This article provides expert-approved steps on cleaning a Keurig coffee maker, including disassembling the machine and cleaning the interior of the frother and base. The drip tray should be emptied and cleaned occasionally, and the base should be lifted off level to avoid spilling. Rinse and clean with a damp, soapy, lint-free, non-stick cleaning brush.
To clean a Keurig, follow these step-by-step instructions:
Remove all removable parts, including the water reservoir, lid, mug tray, and K-cup holder, with dishwashing detergent and hot water. Allow the pieces to air dry to avoid lint in your cup.
Clean the pod holder by removing the water reservoir or water tank. For a more serious clean, use white vinegar or descaling solution to remove mineral deposits from the water reservoir.
Start the brew cycle using fresh water only. Wash the drip tray with dish soap and warm water.
Clean the reservoir by filling it with a mixture of half vinegar and half tap water. Turn on the machine and run it until the reservoir is empty. Rinse with water.
Wash all removable parts with dish soap in the sink, including the water reservoir, mug base, pod holder, and milk steamer, if your machine has one. Unplug the machine, remove the water reservoir, lid, drip tray, and K-cup holder, and set aside the filter. Wipe down the outside of the Keurig thoroughly with a mixture of white vinegar, water, and dish soap.
📹 How to Descale Your Keurig with Vinegar // Easy Step by Step Walkthrough for Any Model
Hey guys, in today’s video I’ll be walking you through the process to clean and descale your Keurig coffee machine with vinegar.
📹 What’s inside your Keurig? CBS4 found mold and bacteria
The Hoosier Microbiological Lab confirms it identified several molds and bacteria after CBS4 swabbed inside a single-service …
This is my second Keurig Coffee Brewer. youtube.com/post/UgkxBrV-RbF5Nk0Rlt9i15aao-YMzqzTG8Vf The first one lasted 6 years. It worked beautifully until the day it didn’t. It was hard to go back to the drip coffee for a couple of days while I waited on my Keurig to get here. There is a huge difference in the taste. Keurig makes a really good cup of coffee. This new one is a little different from my old one. I find putting the water filter in was easier than on the old one. Attaching the water reservoir was also a little different but once I figured it out, it too was easier. This new one has the auto off feature but is not programmable like the old one. Only three cup sizes instead of four. The odd thing for me was how much lighter in weight this one is compared to my old one. More plastic and much less metal in the construction of this one. The price is so much less than the original Keurig that I bought and the coffee tastes the same so all in all I am satisfied.
Thank you for the article! Appreciate the post… may I add the following: Calcium and scale are non-toxic, but left unattended, they can hinder your brewers performance. *To turn off the descale indicator light once you have completed descaling your brewer, press and hold down the 8oz & 10oz buttons together for 3 sec. – Keurig Help Page
If you always use filtered water ( like Brita filtered) in your Keurig you will not have to clean it very often at all. We have always used it in our machine for over ten years and it still performs wonderfully. Maybe, if I remember correctly, I have cleaned it twice in that period of time. Although if you use tap water you will have to do the vinegar as shown in this excellent article. Good work.
So I’ve had my Keurig for a while (it was a hand me down from my parents so I didnt get the user manual) so when this light kept coming on I just thought it was doing something funny on the inside and yadda yadda. But then I would get about an ounce of coffee in my cup. I was about to buy another Keurig and while shopping for a new one I saw this Keurig solution and it all made sense to me. DUH YOU HAVE TO CLEAN YOUR KEURIG. Total blonde moment for me. Came on this article and found I not only dont have to buy a new Keurig but i can also clean my Keurig with something i already have in my cupboard! Thank you so much! Lol Heres to filling up this twin moms coffee cup to the much needed FULL CUP! LOL
Good article thanks. It’s also a good idea to clean the bottom needle that pierces the coffee pod before you start. I use a thin metal cake tester to push out any possible blockages (grounds or scale) that could be clogged. They are VERY sharp, please be careful. P.S. since scale is actually white (calcium build from hard water) the brown water at the beginning of the process is the pod holder getting clean. That can be taken out and cleaned separately, but as I said, watch that needle, its sharp.
all good information. I have that same exact Keurig machine as well. In my experience, I have to run water through it 6 – 8 times after a vinegar cleaning. It takes a lot of cycles to get that vinegar taste out. The weird thing is I’ve had my Keurig machine for 7 years and ONLY used bottled water not faucet tap water and it still gets mineral deposits…
Thanks! Just cleaned mine today by taking everything apart and washing it. Then I thought about my son mentioning to me something about vinegar. So I decided to look up a article and found yours.. I did see some steps on another one about removing the filter before doing the vinegar method. Is that necessary?
The little coffee bits that come out in the beginning of the article with just water run through is from the pod holder not the machine itself. After every cup of coffee I make, I take the little black pod holder out and rinse it under water until it runs clear. That helps keep it clean and clear. You can actually pop the two pieces apart of the holder and clean inside with soap and water once in a while too.
When I cleaned my machine, I did the full vinegar process, I put hot water and dish soap in the reservoir and used a long-handled bottle brush and washed the container. Then I rinsed it well. Next, I opened the front of the machine where the pods go and cleaned it too. Carefully, as there are pins there that pierce the pods. Lastly, I rinsed out the vinegar taste out of the machine by sending water through as instructed in the article. This helps clear the pod area too.
Her process: – 2 cups white vinegar – 1 cup tap water (she says she prefers to use 1 cup tap water, but that you can use 2 cups if you choose to make it even) – She runs her keurig on highest cup setting until the “Add More Water” light turns on – If any vinegar/water is left behind in water reservoir when “Add More Water” light turns on, pour into sink – (She recommends letting Keurig sit for 20 minutes so that vinegar mix has time to sit inside storage where you cannot reach in order to work a little further) – After 20 minutes, fill water reservoir with tap water only and run Keurig on highest cup setting until “Add More Water” light turns on. Cleaning process done – Fill with water of your choice and you’re ready to use Keurig
I am well trained technical support og the Keurig Dr Pepper Coffee Maker Machine. If you use vinegar when you descale your Coffee Maker you will be encounter some issues of the Coffee Maker . So I would suggest that if you descale you Keurig CM just use Keurig descaling solutions not the vinegar one.🙂
FYI…. Idk why, but if you read or call the repair line for Keurig they will tell you vinegar will break the coffee maker. I think it’s the newer models not this style the slimmer styles. I used vinegar and the machine stopped working. So FYI I think the newer systems are not built to handle vinegar for some reason.
I knew that my Keurig wasn’t broken when it stopped working today so I’m like yep, time to go find the descale method because I haven’t descaled since I got this used coffee pot a couple years ago after mine fried and it’s worked all this time but I noticed the coffee level going down and then today it completely quit sucking water. So I first cleaned out the needle for the top puncture which definitely made the water start coming through but not to a full cup so one cup so far of the vinegar and water mixture going through, has already made it start to brew a full cup again but obviously I’m going to continue the process. I would have seriously cried if my hearing was completely broken. But now I know tips to make sure that doesn’t happen
Thank you very much for your explanation of descaling my Keurig coffee maker. I noticed the descaling light came on on mine and I didn’t have any Keurig descaling solution. I thought vinegar might do the trick. After I completed the process I looked you up on YouTube and found out that your solution was the same as mine. Thank you very much for your confirmation
I think vinegar is an okay homemade solution, but there are two downsides to it. One, it’s acidic strength is pretty weak and doesn’t do nearly as good a job as lemon/lime juice, or my favorite, food-grade citric acid. And two, scale is an absorbent material, so not only will vinegar remove less scale, but that vinegar odor and flavor will also embed itself into the scale that isn’t removed. So for my money, 3/4 TB citric acid powder (per descale use) is insanely cheap, way more effective than vinegar, and is nearly odorless.
I really appreciate your article it made it easy for me to finally do this with my Keurig 2.0, even though I just use purified water there’s always some coffee grinds that will back up into it. I noticed that you did not use the carbon filter in the canned water canister while you were doing the descaling. Did you put a new one in after you were done with the process?
When I’ve cleaned my machine I just put in straight vinegar, why dilute? Also way on the bottom of the water canister, mine had mold or fuzzy stuff and with vinegar and an old toothbrush I tried to scrub it but it was very cramped down there and didn’t come clean. Any advise for that? And yes, I cleaned my machine often
Actually this form of “cleans” is really an unrealistic Myth here why and please do your own research: Vinegar can damage the internal parts of the coffee machine, especially the seals and the rubber gaskets. In addition, it is very difficult to rinse, and its smell and taste will remain for a long time in the espresso machine.
Hey girl love the info but still having trouble with our model. I work with two other guys on a scallop boat and coffee is crucial to our ability to function. The captain drinks decaf but whatever we’d love to get this fixed. There is a red light on our model that says next to it descale. What to do next? Any info you have would be awesome. Thank you!
I don’t use tap water when making coffee . I only use distilled water . The tap water is full of calcifying minerals & fluoride, that will buildup on the inside of any coffee maker or kettle . I use pure & clean distilled water when making coffee or tea’s, not only does the distilled water keep the inner workings of my appliances crystal clean, it makes for a Great tasting hot beverage ✨ Much healthier for the human body as well . Having said that, a periodic flushing is always a good idea 👍
Thank you so much Colleen for clarifying this! I was all set to hit the button on Amazon, went to Walmart for a better price but enlarged the back of the package to look at the ingredient label. Citric Acid! I thought that was vitamin c! So I googled the best way to descale a coffee pot. Your article popped up descaling a Keurig with vinegar 2:1 vinegar: water. Vinegar does not cost $9! Now we’re talking!
Using purified water already eliminates a lot of minerals in water that already enhances Keurig life. You using tap water is biggest mistake in my opinion but i agree about using vinegar to descale. I add baking soda and citric acid in mine along with Vinegar for stronger effects but vinegar alone isn’t too bad either.
Thx. When I am doing process, I just put a quart size plastic round soup type container under it and do cycle till till container is full. Then I do the vinegar soak for about 30 minutes. Then continue process till clean.. then — you make a cup ‘o Joe, cross fingers, and Hope & pray it only needed the good descaling and it is not dying of old age. Haha,thx for good article.
Those little coffee bits that first come out in the beginning isn’t inside the machine. It’s in the area where the coffee pods go. It’s usually messy in there. I’m also taking out the charcoal filter before adding the vinegar. I can’t find my instructions but I thought in an older machine that we had, we had to add a lot more vinegar than 2 cups & we had to let it sit in the machine for a few hours. I only bought this machine for my husband cause I don’t drink coffee and keurig stopped selling the iced tea that I love sometime in 2020, which was just a few months before my husband passed away. I took this machine out if the box around May 2020. I’ve only used it about a dozen times in the last 2½-3 years but, I figured since the water has just been sitting in the machine, maybe it should be cleaned.
The cleaning article was logical, and seemingly a thorough cleaning method, however due to the lack of a k-cup in the unit the vinegar cleaning solution does not flow through the lower needle, and therefore does not clean the port in the lower needle. I attached a rubber tube to the lower needle and flushed it with vinegar. This did seem to work well. It may or may not make sense to leave a used k-cup in the unit to force the vinegar through the lower needle!?!
I have no descaling light and the water is no longer coming out to the cup. It makes all the sounds and the water is coming out hot like it should but being returned only back into the tank. Done this procedure at least 15 times trying to get whatever may be stuck but I’m not having any luck…..🤷🏼♂️
??? ??? There is a way to remove the top head that holds the pods, anyone know how that’s done? Many years ago when these machines first came out they had a lot of trouble with machines & eventually did a free replacement. Replace was done by sending in the pod head & they sent you a complete new machine. If I could remove this head I could give it a good cleaning to rid all the excess coffee grounds & years of sludge buildup.
I did this just the way you did on your article but now it only stays on the lighted area of the large where I had run The vinegar through so it is stuck on that I can’t use the small coffee amount or the medium just the large but it will not pump water through now it’s like something is plugged right now
Great article. I just bought a Keurig and my friend has a 2 year old one that needs descaling. I am sure she can follow your article and be successful. I descale my old drip maker with vinegar but it belches out vinegar fumes so I have to run my stove exhaust fan. Is this a problem with the Keurig . I like your comment about leaving the vinegar work for 15 minutes before running it out as I would not have thought of that.