YES! Use Soap To Clean Your Coffee Maker | Syzygy Coffee

As coffee lovers, we all aim for that perfect cup every time. A big part of achieving that is keeping your coffee maker clean. While hot water is usually enough for daily cleaning, there’s a common issue that comes with frequent brewing—coffee oil buildup. This is especially true if you love darker roasts, which are packed with oils that can linger and accumulate in your coffee maker over time.

The Coffee Oil Problem

Coffee beans naturally release oils, and darker roasts tend to have even more of them. These oils are essential for delivering the rich, full-bodied flavors that coffee drinkers crave. However, after repeated use, these oils can start building up in your coffee maker. When left unchecked, this buildup can negatively impact the flavor of your coffee, often resulting in a bitter or burnt taste.

Hot water alone, while great for rinsing, doesn’t always get rid of all the oils. Over time, the residue can create a film that affects the quality of your brews. That’s why it’s important to occasionally give your coffee maker a deeper clean with a cloth, for example.

Why Soap is Actually a Good Option

Traditionally, many people recommend avoiding soap when cleaning coffee makers, concerned it might interfere with the flavor of future brews. And yes, this is true! However, we’ve found that using a bit of no-odor soap can be beneficial, especially if you don’t have time to do a deep, natural clean. Soap effectively breaks down those stubborn oils that hot water leaves behind, giving your coffee maker a fresh start.

It’s important to note, though, that when using soap, you should rinse your coffee maker thoroughly with lots of warm water to make sure no soap residue remains. If you can run a couple of cycles without any coffee and allow the water to boil and flow while on the stove-top, even better! This ensures that your next brew is free from any unwanted flavors. While soap can be used, it’s essential to do so sparingly and mindfully to avoid affecting the taste of your coffee or potentially damaging your coffee maker. We do it quite often on our Bialetti Brikka, for example.

The Ideal Solution: De-scalers

For a perfect clean, using a de-scaler to remove mineral deposits and buildup is the gold standard. De-scalers are designed specifically to clean coffee makers, but let’s be real—not every household has one, and most people aren’t going to make the effort to buy one. That’s why soap becomes a convenient alternative for busy days when you can’t spend the time scrubbing with natural remedies like vinegar or baking soda.

Finding Balance in Your Cleaning Routine

At the end of the day, how you clean your coffee maker is all about finding the right balance. If you have time, using natural methods like vinegar to de-scale and thoroughly wash your maker is great. But if you’re pressed for time, a small amount of no-odor soap can do the trick, as long as you rinse carefully.

By incorporating an occasional soap wash into your routine, you can prevent oil buildup, avoid that dreaded bitter aftertaste, and keep your coffee maker in top shape for every brew. Just remember, the cleaner your equipment, the better your coffee will taste—so don’t be afraid to give it the care it deserves.