Note: This entry has been published as a top-level article (November 6, 2005).

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Espresso Machine Scheduled Maintenance = You Can Never Be TOO Clean
By Nick Griffith

Whether you own a Kees Van Der Westin Mirage, or Rancilio Silvia, you need to have a good cleaning regiment. I know what you're thinking, "But I wash the portafilters once a week, whether it needs it or not." Well... not good enough! If you're a home user or pro-barista the following recommendations apply. I'm going to give you a schedule for cleaning your machine on a yearly, monthly, weekly, daily and even hourly basis.

Hourly
Hourly? Yes! Hourly! You probably never thought about doing anything to clean your machine every hour, but did you know, coffee oils go rancid after 45 minutes? So, every shot you pull, hot espresso is rolling over those nasty oils and particles, picking up that bitter flavor and putting it right in your cup! This applies if you pull 1,000 shots an hour, or 1 double every hour. Get that oil out of there!

- Every hour you should scrub the inside of the portafilter and the portafilter basket. I like using a Scotch-Brite pad myself, but any tool that will get the job done is fine. And since you've got the portafilter off, clean the shower screen and gasket with a groupbrush.



Daily
- Backflush, with some type of coffee detergent (Cafiza or JoeGlo both work well). This will breakdown the coffee oils and residue inside the grouphead, ensuring a clean surface. (Note: When using a coffee detergent, always follow the accompanying directions).
- Soak your portafilters and baskets, for at least one hour, in a solution of coffee detergent and hot water and then scrub, scrub, scrub.
- If you have a grouphead with a screw holding the shower screen in place, take it off, along with the brass dispersion plate and soak and scrub those as well.
- You should be purging your steam wand after every use, this will prevent milk from being sucked back into the boiler. At the end of the day submerge the wand in hot water and detergent, letting it soak for 15-20 minutes. Wipe and purge after soaking. If needed, use a paper clip to dislodge any crusty milk from the steam tip holes.

Weekly
- Drain the boiler to about 1/3 full and then refill. This will prevent water from going stale inside the tank and guarantee fresh water is being used for your extractions.
- Soak your portafilters and baskets in a solution of coffee detergent and hot water overnight.
- Remove your steam wand and soak it in a detergent bath as well. Use a long stiff bristle brush to run inside the steam wand to remove any leftover milk from the week.

Monthly
- If you are using an inline water filtration system, the kind that use cartridges, check to make sure they still work. Some cartridges are not designed for high volume output and will start adding undesirables to your water supply instead of taking them out. This will not only give your espresso a chemical flavor, but can also add calcium deposits to your machine.

Yearly
- Descale your espresso machine once a year. No matter how good your water filtration may be, you're still getting calcium in your boiler tank. While small amounts of calcium won't alter the flavor of your espresso too much, over time that small amount will grow into a large amount causing a very bitter flavor in your cup and eventually causing damage to your machine.

Keep It Clean
Remember, it doesn't matter if you have a $15,000 machine or a $100 eBay find. If you take all the right precautions you can enjoy your machine for many years to come. But, keep in mind, with a machine so clean, you'll have nothing left to blame but yourself for foul tasting espresso.