How to clean a coffee machine for very little money: grease and lime

Do you want to know how to clean a coffee machine? Cheaply? Do you know how to remove coffee fat from a coffee pot?

There are many coffee makers on the market and each of them has a specific way of cleaning itself, especially espresso and capsule models, so in this post.

we are going to see how to clean a drip coffee maker, one of the most common and widespread.

Over time, the coffee maker will accumulate residues from the water, as well as coffee residues produced by the oil it releases.

Is it essential to clean the coffee maker? It is recommended, the more time we let pass, the more difficult the cleaning operation will be and we will run the risk that the coffee tastes more and more strange.

Cleaning a coffee machine is relatively easy and in most cases can be done with ingredients found in your kitchen cabinets.

However, you can find chemical-based coffee maker cleaners that have been specially formulated for this job.

but they are often expensive and generally not necessary.

So what is the solution to cleaning a coffee machine? Use good vinegar.

Using a vinegar and water solution is by far the cheapest option.

You just have to be a little careful with the proportions.

How to clean a coffee machine with vinegar

1. First of all, you need to make sure that the coffee machine is empty, rinse the carafe well, and also make sure that the coffee filter basket is empty. Also, remove the water filter and permanent filter.
2. Open the water tank and fill it with equal parts of a solution of white vinegar and water.
3. Turn on the coffee maker and run a drip cycle.
4. Once the drip cycle is complete, leave the vinegar and water solution in the pitcher for a few minutes. This way you will be able to remove tough stains and residue buildup.
5. Drain and discard the vinegar and water solution.
6. Perform at least two drip cycles with clean water to remove any lingering vinegar residue.
7. Clean the exterior with hot soapy water.

How often do you have to clean a coffee maker?

If you are a regular coffee drinker, you probably need to do this process once a month, otherwise, doing it every 3 months is enough.

What if I don’t want to use vinegar to clean the coffee maker?

In this post we give you more options:

You also have the option of using a specific coffee maker cleaning product, but really, with vinegar and water, it looks great.

At Amazon, you have a large number of recommended products to clean your coffee machine.

But we recommend these tablets for value for money: 120 coffee maker cleaning tablets (2.0 grams each)

As you can see from the photo, it is a product made in Germany that gives tremendous results for a much lower cost than other products used to clean coffee makers.

How should you use them? Very easy. Simply, a tablet is dropped into the water tank of the coffee machine and then the cleaning cycle that automatic espresso machines usually have is carried out.

Then you can put only water to get rid of the remains of this product and start another cleaning cycle.

You can combine hot and cold water in both processes to improve cleaning efficiency.

It is compatible with brands as diverse as Jura, WMF, Bosch, Siemens, Saeco, Melitta, Miele, Delonghi, and many other brands that make coffee makers.

You just have to be careful to follow the cleaning and descaling instructions indicated by each brand.

Limescale and coffee fat: how they affect your coffee maker
Depending on the type of water we are using, we may have to decalcify it from time to time: limescale accumulates in the water circuit and can cause it not to come out with enough pressure.

It may interest you: The 3 cheapest methods to clean a coffee maker
The other problem that we can find is the fact that the coffee leaves in the filter after preparing each cup, especially in espresso machines.

Clearly, these are two totally different problems with different solutions. We are going to see how to remove the fat from the coffee in your coffee maker.

How to remove coffee fat from a coffee maker

Well, the simplest thing is to get some good grease remover tablets that completely clean the filter of the espresso machines.

It is recommended to clean the machine every 2 weeks or after brewing 250 cups of coffee.

Depending on the type of machine you have, cleaning is done in a certain way or another:

Coffee machines with a cleaning program: we follow the instructions of the machine.

Coffee makers compartment for ground coffee: we put the fat remover tablet in the compartment.

Coffee makers without compartment: The fat remover tablet is dissolved in water, we remove the coffee group and clean it with the solution, for about 15-20 minutes.

If we do not remove the fat from the coffee maker, in the end, we will not obtain the same flavor of the coffee.

nor the same cream in the espresso coffees or it will even cause less coffee to come out due to the blockage of the filter.

Are any recommended tablets to remove grease from coffee pots?

• 6 grease remover tablets for coffee machines
• Maintains the flavor of coffee over time
• Degreaser to remove fat and other non-solid residues from coffee
• Extends the life of the machine, intensifies the aroma and flavor of the coffee
• This process must be repeated at least once a month.

There are many options and almost all of them are valid, but if you want to go the way of official brands, we recommend the Saeco CA6704/10, 6 pickups. 

These grease remover tablets for coffee makers can be purchased at Amazon.