How To Clean Coffee Maker Without Vinegar: Effective Methods
Are you irritated with the vinegar smell in your coffee pot after every cleaning? If so, you must have been looking for the answer to how to clean coffee maker without vinegar. This article will tell you how to continue having a great cup of coffee by cleaning your coffee maker without vinegar.
It is essential to clean coffee makers regularly as it leaves behind oils and minerals from the coffee residue. Instead of vinegar, you can use lemon juice, baking soda, bleach, borax, cream of tartar, salt, ice, and hydrogen peroxide to clean and wash a coffee maker.
Hold on and sit tight to learn about the alternative cleaning options for your coffee maker in detail.
Issues With Cleaning the Coffee Machine With Vinegar Solution
Many people prefer to use white vinegar or apple cider vinegar as a cleaning agent for their coffee makers. Vinegar is indeed a great element that cleans the coffee maker thoroughly. However, the problem lies somewhere else. When you use vinegar as a cleaning method, it is hard to eliminate all the vinegar at a time.
So, whenever you clean the coffee maker with vinegar, you will get a weird smell and taste in the next 4-5 pots. Also, when you run the cleaning process with vinegar, it is hard to prevent the strong vinegar smell from spreading throughout your house. It is hard for many people to resist that smell.
That is why many people avoid vinegar as a cleaning option for their coffee makers.
7 Ways To Clean Coffee Maker Without Vinegar
Vinegar is not the only option you might use to clean the coffee maker of your house. If you can’t resist the vinegar smell and are looking for something new, you would be happy to know several cleaning options are available.
Whether you have a drip coffee maker or a Keurig coffee maker, you can use the below-mentioned cleaning methods for both coffee makers.
Lemon Juice
Who does not love the aroma of lemon juice, right? Juice extracted from lemon is one of the best alternatives to vinegar. It is acidic and does the cleaning job as perfectly as vinegar. The citric acid of the lemon helps in breaking down the coffee oil and is also a great agent in killing harmful bacteria.
Cleaning the coffee machine with lemon juice mixture is simple. Follow the below step and get a fresh and smell-free coffee machine.
- Take two lemons and squeeze their juice into a glass or bowl.
- Take another bowl of water and pour the straight lemon juice into the water.
- Note: Do not pour water into the lemon juice. The combining process is important, so avoid combining lemon and juice incorrectly.
- Next, pour the lemon juice solution inside the water reservoir.
- Then switch on the coffee machine and run the full brewing cycle.
- After the lemon juice solution is fully brewed, again run the cycle with fresh warm water. You can continue the same process until the smell of the lemon is gone.
- Note: There is no need to repeat the process if you find no smell after running the first brew cycle with water.
- Lastly, wipe the coffee maker’s outer and inner surfaces with a soft wet cloth.
Baking Soda
Baking soda is another vinegar alternative cleaning agent that helps to clean a coffee maker effectively. It is one of the best coffee maker cleaning methods, as it has a mild flavor. So, it leaves no smell in your coffee makes.
Follow the steps below to get a clean coffee maker using baking soda.
- Remove the filter or the brew basket from the coffee maker.
- Mix a one-fouth cup of baking soda with a cup of hot water.
- Pour the entire solution inside the coffee carafe.
- Swirl the carafe for a while so that the baking soda dissolves well with the water.
- Next, pour the baking soda solution inside the water reservoir of the coffee machine and keep the coffee carafe in its proper place.
- Turn on the switch of the brew cycle and brew the baking soda just like you brew coffee.
- After completing the brewing process, run the cycle again with fresh warm water. This will help to eliminate the smell of baking soda.
Here you go! Now you have a clean and fresh coffee maker without any coffee residue. The baking soda solution also removes mineral deposits and cleans the machine.
Hydrogen Peroxide Solution
Another effective method to wash a coffee machine without vinegar is hydrogen peroxide. It has great disinfecting features that provide a helpful hand in cleaning the coffee makers.
Follow to below steps to get a clean and germ-free coffee maker.
- Take a bowl and mix a cup of hydrogen peroxide with two cups of clean water.
- Pour the hydrogen peroxide solution inside the coffee maker’s water reservoir.
- Then run a full brewing cycle.
- After completing the cycle, flush the solution and again turn on the cycle by filling the reservoir with water.
- Keep repeating this process until the hydrogen peroxide smell fades away.
Salt And Ice
Most coffee maker owners focus on cleaning the mineral buildup and tend to forget to clean the coffee pot or the carafe. You can also clean the coffee maker’s carafe without vinegar.
Now, you can ask what’s so special about the carafe as one can easily clean it with dish soap. Well, liquid dish soap can indeed clean the coffee pot; however, it cannot fully remove the oil and coffee residue.
So, a simple way to remove coffee oil stains or residue from the coffee pot or carafe is by using salt and ice. Follow the below steps-
- Mix salt with crushed ice and pour it inside the coffee pot. The amount does not matter, so you can use it as much as you like. However, it would be better to leave some space.
- Next, take a cloth or a sponge to scrub the inner side of the carafe. The coarse consistency of the crushed ice and salt will break down the oil deposits and remove the stain.
- Lastly, wash the coffee pot with soapy water.
Sodium Borax
Borax is usually used as a household cleaner but is also an effective natural cleaning agent for a coffee maker. Whether you have a drip or an automatic coffee maker, you can use borax to clean any coffee maker.
Below is the cleaning process-
- Pour two full tablespoons of borax into a carafe filled with water.
- Next, pour this borax solution inside the coffee maker’s water reservoir.
- Switch on the machine and run the full brewing cycle.
- After finishing the cycle, brew the cycle again with plain water.
Bleach
Bleach is non-toxic and instantly cleans your dirty coffee maker. It is an alternative to vinegar as it can clean the leftover coffee oil and mineral buildups.
However, do not use bleach in huge amounts to clean the coffee maker. Also, always mix water with bleach before pouring it into a coffee maker. Pouring the bleach directly will damage the machine.
Follow the below steps to clean with bleach-
- Add three cups of bleach with one cup of water. Mix the solution well.
- Pour the bleach solution inside the coffee maker’s reservoir and turn on the brewing cycle.
- Next, run the cycle again with plain water. You can repeat the process a few times so that no smell remains inside the coffee pot.
Cream Of Tartar
Tartar is an excellent acidic component that you can use as a coffee maker’s cleaning agent. The acidic feature makes it a great alternative to vinegar.
Follow the below steps to wash your coffee pot or maker with cream of tartar.
- Pour one cup of water inside the coffee pot and add three tablespoons of tartar.
- Mix the cleaning solution well and pour it inside the coffee maker’s reservoir.
- Start the brewing cycle.
After finishing the cycle, run again by adding 2 cups of plain water inside the reservoir.
Note: Running the cleaning cycle once is sufficient, as tartar is not harmful and edible enough to eat.
Importance Of Cleaning Your Coffee Maker Regularly
The key to brewing delicious coffee is cleaning your coffee maker regularly. If you are one of those who do not clean their coffee maker regularly, it is high time to change your habit.
If you do not clean a coffee maker often, the oil easily forms from the coffee residue. These oil and mineral deposits from the machine quash the real taste of coffee. So, the more unclean the machine is, the more bitter-tasting coffee it brews.
Now, it might not be possible for you to go through a deep cleaning of your coffee machine with vinegar, baking soda, lemon juice, etc. So, it would be sufficient to wash your coffee pots and other removable parts with liquid dish soap regularly.
Washing the parts of the coffee maker with dish soap will at least ensure no germs remain in the coffee makers. It will save you from harmful bacteria and an upset stomach.
Watch the video to learn How To Clean Coffee Maker Without Vinegar?
FAQs
What is the best solution for cleaning a coffee maker?
Generally, vinegar is considered the best solution for cleaning coffee makers. It has acidic acid that breaks down the coffee machine’s strong calcium or mineral deposits. Also, works great for disinfecting the coffee maker.
Can you use run dish soap through the coffee makers?
Dish soap is only safe for washing the removable parts of your coffee maker. Running the brew cycle with dish soap inside the water reservoir is not a good idea. You can wash non-electric or non-automatic coffee makers with dish soap.
What acid is best for descaling a coffee machine?
Both citric acid and lactic acid are considered the best coffee maker descaling agents. They have the strong property to break down the hard minerals and oils from the coffee machine.
Final Words
The cleaning methods mentioned in this article are effective and easy as well. If you do not like vinegar, you have several cleaning options in your hand. So, how to clean coffee maker without vinegar is no longer a secret to you people.
Remember, it does not matter whether you clean the coffee maker with or without vinegar. The only thing that matters is a clean coffee maker. A clean and fresh coffee maker is the secret to delicious coffee.
That is all for today! I hope you find a suitable way to clean coffee makers without vinegar from this article.