 |
Keurig Descaling
It’s easy to take your Keurig for granted when it serves up such great coffee everyday, but that can lead to serious problems. You see, as time goes by mineral deposits from the water we use build up and coat the inner mechanisms of our favorite coffeemaker. If neglected, this build up can seriously affect the life of your Keurig.
But regularly scheduled descaling will not only help your coffeemaker work better, it will make your coffee taste better too. As the scale builds up inside your Keurig, it sticks to the heating element and makes it less effective at heating your coffee. This means that during the brewing process the flavor of the coffee will not be extracted fully and your coffee just won’t taste as good.
Plan to descale your coffee maker on a regular basis. In most cases, if you live in an area where water is known to be hard and you use your Keurig daily or more often, then you should set a date once a month to de-scale your Keurig. If the water in your area is “softer” or you use softened water, then you can schedule de-scaling for once every 2 or 3 months. (See “hardness” map under the “What is Scale” article to determine hardness in your area if you live in the U.S.)
There are two ways to de-scale your Keurig which are approved by Keurig themselves: white vinegar and Keurig Descaling Solution which can be purchased on their website.
To descale your Keurig with vinegar, be sure to use only distilled vinegar to avoid leaving unwanted residues in your coffee maker. Basically, you are going to run a complete reservoir of vinegar thru your Keurig. Do not use a paper cup – be sure to use a ceramic mug.
Depending upon the model you own, you will need between 20 to 48 ounces of distilled vinegar.
Lift the brewer handle for five seconds, but do not add a K-cup.
Lower the lid and let the brew cycle run.
Empty the cup and repeat until the entire reservoir of vinegar until the add water light turns on.
Let your Keurig sit 30 minutes on the smaller model and four hours on the larger one.
Discard vinegar after it has gone thru your Keurig.
Rinse your water reservoir with clean water and run a cycle of plain water thru discarding it as you go.
If you own the model that tells you when it needs to be de-scaled, repeat cycle until the light is no longer on. The process is essentially the same if you use the Keurig Descaling Solution. For more detailed instructions on de-scaling and general cleaning of your Keurig go here