What Maintenance Is Required For An Espresso Machine ?
A great espresso machine is a great helper when you entertain your friends. In your free time, having a cup of fresh coffee with your friends, and family members, is also a pretty good thing. But as time goes by, natural minerals in water can build up in your appliance, affecting taste, brewing time, and the overall performance of your machine. That’s why it’s important to clean your coffee maker regularly. Fortunately, it’s not complex to do that. What you need to mention is that the ways of descaling may vary in different parts.
1. What kinds of parts need to be cleaned?
Due to the different parts of the espresso machine, ways of cleaning are also variable. For some parts, you can just clean it with water. While others need a deep cleaning
(1) Grinder
As parts need to be deeply cleaned, you can’t clean the wheels on the grinder with water.
Due to the influence of coffee beans and external factors while using it, we recommended you clean the powder outlet and grinder burrs once a week. If the powder output significantly decreases or fine coffee grounds remain after grinding, it should also be cleaned promptly. The specific process is as follows:
Firstly, turn the bean hopper counterclockwise to the limit, then press the bean hopper sensor. Next, press the grind button to empty the coffee beans in the hopper and grinder. Lightly tap the hopper area to shake off any coffee beans or grounds inside. Secondly, take out the dedicated cleaning tool behind the drip tray. Rotate the grinder wheels counterclockwise and lift it. Then place the brush against the bean hopper sensor and press the grind button and clean the coffee grounds from the burr. Use the cleaning tool to clean the grinder burr, surrounding area, and powder outlet. Finally, thoroughly clean the coffee grounds stuck in the grinder burr grooves. After cleaning all the parts, reinstall the grinder wheels and bean hopper to their original positions.
(2) Steam wand
Before you start frothing milk, you’d better release some steam into a cloth. This can help you get rid of any milk residue or condensation hidden inside the wand. Once you’re finished frothing, please clean the wand with a damp cloth and release some steam once again. When you’re done brewing coffee for the day, immerse the wand in a milk-frothing jug filled with water and leave it to soak overnight. You’ll prevent milk and other impurities from sticking to the wand in that way.
(3) Tamper and portafilter
If your coffee machine boasts a built-in tamper and filter, make sure that there are no grounds in them left over from the last time you tamped coffee before preparing another serving. You should only tamp a new batch of coffee if you’re sure that there’s nothing stuck to the tamper and filter with its even and dry surface. If you disregard any of these details, you’re guaranteed to feel it in the resulting cup, directly to the taste
FAQs for Cleaning an Espresso Machine
1. Can I use vinegar to clean my espresso machine?
Whatever kind of machine you want to clean, white vinegar will always be a great help. Therefore, to clean your espresso machine, begin by filling the water tank with a 50-50 mixture of white distilled vinegar and water. You can increase the ratio of vinegar to water if your coffee maker has a particularly nasty case of buildup. The vinegar not only sanitizes the coffee maker and carafe, but it also dissolves any accrued mineral deposits. However, you need to make sure to check your espresso machine’s manual for any specific instructions from the manufacturer before using a vinegar solution. Keep in mind that commercial espresso machine cleaning solutions are specifically formulated to preserve the life of your machine and clean it safely and efficiently.
2. How often should I clean the machine?
Espresso machines must be cleaned regularly, just like all other coffee-making equipment. Some treatments will need to be done daily, but others can wait until once a week or once a month.
We recommend you fully clean your machine once a week, or at the very least, once a month, depending on how frequently you brew coffee. Professional baristas who work in coffee shops do that frequently, but probably you will not brew so much coffee at home that it would require so much maintenance.
Why do you need to clean it?
Your espresso machine needs to be descaled since water includes minerals and other impurities that, over time, can impair its functionality and the flavor of your coffee. Also, pressure and heat functions, aid in the extraction of the flavorful coffee oils and chemicals, which also contribute to an increase in the amount of scaling left in coffee makers after the procedure.
Regular cleaning can expand the lifespan of a machine. If you don’t do that, limescale can build up and obstruct the water lines in your machine. This can prevent you from pulling good espresso shots, use more energy than necessary, lengthen the time it takes to pull a shot of espresso, and even damage your machine.
