vinegar smell, it is also not a very effective de-scalar. Why go for an ineffective product yet the commercial products are no longer expensive. Following the procedure below, it will take you about thirty minutes to clean the coffee maker.
1. Start by emptying any leftover coffee grounds from the filter basket and the carafe.
2. With the use of a paper towel or a soft brush such as a toothbrush, cleanup the filter holder area, freeing it from any coffee grounds or any other form of dirt
3. You now need to descale the machine. Start by dissolving 1 Dezcal in 32 ounces of warm water or any other form of commercial de-scalar as per the instruction. Pour the solution in the reservoir and then run a few couple of brews. Allow the solution to sit for about 15 minutes or slightly more and then dispense the rest. Fill the reservoir with clean water and run a few brews, waiting until the whole reservoir has been dispensed. Discard the water and repeat the rinse process with one more fresh water reservoir.
4. After rinsing, remove all the machine’s removable parts and wash the parts. Either hand wash using mild detergent or use the top rack of the dishwasher to clean the dishwasher safe parts.
5. Using a damp piece of soft cloth, wipe the unit
6. Lastly, place all the parts back to position and set your machine ready for brewing.
Some of the best coffee makers have the potential of making great coffee pots. Probably, you have noted that the taste of your coffee has changed with time. Did you know that any coffee maker’s success highly relies on your collaboration with it? You need to give back to the machine by keeping it clean if you want to maintain that great coffee taste you always cherish. The machine therefore needs to be washed or rather cleaned on a regular basis in addition to the frequent decaling. Though many prefer using vinegar or even citric acid among other DIY solutions to remove the scales, you will always thank yourself more for cleaning the machine professionally by the use of a commercial decaling solution.
Enjoy the great taste of the coffee maker by always ensuring that your machine is cleaned as and when required. Without the knowhow on the best ways of keeping your machine clean, you may end up having to spend money on a new product as you will sooner than later stop enjoying the taste of the coffee from your machine.