Who doesn’t like coffee?
If coffee it’s your go-to beverage first thing in the morning, at midday, or even in the evening, you probably own (or are considering buying) a Nespresso machine.
Having an espresso machine is going to give you amazing coffee to start your day, but it might also be a little intimidating, especially when it comes to cleaning. Let’s read some strategies on how to clean your Nespresso machine.
The Importance of Cleaning Your Nespresso Machine
Nespresso machines are very effective and give great results. Coffee is known for its pleasant taste and smell, but if you don’t clean your machine often, this can get changed for the worst, adding an unpleasant or strange flavor.
This happens because every coffee maker works using water, which leaves small limescale and mineral residues every time you make coffee. If they don’t get cleaned, they will start to get mixed with your coffee and it will taste a little off.
Even worse, if limescale keeps building up, it might clog the water flow to a point that causes your coffee machine to stop working completely.
Besides this, you need to clean your Nespresso machine on the outside as well, to avoid growing bacteria and attracting insects to your kitchen. Here’s what you can do:
Descaling Your Nespresso Machine: Is it Necessary?
Descaling means removing limescale and residues from your coffee maker. You should do this at least every 3 months, especially if hard water is common in your area.
Hard water contains a higher number of minerals, and this depends on your area. For example, Texas has very hard water in comparison to other states.
Coffee companies usually sell their own de-scaling agents, which are mostly based on citric acid or lactic acid. You can either buy your coffee maker’s descaling agent or proceed at your own risk and create your own DIY descaling agent. If you have an expensive espresso machine, you should buy de-scaling agents.
The most popular DIY descaling solutions are made with either citric acid or vinegar.
Particularly, the Nespresso company recommends you avoid using vinegar for descaling. This is because vinegar is allegedly too aggressive and can damage your machine’s pipes.
As we know, vinegar is a versatile cleaner and it won’t necessarily harm your machine, but descaling solutions will make minerals take longer to deposit. Eco alternatives are also available on the market.
If you do end up using vinegar, make sure to use white vinegar and not balsamic vinegar, apple vinegar, or any other kind.
The Descaling Process For Your Nespresso Machine
Start by removing coffee pods, take your water reservoir and pour any remaining water out of your coffee machine, as well as any built-in water filters (if any).
If you bought a de-scaling agent, follow instructions. Each one has a different process depending on the company and the type (liquid or tablets).
If you’re going with the DIY route, using citric acid is better than vinegar, because it’s softer. You can mix the juice of two lemons with enough water to fill the water reservoir. Remember to strain your lemon juice.
You can use vinegar as a last resort. Mix 2-parts distilled water, 1-part white vinegar. This mix will be helpful because using pure white vinegar will be too aggressive for your coffee maker. Create enough mix to fill the water reservoir completely.
Deactivate automatic shut-off and place a mug under the tray beneath the spout. Start the brewing process. This mug will collect your de-scaling solution, along with your coffee machine’s limescale residues.
As soon as the brewing process ends, toss the water in the sink. Run your coffee machine 3 to 4 more times using only clear water, in order to completely remove your descaling solution.
Basic cleaning and maintenance
Once you descale your Nespresso, it’s time for some additional cleaning.
As always, you can go with the natural route or just pick your favorite cleanser from the supermarket. For this case, add ½ spoon baking soda to one cup of vinegar.
Apply this mix to your machine on the outside, let sit for five minutes and then add soap and water, scrubbing gently with a clean sponge. Remove any remaining soda and soap using a microfiber cloth and water.
Conclusion
It’s important to clean your Nespresso machine regularly so that it continues working properly and give you great coffee. Besides descaling, it’s also important to keep it clean on the outside, so your kitchen remains clean, tidy, and safe.
And if you are so busy and can’t manage to clean constantly, remember you can always reach out and get additional help.
