Lets discuss how to descale a keurig coffee maker with vinegar.Coffee is not just a hot beverage but for most of us it is more than that— it is a must-have to start our day. Your Keurig coffee maker is the best companion for brewing an excellent cup of coffee to start your day.
But sometimes coffee’s taste doesn’t remain the same. Why did it stop tasting fresh? With regular use and without cleaning and maintenance, your coffee maker won’t be able to make the same fresh and great-tasting coffee.
With time it may develop scales or bacteria and molds that grow inside it ruining the taste of your brew.To keep your brew tasting the same every time you have to take care of your Keurig coffee maker and make sure to clean and descale it from time to time. So your coffee won’t lose its taste and you get a perfect cup every time.
What Is Descaling?
With continuous use, it may develop some scale or mineral deposits from the water. With time these scales start hardening and start ruining the taste of your coffee. So it is very important not only to clean your Keurig but also to descale it if these scales are not removed.
It not only affects the taste but also mineral deposits to clog the machine from the inside and it may stop working because the limes scales form because of the boiling of water in it.
What Is The Best way To Clean A Keurig?
The best way to clean your coffee machine at home is to remove all the parts. Take out its water reservoir tank, tray, and K-Cup holder. Remove the filter from the water reservoir tank and keep it aside.
Now wash all the parts with a mild soapy liquid let them dry and replace them. Clean the outer sides with a soft towel and mild cleaner. Vinegar or lemon juice mixed with a mild detergent can also be used for outer cleaning.
The Indication That Your Keurig Needs To Be Cleaned:
- Extra coffee grounds or granules in your brewed cup.
- Takes longer time to brew.
- Change in the smell of freshly brewed coffee.
- When you see mineral buildup on the inner parts of your coffee maker.
- If you have hard water or mineral water then you may need to clean your Keurig more often as it may have more mineral density and form scales inside the coffee maker.
It is best to descale your Keurig machine every three to six months, or some models have indicators when they need to be descaled.
Before the indicating light, it start giving signs that it needs to be descaled as the water comes out more violently and the machine makes noise and splutters as because of its scales it has to work harder
How To Descale Keurig
When we talk about the cleaning and descaling of coffee makers we know that the commercial cleaners available for descaling are quite costly and require a complete bottle or a great amount to clean up completely.
I have the best solution to descale your Keurig machine with the help of vinegar. Vinegar has solved my problem as this expensive and time-consuming work got so easy.
Vinegar is an easily available product found in every kitchen cabinet, using it you can save your time and money as well.
How To Descale Keurig With Vinegar Step By Step
Keurig is one of the best single-serving coffee machines and is very easy to clean as well. Cleaning your Keurig with vinegar is very simple and easy and only requires a few items from your kitchen and vinegar. All you need to descale Keurig is
- Water
- White vinegar
- An empty cup to get the used solution
- A clean cloth
- Some warm soapy water
Empty The Machine’s Water Reservoir Tank:
Before starting to clean the coffee maker, make sure you have drained all the water out of it and it is empty. Remove all the filters and K cups from the machine.
If you will leave the filters inside later the taste and smell of vinegar may be felt in several brews after descaling it.Second, if you take it out and clean it by hand with soap and water that is quite easier and would not affect taste as well.
Prepare Vinegar Mixture:
Whenever thinking of cleaning the kitchen and kitchen appliances, an easy-to-use and on-the-board ingredient found in my kitchen is vinegar. This is the best all-around cleaner I can find n my kitchen. From cleaning heavy greases from stoves and ovens to descale Keurig it does it all.
To descale my Keurig I prepare a mixture of vinegar and water by combining them in equal parts. Fill the reservoir with vinegar mixture. And turn the machine on and run a brewing cycle.
Place a large mug or container under the spout the collect all the mixture coming out, try to place a larger one to prevent the overflow of the liquid. If the calcium scale deposits are too thick then you can let the vinegar mixture stay there for some time. Some machines have a self-descaling function present in them.
If you have this option just set the machine and let it complete the cycle. If this function is not present in your model or it is a smaller one you can still descale it using a vinegar mixture. You just have to run regular cycles several times through the machine.
The number of cycles depends upon how dirty or the amount of scales build up in the machine. Run this cycle several times until the running water gets clear.
Vinegar works excellently for descaling because of its acidic and antiseptic nature. It not only removes calcium deposits but also removes bacteria that are inside the pipes that cannot be cleaned manually.
Complete Brewing Cycle:
Empty the reservoir tank from the vinegar mixture fill it with plain water and give it a complete brewing cycle to completely flush out the vinegar residue. At least three complete cycles will eliminate the smell and taste of vinegar from the water reservoir tank completely.
If you do not give it three cycles with plain water, you will feel a lingering smell and taste in your several brews after that.Also,see more about best Cuban coffee maker.
Clean The Reservoir And Machine And Let Them Air Dry;
From inside the vinegar mixture has done well other removable parts such as the lid, pot holder, and drip tray also need to be cleaned with the warm water and soapy mixture and let them air dry after cleaning completely.
Clean External Parts:
Machines’ external parts get dirty too. Take a spray bottle add some soapy water and some vinegar mixture and use this mixture to clean the outer side of the machine. Clean the exterior side with a soft kitchen towel or wipe.
Simple a cloth soaked in lukewarm soapy water is enough to remove any coffee splashed or any other stains, or grease buildups from the kitchen.
Water Filter Cartridge:
Water filter plays a very important role as it removes impurities from the water and improves the overall taste of your beverage. You should change your water filter cartridge every two months or when descaling. Changing water filters also have a great impact on the taste of the brew.
To change the water filter cartridge take a new filter and soak it in water for five minutes, and rinse under water for one minute. Wash the filter with mild soapy water and then dry it well. Now insert the cartridge into the filter holder and snap them together. Put the filter holder back into the reservoir.
Tips To Keep Your Coffee Maker Cleaner Longer
To keep your Keurig coffee maker cleaner and scale-free for a long period. Try to clean it after short intervals and descale it. It will prevent the clogging of the internal pipes with calcium deposits and give you a fresh and aromatic brew every time.
Descaling Solution Or Vinegar:
While descaling you coffee maker there is a better question. Honestly speaking both of them have downsides, commercial descaler has chemicals in it and is more expensive. Vinegar gives a smell and lingering taste but it is cost effective.
Remove Filters when Descaling Your Keurig:
It is best to remove the filters before descaling and wash them manually by hand.it will keep your brew smell good and free from vinegar residue..Also,see more about how do you describe a keurig coffee maker with vinegar?.
CONCLUSION
To descale your Keurig coffee maker you can use commercial descaling liquid as well but in my opinion vinegar is best as it is an edible. I consider it more better than chemicals and it is cost effective as well.
Only one thing that is not good about vinegar is its pungent smell that stays after cleaning for this you can rinse your coffee maker several times. Keep it open in the air to dry this will also remove any kind of smell.
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