It is important to clean your coffee equipment and keep it clean. This will ensure that your espresso tastes great and also increase the life of your equipment. Regular cleaning of the bean hopper, group handles, and group head is essential, as coffee is an oily product.
Home machines can be cleaned once a week or once a month, depending on their frequency of use. Below are step-by-step instructions on how to clean your coffee machine thoroughly.
THE BEAN HOPPER
It is best to wipe the bean hopper regularly with a soft paper towel to ensure that the oil does not build up. The oil will eventually go rancid and emit a foul smell. This will negatively affect the beans that are in the hopper, as well as the taste of the coffee. This can be prevented by wiping out the hopper once a week for domestic use or commercial use.
NEVER run the hopper in a dishwasher. The plastic will eventually crack and become cloudy because the temperature is too high. You should also avoid using cleaning products like cleaning sprays and detergents inside the hopper. Over time, they can build up in the hopper and cause damage to the coffee beans. You can keep the hopper clean by wiping it with a paper towel on a regular schedule.
STEAM WAND
After each use, the steam wand should be cleaned with a dampened cloth and then purged. So, no milk can dry inside the steam nozzle and on the outside of the wand.
THE GROUP HANDLES
Oil will also accumulate on the group handle and basket, which requires regular cleaning and rinsing. Rinse the basket and group handle with clean water every day to avoid significant oil build-up. If you find that you have an oil build-up in the handle, you can soak it with a cleaning powder.
Use a small or medium-sized container to dissolve the powder in hot water. Remove the basket and group handle from the handle, and soak the two items for 10-15 minutes in the solution. The oil will be softened and easier to remove with a gentle scourer.
Only soak the silver portion of the handle. The plastic handle will break down if you continue to soak it in the chemical.
THE GROUP HEADER
For home coffee machines, once a week is sufficient. In a café at the end of each day, the group heads will be chemically backflushed in order to remove any coffee oil and grinds that have built up.
To remove any extra grinds, first, run water through the head and use a zigzag bristle brush.
Run this cycle three more times. Dissolve 1/4 teaspoon of machine cleaner into the blind filter. Lock this into the group head and turn on the water for 10 seconds. After completing three chemical cycles of 10 seconds, repeat the CLEAR BACKFLUSH cycle three more times with only water.
Important: Make sure to season the machine by running three espresso shots in each group head the next morning. It will ensure that any cleaning powder residue is removed. These shots are not for drinking!