A home espresso coffee machine is quite an investment for many of us as we aim to enjoy a freshly extracted, cafe style coffee at home. So how do we keep it in tip top working condition in order to enjoy the quality at-home coffee for years to come?

We’ve prepared some tips that we recommend for looking after your domestic espresso machine. Read on to find out more!

DAILY MAINTENANCE

• Wash hopper with hot soapy water, rinse and dry – NEVER put in the dish washer.
• Use a paint brush to brush out any build-up of coffee from the neck of the grinder.
• Back-flush the machine using a small amount of espresso machine cleaning chemical, roughly the size of your pinky nail. We stock Cafetto Eco cleaning products for home machines. See the range here.
• Remove filter baskets from group handles, making sure to wash under the rim.
• Scrub group handles so they appear shiny – that’s right… they shouldn’t be black inside!

WEEKLY MAINTENANCE

• Remove shower screens from each of the groups using a flat head screw driver. Wash screen and wipe head with a clean cloth, remembering to keep the screw in a safe spot; once cleaned return shower screen.
• Soak group handles and baskets overnight. Only fill up water level to just below black handle, as the chemicals can discolour the handle.
• You can remove the tip of your steam wand and place this in a cup of hot water to unclog any milk build up.

ADDITIONAL TIPS…

COFFEE DOS

• Keep a stop watch and shot glass by the machine. Use these to calibrate your shots throughout the day. Remember 30ml in 30secs is the aim.
• Purge your steam wands before and after each jug of milk. This prevents milk from travelling up the steam wand where it will contaminate the water in the boiler.
• Colour code your cloths to decrease cross-contamination, use a different colour for the steam wand than for benches.
• Coffee needs to be stored away from: light, moisture, oxygen.
• Store coffee in an airtight container under the bench, in a cupboard or pantry, not in the fridge. Also, don’t leave it sitting in the hopper. This minimises the amount of time the blades come into contact with the coffee oils.

COFFEE DON’TS

• Never soak your steam wands. This can cause water to travel into your boiler. For built up milk on your steam wand, wrap a cloth around it and turn on for a minute. The heat and steam will loosen any build up. For best results, wipe your steam wand after each jug of milk and then you won’t need to soak it.
• Never try to clean the blades on your grinder. Best to leave this for the experts; call your coffee representative who will organise for a technician to come out.