How to Clean Your Coffee Maker with Apple Cider Vinegar

Having your coffee maker allows you quick and easy access to fresh coffee whenever you need it. If you have your coffee maker, it’s essential to make sure your coffee pot is properly maintained by giving it a regular cleaning. You can easily clean your coffee maker using apple cider vinegar.

Here’s how to clean your coffee maker with apple cider vinegar:

Wipe down your coffee maker.
Empty the inside of your coffee maker.
Fill your coffee maker with the vinegar solution.
Run your coffee machine for a half brew cycle.
Run your coffee machine for a complete brew cycle.
Run two complete freshwater brewing cycles.
Wash the carafe and water filter.
Assemble your coffee maker.

Apple cider vinegar in glass bottle with cork surrounded by apples on table.

This article is a guide to cleaning your coffee maker with apple cider vinegar.

Using this cleaning method is an excellent way to ensure that dirt, mineral deposits, coffee grounds, and hard water don’t build up in your coffee machine.

Having a clean coffee maker makes for a great start to your day!

1. Wipe Down Your Coffee Maker

Before cleaning the inside of your coffee maker, give the outside a wipe down.

Cleaning the outside of your coffee maker will ensure that dust and dirt on its surface don’t make their way into its filter.

Douse a paper towel or clean cloth with warm water and use it to wipe down the coffee machine.

You’ll also want to clean the outside and inside of the carafe so that you’re not unintentionally adding more dirt and dust inside the coffee machine.

2. Empty the Inside of Your Coffee Maker

Make sure that you’ve emptied the inside of your coffee maker.

This includes removing the filter and ensuring that the water reservoir / water chamber doesn’t have any liquid in it. Make sure you check your coffee maker’s manual to identify the removable parts so that you can either empty or wipe them down.

3. Fill Your Coffee Maker With the Vinegar Solution

To make an apple cider and water cleaning solution, mix one part apple cider vinegar with equal parts water (clean).

Pour this solution into your coffee maker’s water reservoir, making sure that it’s almost full.

Now, you can use regular vinegar if you don’t have any apple cider vinegar, or you don’t want to use your current supply.

Apple cider vinegar is one of the main ingredients in grain-free bread, so if you use this for your recipes, you might want to use white vinegar.

Woman with rubber gloves holding cleaning cloth.

4. Run Your Coffee Machine for Half a Brew Cycle

Close your coffee maker and then run your coffee machine for a half brewing cycle.

This allows the apple cider vinegar solution to heat up and activate the chemicals that break down dirt and deep stains.

Once the half brew cycle is done, allow the solution to sit in the coffee maker for an hour.

If the kind of coffee maker you have doesn't have a half brewing cycle option, press the brew button and pause the coffee maker halfway through its cycle.

Or, if your coffee maker has a clean cycle, run this cycle instead.

5. Run Your Coffee Machine for a Complete Brew Cycle

After an hour, rerun your coffee machine and allow it to run through an entire brew cycle.

This cleaning process is the best way to dislodge any stubborn stains or bacteria. Once the brewing cycle is complete, the machine will empty the solution.

Before running a fresh brew cycle with just water, you’ll want to wipe down or scrub your carafe, the inside of the machine, and anywhere else that limescale builds up.

Doing this will ensure that you’re getting every last bit of grime or dirt before starting on the next step.

6. Run Two Complete Freshwater Brewing Cycles

For best results, you should run at least two freshwater cycles in your coffee machine after emptying the remaining vinegar solution.

This will help eliminate the vinegar smell and ensure that traces of vinegar don’t impact your coffee taste. You can use tap water for this step.

While some people recommend three cycles, this is unnecessary and a waste of time and resources.

Two cycles should be enough to get everything out of the machine and get it ready for the next batch of coffee.

7. Wash the Carafe and Water Filter

To clean your coffee maker’s carafe and water filter, wash them out with hot soapy water.

Then, use a clean, dry towel to wipe them down gently. If they’re still dirty, you may want to soak them in the water for 15-20 minutes before rinsing them out with cold water and then patting them down.

Do this step only if you didn’t clean out the carafe before running your two complete water cycles.

8. Assemble Your Coffee Maker

Once all the parts of your coffee maker are dry, you can then assemble them back together in your machine.

Then, run one more full brew cycle to make sure your coffee machine is completely clean and ready to be used to brew coffee again.

However, this might not be completely necessary, especially if you’ve cleaned it thoroughly in the other steps.

Benefits of Cleaning Your Coffee Maker With Apple Cider Vinegar

Cleaning your coffee maker with an apple cider vinegar solution helps prevent mineral buildup in your coffee maker.

There are several benefits of using apple cider vinegar to clean your coffee maker:

It’s cost-effective. Apple cider vinegar is cheap and accessible and does as good a job as a more expensive, specially designed coffee maker cleaner. However, white vinegar is even cheaper, so if you want to use this instead, who are we to judge?
It acts as a sanitizer. Apple cider vinegar will kill a large amount of the bacteria that may have built up in your coffee maker.
It’s nontoxic. As apple cider vinegar is made with purely natural ingredients, it’s perfectly safe to use in your coffee machine.
It’s versatile. Apple cider vinegar is a versatile solution used in cooking, cleaning, and natural health remedy. Even if you need just a little to clean your coffee maker, you can be sure that you’ll find a use for it in other areas in your home.

Giving your coffee maker a regular cleaning can help prolong its life and enhance the taste of your coffee.

This method will work for most coffee machines, including a Keurig coffee maker and espresso machine.

What Apple Cider Vinegar Should You Use?

You can use any apple cider vinegar to clean your drip coffee maker. However, you might want to use organic apple cider vinegar for great results. But if you don’t want to pay extra money for organic, you can use regular apple cider vinegar.

Please note that this article may contain affiliate links. You can read my full disclosure at the bottom of the page.

Here are two excellent apple cider vinegar options that are available on Amazon.com:

BRAGG Organic Raw Apple Cider Vinegar: This is an excellent apple cider vinegar brand that’s certified with 5% acidity to help break down dirt and lime deposits in your coffee maker.
Lucy's Family Owned Raw Apple Cider: Another great brand, it’s USDA organic certified and has no preservatives. It offers excellent value for money as you can get a significant amount for what you’re paying.

Conclusion

It’s easy to clean your coffee maker with apple cider vinegar, and you’re assured of excellent results.

To use apple cider vinegar to clean your coffee maker, you only need to follow a few simple steps and allow your coffee machine to run several brewing cycles.

By giving your coffee machine a regular cleaning using this method, you’ll improve its longevity as well as the taste of your coffee.

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