How to Descale an Espresso Machine - A Comprehensive Guide

Perfect coffee beans and a great grind – both contribute to making the ideal shot of espresso – but learning how to clean a coffee machine can assist in preventing minerals and oils from building up and altering the flavour of your beverage. Regularly cleaning an espresso machine and understanding how to descale your espresso machine can make a huge difference.

Why is it vital to descale your espresso machine?

There are several factors that can hinder the quality of your brew, including not maintaining a regular cleaning routine. Here are some of the main reasons why it’s so important to descale your espresso machine. Are you looking for coffee machines Brisbane?

The espresso machine could break down

The lime scale in your espresso machine can build up so much that it causes obstructions in the flow of water inside the espresso machine. If the scale is obstructing your machine’s pipes, the amount of water flowing to the espresso hand and steam wand becomes limited.

When it occurs, it’ll become almost impossible for you to heat milk efficiently. If the pipes become fully obstructed, the machine will be not able to produce any milk or steam.

Overfilling and overflowing of the boiler can also happen when the espresso machine struggles to detect the right levels of water. See our Commercial coffee machines Sydney

The taste will be compromised

A low brewing temperature produces a low extraction yield and extreme brewing temperatures produce a high extraction yield.

The higher the temperature, the higher the percentage of coffee that’s extracted into your cup of coffee, as the temperature of the water reduces, resulting from the built-up lime scale, the extraction becomes acidic.

This means you’ll be producing espressos that are below the quality expected from an espresso machine. Using filtered water can make a whole difference when it comes to minimising lime scale build-up. See our range of Coffee Machines

How to descale a heat exchange espresso machine?

If your coffee is based in a hard water area and you are using your espresso machine up to six times each day then we suggest descaling your espresso every 3 weeks or monthly to avoid limescale build-up.

If however, you’re based in a soft-water area then it’s recommended to Descale it every 3 – 4 months. Some espresso machines have their automatic descaling cycles where they pulse water at regular intervals, using a complete reservoir of water and taking up to 20 minutes to complete.

If you don’t have an automatic descaler option then you’ll need to do it manually. Here’s a step-by-step guide for descaling your espresso machine.

Turn your espresso machine on and let it heat up to its operational pressure. Once the coffee machine is ready for the process, turn it off again and open the warm water valve.
Discharge water from the warm exchanger by operating the brew lever. Once the water has been discharged, close the warm water valve.
Prepare a descaling solution according to the instructions provided by the manufacturer. If you’re using a powder-type solution, mix it until it has fully dissolved.
Pour the solution into the espresso machine’s water tank and switch it back on. You’ll hear the pump turning on and filling the boiler with the solution.
Place the portafilters with the blind filter into the brew group and lock them in one place. Operate the brew group level 3 times. Move the lever to the lowest spot after each operation to descale the expansion valve.
Let your descaling solution react in the boiler for no longer than twenty minutes.
Operate the brew group lever once 20 minutes are up to release any remaining solution from the espresso machine.
Switch off the espresso machine and remove the nozzle from the warm water dispenser.
Open the warm water valve and remove the water tank. Rinse the tank with warm water. Put the tank back to switch the machine on once again. Let the machine refill the boiler with clean water.
Once the boiler has refilled itself, control the brew group lever once for 1 minute to rinse the heat exchanger.
Repeat the previous step more than five times to completely rinse the boiler.
Turn the espresso machine off and operate the warm water valve to drain the boiler. Refill the tank and turn the machine back on. Let it reach its operating pressure then turn it on. Open the warm water valve and drain the espresso machine.
Repeat the previous steps 4-5 times for the boiler.

How to descale a super-automatic espresso machine?

If your espresso machine has an automatic descaling cycle then you can refer to the manual for proper instructions on how to descale the espresso machine. This is a step-by-step instruction for espresso machines without an automatic descaling cycle. Using an Eversys machine? Clean your machine with Eversys Cleaning Balls.

Dissolve your chosen descaling solution into a full reservoir and boiler by running a cup of water out of your steam wand. Afterwards, ensure you close the steam wand.
Turn the espresso machine off and let it sit for twenty minutes to let the descaling agent work.
After twenty minutes run about half of the reservoir out of the steam wand.
Turn off the espresso machine and let it rest for another twenty minutes.
Flush the remaining water out of the steam wand and conclude by running a reservoir of fresh water through the espresso machine.

Why Eversys Though?

Consistent Coffee Quality

The Extraction Time Control (ETC) is a software-based Quality Control System that gives the customer the ability to manage and control brand standards, through its intelligent algorithm, ensuring the highest Quality, Consistency and Reliability of each product. With multiple sites and regular turnover in staff, the consistency of the product can vary greatly. The ETC provides you with the ability to not only monitor but also to control and influence all of your key parameters remotely, providing a familiar customer experience.

In-Cup quality

Type in the dose of coffee you need, how much water to pass through, and a desired brewing time, hit calibrate, and the equipment will adjust the grinder to achieve this target. Also, the machine guides your operator on his daily routine by forcing recalibration every morning with the push of a single button. The self-calibration will tailor your coffee products to fit the bespoke nature of your business and ensure consistency of your in-cup quality time and again.

Technology

Eversys equipment is built in modules, ensuring rapid access for technical intervention with minimal downtime and reduced maintenance costs.

Eversys machines are equipped with two grinders allowing for two parallel recipes to be set up at a time, and you can even choose to dose some powder from each grinder and produce it through a singular extraction. The ventilation, which is set below the bean hoppers, drives out unwanted heat and moisture. Electronic control maintains consistency of product throughout the day.

The brewing chamber holds up to a significant 24 g of coffee, allowing for a wide range of brewing recipes. The Reverse extraction brewing system optimises powder efficiency as the espresso is produced.

The steam / water unit provides temperature consistency and unsurpassed productivity.

Milk is frothed with steam – like a traditional barista – through a set of reactors, ensuring optimal texture and taste.

The hydraulic module is dedicated to the sole production of coffee, 1.6 litres of water guarantee unfettered productivity.

E'levelling System

Automatic levelling is the ability to initiate a movement to the brew chamber, creates a vibration which enables the powder in the chamber to spread more evenly, which leads to a better, more consistent extraction. This movement is a replica of what the barista does- taps the portafilter, after grinding up fresh beans in order to render the powder more compact.

1.5-Step Programme

The Eversys 1.5 Step is a new milk option that allows you to create perfect milk-based products without having much training. The system automatically dispenses the frothed milk through the wand at the same time as the espresso is being poured into the cup. With the help of a perfectly textured milk, staff are then able to create latte art designs. Due to its proficient technology, the machine dispenses the correct quantity of milk each time, reducing wastage.

The Eversys e'API

Our API can synchronise automatically, read your ERP system and provide you with real time synchronised data. Furthermore, it can provide vendors access to P2P encryption used for mobile payments.

More Features...

1. Grinding

Eversys designed ceramic blades driven by a powerful yet quiet motor, whose heat is cleverly channelled away from the coffee beans, to maintain their quality, via a set of fans. Electronic control maintains consistency of product throughout the day, ensuring optimal extraction at all times.

2. e'Levelling & Tamping

Automatic Levelling is the ability to initiate a movement to the brewing chamber, create a vibration which enable the powder in the chamber to spread more evenly, which leads to a better, more consistent extraction. The 24 -gram brewing chamber to facilitate single cycle large beverages is controlled by electronic tamping to guarantee consistent quality.

3. Temperature control

Dedicated coffee boilers, separate from the water/ steam boiler, provide productivity and temperature stability, essential parts of in-cup quality.

4. Brewing

Reverse gravity extraction vertical infusion optimises powder efficiency as the espresso is produced.

5. Milk Frothing

Milk is frothed with steam in the one-step system, promoting flavour as well as texture, mirroring the barista experience.

6. Creating

All products are pre-programmed to be dispensed in a consistent and efficient manner, placing seamless productivity and quality at the forefront of the customer experience.