Sipping a bad-tasting cup of coffee is a terrible way to start the day. Mineral deposits, old coffee grounds, and germs can linger inside a coffee maker of any brand. Cleaning a Hamilton Beach BrewStation regularly clears out all of that debris so all you taste is freshly brewed coffee. BrewStation machines, like many other popular coffee makers, don't have a carafe to clean, but some models do have a removable water reservoir. No matter which model you have, all you need to clean your coffee maker are vinegar and dish soap.
Tip
Cleaning a Hamilton Beach coffee maker should be a monthly task per manufacturer instructions or once a week if you live in a place with hard water. Make a habit of cleaning your machine on the first day of the month or set a monthly calendar reminder.
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Cleaning Inside the Coffee Maker
You'll find commercial coffee maker cleaners available for sale, but all you really need to clean and descale a coffee maker is white vinegar. It's acidic enough to remove mineral deposits from inside your machine's water tubes and shouldn't leave any discernible taste behind that affects the flavor of your coffee. It's also safer than, say, using bleach to clean a coffee maker, and most people already have a bottle of distilled white vinegar in their home. Hamilton Beach actually recommends using vinegar for cleaning its BrewStation coffee maker. However, if the strong odor of vinegar bothers you, use a commercial coffee maker descaler to achieve the same results.
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- Remove the water filter from inside the water reservoir if you've been using one. Installing a water filter is optional but yields better-tasting coffee.
- Empty any water from the reservoir and make sure there are no coffee grounds in the filter basket.
- Fill the reservoir with 2 cups of vinegar or coffee maker descaler.
- Turn the BrewStation on to brew. After 20 seconds, press stop. Wait 30 minutes to let the vinegar or descaler dissolve anything that has built up inside the machine. Then, turn on the machine again to let it finish "brewing" all the vinegar or descaler.
- Refill the reservoir with water and run the machine through the brewing cycle several times until the reservoir is empty. Repeat with at least one more full tank of water to flush out the BrewStation.
Cleaning Removable Parts
A BrewStation has a removable coffee tank that can be washed by hand with dish soap and water. Don't put this piece in your dishwasher. However, a BrewStation's removable filter basket and drip plate are dishwasher-safe. Put them on the top rack only and don't use your dishwasher's sanitizing option, which creates dangerously high temperatures for these plastic components.
If your Hamilton Beach BrewStation tank is removable, wash it by hand with dish soap and warm water. It may be safe to wash your water reservoir in the dishwasher but only if it fits on the top rack, and the BrewStation's removable reservoir is too large to fit on the top rack of a typical dishwasher.
Cleaning the Outside of the Machine
The outside of any coffee maker can get just as grimy as the inside but don't spray down your BrewStation with any harsh cleaning products. Instead, spray a multipurpose cleaner onto paper towels or a microfiber cloth and use that to wipe down the machine, focusing on all the areas that get touched frequently. Use a new, wet toothbrush to clean coffee grounds and other debris from any crevices and then wipe down the entire BrewStation with a damp cloth.