How to Clean a Coffee Maker

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This will probably be the most unglamorous, yet very necessary, post you will see. I love my morning and (sometimes afternoon) coffee, and I always prefer to enjoy a fresh (and clean) cup. Today I have a very simple way to keep your coffee maker clean, and rid of bacteria.

White distilled vinegar comes to the rescue again. I showed you how I use it to clean my yoga mat. And today I will use it to clean my coffee maker. Aside from being a fantastic acidic cleaner for mold and  bacteria; vinegar is also a very cost effective and environmentally friendly cleaner. For those reasons I prefer to clean with vinegar in the kitchen.

Place a clean filter into the filter basket in your coffee maker. Then add half cold water, and half white distilled vinegar mixture to your coffee pot. (You can add more vinegar to the mixture if your coffee maker is in dire need of a good cleaning). Place the mixture into the coffee maker. 



 

Place the coffee pot onto the hot pad in the coffee maker. Let the water and vinegar mixture brew through the coffee maker and into the coffee pot. Then let the maker and coffee pot sit for 15 minutes.

Next, clean out the coffee pot and throw the used filter away. Add cold water to the coffee pot (no vinegar), and add the cold water to the coffee maker. Once the water brews through, let the maker sit for another 15 minutes. Then repeat the entire process with cold water one more time.



Below is a before and after shot. Please don't judge my before picture. I wanted to be honest with the before picture to show you how well this process works. :)

You can also use the water/vinegar mixture and a cotton rag to clean water stains around the maker, and other places showing wear from the coffee grounds. 

I would also recommend using a pitcher or cup that is designated for the water when you brew your coffee on a daily basis. No matter how well you clean your coffee pot, it can still hold coffee ground residue that can get into the coffee maker if you use it to fill the maker with water.

I try to clean my coffee maker once a month. The amount you should clean your coffee maker should be dependent on how often you use your maker.

I hope you have a fantastic start to your day and week with a fresh (and clean) cup of coffee.