To ensure the safety of your customers, the continued great taste of your fresh coffee, and the longevity of your coffee maker, it is important to clean different parts of your machine at regular intervals with appropriate materials.
These intervals could be daily, weekly, or monthly depending on the coffee maker part, frequency of usage, and hardness of water in use.
How Should I Clean My Commercial Coffee Maker?
Asides knowing how often to clean your commercial coffee maker, knowing how is also very valuable.
The right cleaning ingredients, the right utensils and the right techniques to use are vital pieces of information for every commercial coffee maker owner who plans to get the best out of their machine.
For all the things you need to know, we’ve got you covered with all the information categorized into maintenance frequency, what parts need to be cleaned, when to clean them, and how.
We’ve also included some helpful tips on what washing liquids are best for what parts of your coffee maker.
Daily maintenance
The parts of the commercial coffee maker that require a daily cleaning include the general outer body, the coffee pots, portafilters and filter baskets.
That doesn’t mean other parts can’t be cleaned daily, but most of them aren’t as frequently handled and may not require the same level of frequent cleaning.
When it comes to the general outer body of your coffee maker, cleaning this part is likely the easiest task in your cleaning journey and depending on frequency of use, it could be done more frequently like during the business day.
To clean the outside, unplug the machine and wipe down the body and surrounding of the coffee maker with a damp lint-free cloth.
Coffee pots, portafilters and filter baskets should also be cleaned on a daily basis with warm water and mild detergent, by detaching them from the machine and hand washing (or washing in a machine) to remove debris and mild deposits.
Weekly maintenance
Filter funnels are also in need of frequent cleaning and ideally, should be cleaned at least once a week using a soft brush and dish washing liquid in warm water.
If you notice lime deposits in the filter funnels, you can clean with a descaling liquid that can be made using lemon juice, vinegar or citric acid.
Group/Spray heads, as well as group seals also require cleaning at least once weekly, and they can be cleaned using group head brushes and hot water to dislodge particles that are hinged in the group head.
A group head brush
You can employ the use of deliming springs for harder-to-reach areas that are affected by limescale from hard water.
The steam heads also need to be cleaned and this is done by removing the steam wand tip and cleaning the inside with a steam head brush to remove any lingering debris which could cause a blockage of the steam head and reduce steam pressure.
Monthly descaling
Based on the type of water used in making coffee with the commercial coffee maker – either hard water or soft water -, there could be limescale lining the coffee maker parts and these are difficult to get rid of.
Limescale is a buildup of calcium and magnesium found in vessels that convey hot water, especially hard water that boils. They pose the greatest danger to the longevity of commercial coffee makers.
This makes descaling an important cleaning procedure for commercial coffee makers, and one that should ideally take place at least once a month, but may be done more frequently as the user sees fit.
Descaling is best done with a food-grade acidic compound usually Lemon juice, Citric Acid or Vinegar. For Vinegar, because it is quite acidic, a preparation of one part vinegar and two parts water is recommended.
The process involves decanting the descaling liquid of choice into the water reservoir of the commercial coffee maker up to at least half the total volume of the water reservoir, but preferably to the “full” mark of the coffee maker.
Once the liquid is in place, you can either start the descaling procedure on your coffee maker if the model you are using has a descaling procedure, and if it doesn’t, then you can simply run a regular brew the same way you would any other pot of coffee.
After the brew is done, empty the contents into the coffee pot and turn off the coffee maker and allow it to cool. When the coffee maker is at room temperature, then you should proceed to clean the spray head and spray head openings on your machine as described in the weekly maintenance” and replace the spray head.
Run more repeat brewing cycles (two to three times) with plain water to rinse out the coffee maker and remove any left overs of the descaling solution, especially vinegar which tends to leave a lasting odour/flavour. Once rinsing is complete, clean the spray head again as specified and replace the spray head once dry
Conclusion
Cleaning your commercial coffee maker doesn’t have to be a pain in the neck and doesn’t necessarily need an expert service.
You can do it on your own in these easy to follow steps with easy to access materials and maintain your coffee maker without having to spend excessively in repairs and maintenance fees.
For more tips on how to care for your commercial coffee maker, and other forms of maintenance, as well as how to get the best out of your coffee maker, keep up with Essential coffee and enjoy the information filled blog posts.
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