Cleaning With Dishwasher Detergent

My mother in law was ready to toss out their coffee pot and buy a new one due to the accumulation of normal oily buildup that had been resistant to regular vinegar cleaning, as well as a weird blue green build up in the tank (presumably chlorine). I took everything on the coffee maker apart that could be taken apart, put all the loose pieces in the dishwasher, and put the dishwashing detergent into the tank with very hot water and swished. After a few minutes of swishing and judicious scrubbing with an old toothbrush, the tank was clean. It did take quite a bit of squirting with the hose from the sink, holding the coffee maker upside down to get the last of the detergent out of the hole for water at the bottom, but I was ultimately able to get it entirely clean, then run everything through a regular vinegar cycle and several pots of clean water.

The last thing I tackled was the filter basket. It's one of those permanent ones and had years of build up that the vinegar never removed. I placed a couple of tablespoons of dishwashing detergent in a small pot, submersed the basket and boiled it for about ten minutes. Good as new! My in laws said their coffee after this thorough cleaning was as good as they'd had in years.

By Kathleen from Mississippi