Coffee Maker with Glass or Stainless Carafe - Cleaning and Maintenance

Maintaining Your Coffee Maker

We recommend regularly cleaning your GE Drip Coffee Maker. A clean Coffee Maker is essential for making great tasting coffee and keeps your Coffee Maker operating efficiently. Doing the following cleaning regularly will help you enjoy every cup of coffee you brew, every day.

 

Cleaning the Exterior and Removable Parts

The exterior cleaning of your Coffee Maker is recommended after each use.

 

  1. Always unplug the Coffee Maker before cleaning.

  2. Clean all detachable parts, like the filter, funnel, and carafe, after each use in hot, sudsy water. Do not clean the carafe with harsh cleansers, steel wool pads, or other abrasive materials. Note: The carafe lid is not meant to be disassembled, doing so can break the lid and keep it from functioning correctly. We recommend to clean the inside with pipe-cleaners, or some other small/soft brush that enters the internal tubing.

  3. Dry thoroughly before putting them back in place.

  4. Wipe the exterior surfaces with a soft, damp cloth to remove stains.

  5. Water droplets may build up in the upper area of the funnel and drip onto the product base during brewing. To control the dripping, wipe off the area with a clean, dry cloth after each use.

Removing Mineral Deposits

This is recommended periodically as needed (according to the water quality in your area and how frequently the Coffee Maker is used). The process for removing mineral deposits from the Coffee Maker is called descaling.

 

Here are the steps for descaling earlier GE Drip Coffee Makers (models G7CDAASSPSS and G7CDABSSPSS):

 

  1. Fill the tank with a solution of water and a descaler.

  2. Place the serving cup under the brew basket.

  3. Make sure the funnel is assembled and in place.

  4. Switch on the Coffee Maker and allow it to “brew” the descaling solution once.

  5. After "brewing" the solution, switch off the Coffee Maker.

  6. Let the solution sit in the carafe for 15 minutes, discard, and repeat steps 3-5 again.

  7. Switch on the Coffee Maker and run off the solution until the water tank is completely empty.

  8. Rinse by operating the Coffee Maker with water at least 3 times.

Here are the steps for descaling newer GE Drip Coffee Makers (models G7CDAASSTSS and G7CDABSSTSS):

 
  1. To ensure quality performance and great tasting coffee, descale your Coffee Maker often. This Coffee Maker is designed to alert you to descale every 80 brew cycles. When it's time to descale, a Descale icon will light on the control display.
  2. To begin descaling, press and hold the 1-4 Cups button for 2 seconds to enter Descale mode. Descaling can be completed any time, even when the machine does not prompt you to do so.
  3. Fill the tank with water and descaler to the maximum level as indicated on the water gauge (the ratio of water and descaler is 4:1, refer to the instructions on the descaler. Please use "household descaler". You may also use citric acid (vinegar) instead of descaler. If using citric acid, the ratio of water to citric acid is 100 parts water to 3 parts citric acid.
  4. Place the carafe under the brew basket.
  5. Press the Brew/Cancel button to begin the descaling cycle.
  6. In the Descale mode, the heater will operate until the water reservoir is empty.
  7. When the Descale cycle is finished, turn off the appliance.
  8. Refill the tank with plain water.
  9. Turn on the appliance and run the brew cycle until the water tank is completely empty.
  10. Rinse by running the brew cycle with plain water at least 3 times.
  11. PLEASE NOTE: The Descale cycle will run until all the water from the reservoir has been used. If the Brew/Cancel button is pushed in the middle of a Descale cycle, the machine will exit Descale mode, but the Descale indicator on the control display will remain lit until a full Descale cycle is completed.
  12. When the Descale cycle finishes, the Descale icon will turn off, and the machine will exit Descale mode.

Tips for Great Tasting Coffee

  • Always use fresh, cold water in the Coffee Maker.

  • Store unused coffee in a cool, dry place.

  • For an optimum coffee taste, buy whole coffee beans and finely grind them just before brewing.

  • Do not reuse coffee grounds since this will greatly reduce the coffee’s flavor.

  • Reheating coffee changes its taste. Coffee is at its peak flavor immediately after brewing.

  • Small oil droplets on the surface of brewed, black coffee are due to the extraction of oil from the coffee grounds. Oiliness may occur more frequently if heavily roasted coffees are used. Clean the Coffee Maker if oily residue starts to occur.

Coffee Maker Questions

The Owner's Manual for the Drip Coffee Maker model you own has the answers to all the questions about using your Coffee Maker. May you enjoy using your Coffee Maker for years to come!