How to clean your coffee maker for better, fresher coffee

• To clean your coffee maker, mix equal parts white vinegar and water and run the solution through a brewing cycle.
• Vinegar sanitizes the coffee maker and removes mineral residue that impacts performance and taste.
• In addition to deep cleaning, you should wash your coffee maker after every use.

If you haven't cleaned your coffee maker in a year, let alone since you bought it, your home coffee game isn't as strong as it can be.

Proper maintenance not only ensures your machine stays in tip-top shape, it also leads to better tasting coffee. When not cleaned regularly, coffee makers accumulate dirt, coffee oils, mineral residue, and even yeast and mold - all of which can get into your brew.

Luckily, cleaning a coffee maker isn't hard. Beyond daily cleaning, your coffee maker is most likely in need of descaling - the process of removing limescale and buildup with a simple vinegar solution.

You'll want to refer to your machine's instruction manual for any specific information, but the guide below applies to drip coffee makers from Mr. Coffee to Bunn, as well as single-serve brewing systems that use coffee pods.

What you need

• Cleaning cloth
• Dish soap
• Distilled white vinegar
• Water

How to clean a drip coffee maker

If you use your coffee maker every morning, daily cleaning is a must. After a daily brew, be sure to wipe down your coffee maker with a damp cloth to clean up coffee drips, throw out used filters immediately, and the wash pot and filter basket with soap.

For a deeper clean, it's recommended to descale your coffee maker monthly following these simple steps.

1. Empty the coffee maker. Make sure the water reservoir and coffee pot is empty, and there are no coffee grounds or filters in the basket.
2. Mix equal parts water and vinegar. Fill the reservoir with the mixture. For more thorough cleaning, you can increase the amount of vinegar, which sanitizes and removes unwanted buildup.
3. Flush the mixture through a brew cycle. Run the coffee maker like you would if you were making coffee. If your machine has a "brew-pause" feature, pause the cycle halfway through and let the solution soak. Otherwise, you can run the vinegar mixture through the brew cycle twice, if needed.
4. Finish with a few brew cycles of water. Follow the vinegar solution with two to three cycles of clean water, or until the smell of vinegar is gone. Once the water cycles are complete, let your coffee pot cool before cleaning it.
5. Wash the pot and any other removable parts. Hand-wash the pot, filter basket, and any other removable parts with warm soapy water and allow everything to dry.

Quick tip: To get rid of stains in the coffee pot, try a mixture of lemon, Kosher salt, crushed ice, and water.

"Squeeze lemon juice and drop the lemon rinds into the pot. Add the ice, salt, and water and then swirl clockwise and counterclockwise for 15 seconds each direction," says Jaclyn Houtman, owner of Merry Maids of Houston.

For severe stains, Houtman recommends leaving the lemon and salt mixture overnight.

If you're particular about your coffee and want a professional solution, there are safe store-bought options worth exploring, from the barista-approved Urnex descaling solution to brand-specific descalers like the one offered by Keurig.

How often should I clean my coffeemaker?

"If you have hard water in your area, you may want to follow these steps weekly. Otherwise, you can clean your coffee maker once a month," says Houtman.

Note: Hard water is defined as water with high mineral content like calcium and magnesium. To find water hardness in a specific area, you can check a hard water map. To test for hard water at home, check your faucet for buildup or do a soap test.

Wiping down your coffee maker daily, and never leaving coffee grounds and filters in the machine will go a long way in maintaining its cleanliness and avoid any major buildup.

Insider's takeaway

These simple cleaning steps can make the difference between a perfect cup of a coffee and an overly bitter one. With a monthly cleaning routine, along with daily maintenance, your coffeemaker will keep brewing fresh cups for years to come.