Hamilton's Appliance Ideas and Tips

Coffee machines need maintenance in order to last longer, perform more efficiently and give constant output and splendid tasting coffee. It is also important for food sanitation because mold might grow in your machine, posing health risks.  Essentially, machines should be serviced annually. You do not require the services of a professional for daily coffee machine maintenance and might just save yourself that cost if you take the following guidelines into consideration.

Filtered water

Coffee machines require filtered water to avoid clogging caused by scale. The filtered water should be soft since it contains no salts that cause buildup of scale. If you live in an area with hard water, you should buy soft filtered water, which might be an expensive venture but will save you more costs in terms of descaling your machine and helping it last even longer.

Watch out for any inconsistencies

Inconsistencies could show up as a change in the taste of coffee, change in output in terms of flow and even machine performance, taking into consideration factors such as overheating and strange or unusual sounds.

Clean your machine

Routine cleaning should be carried out after making every coffee. When cleaning your machine, wipe the exterior carefully with a soft piece of cloth to avoid scratching the stainless steel. While doing this do not forget to clean your grinder too. You can do this by removing the burrs and giving it a thorough cleaning. Remember to not put your grinder in a dishwasher unless you want to destroy it and render it unusable.

Back flush

Back flushing ensures that the inside of your machine is left sparkling clean. You will first need to use a group head brush to clean around the seal and track holding the filter to remove loose coffee grounds before running water in it to remove the coffee oil. During this process, you should ensure no water flows out through the spout to effectively clean the interior.

Descale if required

Descaling is important in keeping your machine at a constant performance level. If you live in an area with hard water and you use your coffee machine regularly, then you will have to descale your machine more regularly. At home, you can use either vinegar or commercial products to descale your machine. You should, however, check the specific requirements of your machine since you will also void the warranty if you use an unspecified product to descale. With newer models of machines, manufacturers void the warranty if descaling is not done on a regular basis. Discrepancies in performance, as mentioned earlier, could be a warning sign of the need to descale your machine. If you have problems descaling the machine, then you should seek the services of a professional.