Descaling your Keurig coffee maker might not be high on your list of priorities but a regular schedule to remove mineral deposits will help keep your morning cup of joe tasting great, and prolong the life of your machine.
You don't need a pricey specialist product either. Cleaning pros we spoke to swear by using vinegar to descale Keurig coffee makers and after I gave it a go on my machine, I have to say I'm sold. It was easy, quick and very effective.
If you already know how to clean a Keurig coffee maker, you'll be familiar with the process and probably looking for a cheaper alternative to the recommended branded product, which uses up a whole better every time and this is it!
How often to descale a Keurig with vinegar
Kayla Stavridis, a former Starbucks barista and now head of marketing at baristahq.com says, 'If you live in an area with hard water, descaling your Keurig coffee maker is essential to keeping it running smoothly. Over time, minerals like calcium and magnesium from hard water can build up as limescale inside your machine, affecting the taste of your coffee and slowing down the brewing process.'
She says it takes about two months for the tell-tale signs your Keurig coffee maker is dealing with a build-up of limescale to show. She explains, 'After a couple of months, the water flow slows down and the coffee starts tasting off. I’ve found that descaling with vinegar is an effective and budget-friendly solution to restore my machine’s performance.'
What you'll need
- White vinegar (I use this great value all-purpose cleaning vinegar from Walmart)
- Water
- A cup to catch the used solution
- A clean cloth soaked in warm soapy water (microfiber cloths, available at Walmart, are super absorbent, durable, and machine washable)
1. Empty the machine's reservoir
I chose my Keurig machine because it was one of the best single-serve coffee makers, and it is easy to maintain at home. The cost of the brand's descaling solution was too much in my view though, so I was keen to give the vinegar a go.
Former Starbucks barista Kayla adds, 'Vinegar is a natural, economical alternative to commercial descalers. It's highly acidic, making it effective at dissolving mineral deposits without leaving chemical residues. White distilled vinegar is my go-to for this task because it’s non-toxic, inexpensive, and readily available in most households.'
To descale yours, make sure the water reservoir has been emptied of old water and any filters have been removed. Taking this out and washing it by hand seems to be a much easier (and better tasting) alternative to cleaning it with vinegar. I guess there are things you should not clean with vinegar after all.
Professional cleaner Karina Toner of Spekless advises turning off the auto-shut off feature to prevent any interruptions in the process. It's advisable to also remove any old K-cups from the machine too.
This large bottle of Amazon's own brand white vinegar is perfect for a lot of cleaning, including cheaply descaling your showerhead and Keurig coffee maker. Pro cleaner Karina Toner warns against using flavored vinegar for descaling your Keurig so this white vinegar is just the ticket whilst it being distilled will further decrease the frequency of descaling needed.
2. Combine equal parts water and vinegar
To descale my Keurig, I poured equal parts water and white vinegar into the empty reservoir and turned the machine on to a cycle. I always place a large mug underneath the spout to collect this water – the larger the better to prevent overflow.
Cleaning pro Karina Toner adds you can either mix up the solution beforehand, or pour straight in, explaining, 'Fill your Keurig's reservoir halfway with white vinegar, then top it up with water until full.'
My Keurig machine has a self-descale function built in. If you have this too, simply set the machine to run and leave until the cycle is complete. If you have a smaller model or your machine does not have a descale function like mine, this method will still work as long as you run several regular cycles through the machine one after the other.
Bear in mind if your reservoir is larger, you'll need more vinegar to be able to keep to the 1:1 ratio.
3. Run the brewing cycle
Former Starbucks barista Kayla says, 'Run the machine without a K-Cup. Begin brewing, allowing the vinegar solution to run through the machine. Collect the dispensed liquid in a mug and discard it. This process breaks down mineral deposits inside the machine. Continue until the reservoir is empty.'
This ensures the vinegar descales the pipes fully and reaches all areas it needs to and the water runs clear. You can also let the solution sit in the machine for 30 minutes before flushing out to give the vinegar more time to work on stubborn mineral deposits Kayla adds.
In order to flush the vinegar residue out of my machine and prevent that lingering vinegar taste I experienced once and never want to taste again, I emptied my Keurig's reservoir of vinegar solution and refilled it with plain water.
I find that completing around three regular machine cycles without vinegar afterwards will help clear this taste out completely, ready for my next brew.
However, some coffee enthusiasts such as coffee blogger Johnny Morrison says you might find more cycles are needed to clear the taste. He says, 'The one drawback of using dinegar to clean your Keurig is the persistent odor and taste it can leave behind.
'In my experience, with descaling solutions, you typically only need two-three cleaning cycles to fully rinse the machine. However, with vinegar, you might need anywhere from five to 10 cycles to ensure there's no lingering taste in your coffee.'
Though, Johnny adds using vinegar is 'much cheaper specialized descaling solutions' and he is correct.
The Keurig three-month maintenance kit from Amazon, which includes one descaling solution for an 8oz rinse, two filters and rinse pods, usually retails at $22. To make the same volume of descaling solution yourself, you'll need 4oz of white distilled vinegar, which will typically cost around 40 cents.
4. Clean components and air dry
While the vinegar solution works wonders to clean the internal mechanisms of my machine, certain removable parts such as the reservoir, lid, pot holder, and drip tray need to be cleaned manually with a soft cloth in warm soapy water before being left to air dry completely and reassembling.
5. Complete the clean with an exterior wipe down
If my machine's exterior is particularly dirty, I often use the vinegar water solution cleaning tip in spray form to wipe down the outside of my machine too. If my machine has recently been cleaned, I find that a cloth soaked in warm soapy water is sufficient to remove any general kitchen grease build-up or spilled/splashed coffee.
Karina Toner adds, 'Use a clean, lint-free cloth to wipe down the outside of your Keurig, including the water reservoir.' This will stop fluff sticking to your Keurig's control panel or screen.
FAQs
How to know if your Keurig needs descaling
If you do not have a Keurig model with a descaling alert light on it such as on the Keurig K-Classic Coffee Maker available on Amazon, it can be difficult to know when to descale your Keurig as the calcium deposits form inside of the machine. I find it best to descale my machine at least every three to six months depending on how frequently it has been used.
I consider descaling my Keurig before the light comes on if I find that my coffee is taking longer to brew, the water appears to come out more violently with more splutters, or if the machine appears to be getting increasingly louder as the water flow has to work harder through the machine.
Barista Kayla adds, 'If you live in a hard water area, you should descale your Keurig every three months. If you use filtered water, descaling every six months should suffice.'
Is descaling solution better than vinegar?
Both vinegar and descaling solution are effective when it comes to descaling a coffee maker such as a Keurig.
While both solutions have their downsides, from a possible lingering taste from vinegar or the more costly chemical makeup of a commercial descaler, neither solution is better than the other for descaling a machine.
Do you remove the filter when descaling Keurig?
If you are descaling a Keurig machine with a removable filter, it is best to remove this part to prevent the solution from saturating the filter and leaving residue behind.
This residue may affect the taste of your coffee, so washing it by hand with water is the better approach. I left the filter in once by accident and found the taste of vinegar stuck around for several uses after descaling as the solution soaked into the filter.
How long do you need to leave vinegar in a Keurig to work?
Let the vinegar mixture remain in the machine for roughly half an hour, though it's important not to exceed three hours.
Why is the descaling light still flashing after I have descaled my Keurig?
If the descaling indicator remains lit, this suggests that the machine hasn't been adequately rinsed following the descaling process.
You should thoroughly rinse the Keurig again with clean water. Take out the water tank, refill it to the 'max' line using tap water, and initiate the water rinse cycle in your machine's settings.
Having an inexpensive coffee maker doesn't mean you have to sacrifice the quality of your coffee. Stock up on coffee bar essentials and carve out your own little coffeeshop style nook to take your morning brew to the next level.
