Coffee machine maintenance is an essential part of owning a coffee machine, but it’s also one that people often neglect. A lot of processes go into creating a perfect latte, and it’s easy to forget that a coffee machine is just that, a piece of machinery. One that is finely-tuned and in need of regular care to ensure it is working optimally.
At Corporate Coffee Solutions, we are dedicated to ensuring that you have access to high-quality coffee whether you’re at home or at the office. So, to ensure that you’re treating your machine with the level of care it needs, let’s take a look at a few coffee machine maintenance tips.
Tip 1: Coffee Machine Maintenance Starts With Using Your Machine Correctly
Coffee machine maintenance may be an essential part of owning a coffee machine, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t ways to minimise the need for it. Coffee machines can be rather complex, and it’s easy for those with less experience working with them to make mistakes. This is totally fine, and all part of the process of learning how to make the perfect brew. It’s only a problem when these habits aren’t addressed, as they can begin to take a toll on your machine’s ability to operate and function over the long term.
For example, try to ensure that you’re never trying to use the machine without water, as this can draw air into the system and cause all kinds of issues. It’s always better for your machine to be a little overfilled than bone dry, so make sure to check that everything’s in order before you press your espresso button.
Tip 2: Make Sure You Understand Your Machine
Every coffee machine is different, which means that ideal coffee machine maintenance methods are inevitably going to be a little inconsistent between models. That’s why it’s important to read your manual and study up on your machine when you receive it, as this will give you the most specific information possible when it comes to setting up, cleaning, and using your particular model and brand.
Tip 3: Backflush Your Machine Daily
The mixture of packed coffee grinds and water may produce a delicious espresso, but it also leads to a lot of buildup in your grouphead. This is especially true in an office environment where your coffee machine is getting a lot of use on a day to day basis, meaning that grinds can build up in the machine very quickly.
To perform a backflush at the end of the day, run your grouphead while scrubbing any loose grinds out with your brush. Then, take your blind filter (the one with no holes for water to run through), add your coffee machine detergent, place it in the grouphead and run the machine as if making an espresso. The common practice is to run it for 10 seconds with the filter on, then ten seconds with the filter off. Do this 3-4 times, then leave the filter in for 5 minutes while cleaning your nozzles and other parts of the machine.
Once the water runs clear, you’ll know your machine is in tip-top condition. This may seem excessive, but if you’re passionate about clean, delicious coffee and a fully-functioning machine, it’s well worth the extra time.
Tip 4: In General, A Minor Service Should Be Completed Every Three Months
Setting up a quarterly service is a great way to avoid build-up whilst ensuring that issues can’t go unchecked for too long. Although the prospect of cleaning your machine every three months may elicit a groan from many of us, it’s really quite a simple process, and you’ll thank yourself in the long run. This is a good time to replace your shower screens and group gaskets, test your temp and flow rates, and make sure that your boiler water quality is high. More rigorous checks should be completed every 6-12 months, but these can be taken on by a professional.
~
At Corporate Coffee Solutions, we are dedicated to ensuring that every home and business has access to high-quality coffee options. So, if you’re on the market for a machine, but don’t always have the time to go through the coffee machine maintenance process, you can either hire a coffee machine, speak with our technical service team, or simply contact us today to find out what we can do for you.
