Tactical Error with the Coffee Maker

Absintheur

Absintheur

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Well I just walked into the kitchen in mid yawn and deep breath...normally not a problem but the coffee pot is getting it's monthly white vinegar douche to remove limestone deposits. (It was taking nearly an hour to brew a pot...knew it was time.) The deep inhalation of the vapors took their toll and I have been coughing for 15 minutes. Is there anything that will remove hard water deposits without either gassing me out of my kitchen or poisoning me the next day? Any commercial preparations ya'll use? Any home solutions? A water softener is in the plans when I get the new kitchen but that is several months away....more if I keep buying knives...lol.

I will pass on a tip I learned in the restaurant business. We have all burned the pot dry at some point and cleaning the black out of the pot can be a pain, especially Bunn pots. Just fill about 1/4 full of crushed ice and add a few tablespoon of salt and swirl....removes the burned on crust very quickly.
 
Don't remove that stuff it's what give's your coffee flavor;), being Army I have seen some of the dirtiest coffeepots and mugs being used daily and thier users haven't died yet. As for me I do the vinegar douche thing too, I usually dilute though, and run a few cycles of fresh water through. Strangely enough I like the smell though.
 
This is an old diner trick I learned from my wife.

Fill the pot with about 2 handfuls of ice.

Add a cup of salt and 1/2 cup of water and swirl it around in the pot for 5-7 minutes.

The salt acts as an abrasive to remove the deposits and melts the ice to make it easier to slosh around.
 
Same trick I listed in my thread Ken but the problems isn't deposits in the pot but inside the machine slowing it down...
 
You can get coffee maker cleaner products at any grocery store. But vinegar is cheap and works well. So, if fumes are the problem, move the process outdoors. Just put the coffee maker out on the back porch during the vinegar cleaning.
 
Just to add to the ice/salt recipe, when I was in high school as a waiter some of the older ladies did something similar, but it was just a few ounces of the boiling water from the coffee maker, a healthy shake of salt, and a couple lemon slices squeezed in. People would burn the thing pretty good almost daily, and with this mixture we'd only have to swish it around for a few seconds.

As far as the vinegar goes, make the wife do it if it bothers you. :D
 
Wife? I have tried a couple of them off of E-Bay but always end up returning them...

The cats aren't too thrilled with e about the vinegar smell either...lol. Taking it outside would be ok except it is semi-built in...I can get it out but is really a hassle. I use a t valve with a gravity feed for the vinegar otherwise it is auto filling from a supply line. I was just hoping someone knew a cheap and easy vinegar alternative.
 
Do you get Brita filters in the US?

They are a cheap jug based filter rather than a plumbed in water softner, could work as a stop gap solution until you get your new kitchen

We have used one for 5 years never had to de scale the kettle
 
+1 on the Brita. Back when I fancied myself a coffee snob (you know, before Starsucks) I used to only use filtered water in my coffee machines. It slows the need for de-scaling down to about an annual event. :thumbup:
 
Absintheur said:
Well I just walked into the kitchen in mid yawn and deep breath...normally not a problem but the coffee pot is getting it's monthly white vinegar douche to remove limestone deposits. (It was taking nearly an hour to brew a pot...knew it was time.) The deep inhalation of the vapors took their toll and I have been coughing for 15 minutes. Is there anything that will remove hard water deposits without either gassing me out of my kitchen or poisoning me the next day? Any commercial preparations ya'll use? Any home solutions? A water softener is in the plans when I get the new kitchen but that is several months away....more if I keep buying knives...lol.

I will pass on a tip I learned in the restaurant business. We have all burned the pot dry at some point and cleaning the black out of the pot can be a pain, especially Bunn pots. Just fill about 1/4 full of crushed ice and add a few tablespoon of salt and swirl....removes the burned on crust very quickly.
Click to expand...

If you cut a lemon into small slices put it into a full kettle of warm water it will do the same job, I second the filtered water use.
Richard
 
I use a Pur filter system...still have the scale problem. The water were I live is incredibly hard, every bit of it is limestone filtered...lol. I have been shopping the water softeners...will just have to bite the bullet and get started on the kitchen.
 
2 words

French Press


By far the *best* way to brew your coffee imho. Fast, Easy, Delicious.
And i'm a guy who LOVES his coffee.
 
The flavor components of coffee are fatty acids .That makes coffee better with neutral or acid water while alkaline water neutralizes the fatty acids and removes flavor [ acid water - coffee, alkaline water - tea !] .After making coffee there will be a coating of those fatty acids on the coffee maker.Wash them off every time ! Otherwise they will oxidize [become rancid] and your coffee will taste yukee !!
 
BoxANT said:
2 words

French Press


By far the *best* way to brew your coffee imho. Fast, Easy, Delicious.
And i'm a guy who LOVES his coffee.
Click to expand...

I have two cousins and a close friend who all swear by those things , simplistic in design , don't cost as much as a new coffee maker and totally portable.

I'm going to get one when my Krupp dies.
 
I second this as a good reason to switch to French Press. Especially if you're making it for one or two people, I think this is better (tastier, less work, uses less beans).

Everywhere I've heard of uses either vinegar or lemon juice diluted properly.

Joe S.
 
I'll third the French Press for home use. All we use now (having been through all sorts of kit over the years including a few espressos, drip, filter, perc and some other entertaining toys) and we have three different sizes according to demand. Important bit is that beans arrive weekly and fresh roasted (thanks to Cafe L'affare). Grind as and when we need them. Best coffee with minimum messing around.
Espresso - best made in a cafe.
 
You could try a somewhat weaker solution of vinegar and add some cream of tartar to the mix. This will work faster.
 
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