Coffee making machines are an awesome convenience to have in the modern kitchen and really pay for themselves when you start making quality coffee from home. The downside however is that they require more upkeep than other kitchen appliances simply because of the high amount of moisture that goes through it.
Coffee machines with drip filters need to be cleaned after every usage while being deep cleaned each month so as to remove hard deposits of water and leftover oils. Let’s take a look at how to easily clean your coffee maker!
Cleaning after usage
- Take off all of the removable parts and clean them individually. Submerge them in warm water with some soap and scrub them using a regular dish rag.
- Be careful with glass coffee pots as these can break easily if you aren’t careful when manipulating them in your sink.
- Check the machines’ instruction to see what parts can go into a dishwasher instead.
- Wipe down the exterior of the machine.
- Reassemble the coffee maker.
Deep cleaning
- Create a mixture of water and vinegar. Use half white vinegar and half water then pour it into the water reservoir like you would when making a coffee.
- Turn on the machine and set to do half of a normal brew cycle. When you notice the pot is halfway full then stop the machine.
- Allow the machine to sit for an hour and let the vinegar do its work.
- After the hour, turn the machine back on and let it finish the original brew cycle.
- Do another 2 brew cycle with plain water so you can wash out all of the vinegar.
- Wipe down the machine thoroughly.
How to avoid mistakes
- Read your machine’s instruction manual as it will have the most accurate information on properly cleaning the unit and its parts. Most machines are safe to be cleaned with the vinegar/water method, but its best to check anyway.
- Allow the water container to remain open when not in use. This allows the machine to dry more easily and avoid mould or bacteria.
- Rinse the brew basket habitually as this will build up with mould the easiest as water is constantly running through it. Making a habit of this will keep you coffee machine free of germs.
As we can see, the convenience of a coffee machine requires some sacrifices be made in the way of extra kitchen work. However, having easy access to a brewed cup of coffee every morning is worth it for most of us!
