How to clean the grinder

Doing the dishes, cleaning the shower, washing the kitchen - it's a part of life. Skipping cleaning tends to make things much worse, even if it's tempting, and this is also the case with coffee grinders. Regular cleaning will improve a grinder's performance and increase its lifespan. Fortunately, it's quite simple!

Basic Cleaning

Basically, any surface that comes into contact with coffee will need occasional cleaning. Coffee contains oil, some of which remains on everything it comes into contact with - in a grinder, that's the burrs themselves, the grinding chamber, and the dispensing chute. Whole beans in the hopper will also leave oil residue. Generally speaking - the darker the roast, the more oil you can expect.

Cleaning these surfaces will improve the taste of your brews because you're removing old coffee oils that would otherwise sneak into your dose. It's also good for the longevity of your parts, as oil and particle buildup will make it harder for your machine to push ground coffee out and can put increased strain on the adjustment mechanism.

The easiest way to clean these surfaces is to use the small brush that came with your Baratza grinder. Brushing the surface of the burrs, between the teeth, and along the inside of the grinding chamber will remove most of the residual coffee material and helps to remove oils. The brush also fits most of the way up into the ground coffee chute, and has a handle long enough to allow for easy cleaning of that passage.

This is our recommended cleaning method, but there are alternatives for those who prefer a more thorough approach. Cleaning pellets, made from compressed corn or grain, are widely available and can be ground through a machine just like coffee beans. These cleaning agents will scrub all surfaces in the machine that come into contact with coffee (they are ground like coffee) and absorb residual coffee material and oil. They are a great and thorough way to clean, especially if you don't want to disassemble the grinder for cleaning. We recommend Grinder Clean from Cafetto.

Remember that these pellets are made to mimic the structure of coffee beans, which is why they are safe to grind. Running regular rice or other non-coffee material through your grinder will cause significant damage, and you risk damaging the grinder so that it no longer functions properly!

DIFFERENT NEEDS

We have previously talked about the differences between light roast and dark roast coffee. One of the biggest differences is the need for grinder cleaning.

Darker coffee tends to have much more surface oil, which means a grinder will get dirtier faster than it would if you were grinding light roast coffee. This is not a problem for the grinder, as long as you are diligent with cleaning. Generally, we recommend a good cleaning every two months. The darker the coffee, the more often you should clean.

In some cases, it may be best to clean more often than this. Grinding particularly dark coffee may require weekly cleaning to keep the grinding speed up, otherwise, it might clog completely.

For darker roasted coffee, our recommendation to use cleaning agents is even stronger, as they do such a good job of scrubbing oils from the entire system. And it's a faster and simpler procedure to carry out.

EXTREME CASES

Sometimes it's a good idea to do a deep clean. For example, if your grinder has ground flavored coffee and you want the flavor to be removed. Or perhaps if the grinder is not going to be used for a longer period, it's wise to give it a very thorough cleaning.

A deep cleaning starts like a regular one: scrubbing out coffee particles and oil from the grinder. Your burrs will absorb some coffee oil after use. This is actually a good thing, as it protects the steel from rusting. A light scrub is all they need.

The next step is to clean the internal surface of the grinder housing and the dispensing chute. Cotton swabs are a great tool for this. Just dampen them slightly with a food-safe cleaning agent and scrub clean. Discoloration from use will not disappear, so it won't be completely like new.

Of course, the grinder will still smell like coffee to some extent, but the smell will become fainter when the machine is thoroughly cleaned. If you're trying to remove the scent of flavored coffee, just keep cleaning until the unwanted smell is gone.

Always remember to clean the bean hopper on top and the ground coffee container as well. These parts are in contact with coffee for a long time and will also need cleaning. Fortunately, they are easy to clean with a cloth or even hot soapy water if the oil from the coffee is dry and hard to wipe off.

Cleaning might feel like work, but it will make a big difference for your grinder. The coffee tastes better and the grinder lasts longer when you take good care of it.

And remember: Always unplug before maintaining your grinder!

By Alexander Choppin, adapted for Norwegian by Rune Åldstedt