Coffee makers need to be cleaned on a regular basis. Otherwise, they become homes to bacteria and other disturbing things, all of which affect the taste of your daily cup (or two) of coffee. One of the most common ways to clean a coffee maker is with vinegar, but this method has its downsides, including the powerful smell of the vinegar, as well as the fact that it isn’t as effective as people would have you believe. Thankfully, there are plenty of other options, so, if you’ve been wondering how to clean a coffee maker without vinegar, then read on.
Lemon Juice Is an All-Natural Alternative
If you’ve been wondering how to clean a coffee maker, look no further than vinegar’s distant cousin (of a sort): lemon juice. Okay, lemon juice and vinegar really aren’t related, but they do have one thing in common – they are both acidic. So, if you’ve been trying to find an all-natural way on how to clean a coffee maker without vinegar, then this is the solution. Simply dilute your lemon juice in water (those little lemon-shaped juice pods from the produce section of the grocery store work well) at a ratio of one to two – one part lemon juice to two parts water. Then pour the mixture into your coffee maker and let it sit for about 20 minutes, then run it through its normal cycle. You may want to run another cycle with just plain water to be on the safe side afterwards. Otherwise, your coffee might taste a little lemony at first.
Buy a Special Coffee Maker Cleaning Product, Such As a Descaler
There are plenty of pre-made commercial cleaning agents on the market designed specifically for coffee makers. These solve the problem, as all that you need to do is follow the directions on the package. Some of these cleaning solutions are descalers, which sound disturbing, but actually remove any built-up residue from hard water. Although these cleaning products contain chemical cleaning agents, they are pretty effective, as long as they are used properly. You also won’t have to rinse your machine afterwards, like you would with lemon juice or baking soda, since these cleaning agents are designed to dissolve entirely during the cleaning process.
Stop Wondering and Reach for Some Baking Soda
Baking soda is a useful way to descale the inside of your coffee maker, but you need to be careful, since it doesn’t fully dissolve in water, and will leave some residue behind. However, if you turn it into a paste and scrub the inside of your coffee maker, it will remove almost all of the residue left behind by hard water. You’ll need to rinse everything really well, and might find yourself using a microfiber cloth to ensure that the baking soda is completely gone, but this method works well.
Now that you have some suggestions on how to properly clean a coffee maker, you can get started on the process. You’ll find that tomorrow’s cup will taste that much better!
