Easy Solution for Bad Flavors from a New Coffee Maker

Does the Coffee From Your New Machine Taste "Off"? Here’s What to Do!

Getting a new coffee pot or single-serve coffee maker can be exciting! That is until you brew a cup of coffee, and it comes out with a strange, chemical, or burned plastic taste. You definitely don’t want to be drinking in any of the chemicals used in the manufacturing or assembly of a coffee maker!   

Not to worry, the “strange-tasting coffee from a new pot” issue is fairly common. The problem can easily be resolved by cycling it a few times and cleaning out your new machine before brewing coffee. 

Here, we will explain how to clean out any brand-new coffee maker to prevent unpleasant aftertastes in your Joe. 

At OneGreatCoffee, we don’t want anyone sipping on anything but the best!

Get Select Flavored and Gourmet Single-Serve Coffee Pods Here! Or, Shop for Pure Arabica Coffee Beans from OneGreatCoffee.Com!

How to Remove Weird Taste from a New Coffee Machine or Keurig?

To remove any funny tastes that are coming from your new coffee machine, clean it by hand, and then cycle it through with a mixture of white vinegar and water at least one time.

Then, to remove any vinegar particles, cycle it through again with fresh, clean water. Usually, this does the trick. However, if you are still detecting a strange aftertaste in your coffee, rinse and repeat this process as many times as needed. 

How to clean a new coffee machine correctly? 

• Always follow the instructions included with any coffee machine you purchase. Most manufacturers recommend cycling a new coffee maker with clean water to remove chemical residues before brewing your first pot of coffee or cup of single serve.
• You should also thoroughly wash the reservoir tank and any other removable components of your machine with hot, soapy water, before brewing your first pot of coffee. 
• If any plastic or chemical-like tastes are still lingering in your coffee pot, you can cycle your machine with a mixture of one part vinegar to four parts water. After this, rinse everything again, and cycle the machine one more time with fresh water. 

Why does the coffee from my new coffee maker taste weird?

If the coffee coming from your new coffee machine tastes weird, it may be due to lingering plastic residues or other chemicals used in the manufacturing process. You’ve just got to clean these remnants off before brewing coffee. 

The easiest solution for coffee that tastes “off” from a new coffee pot is white vinegar. Simply cycle the machine with vinegar water. Do this by mixing about 2 cups of white vinegar with 6 cups of plain water in the reservoir. The vinegar water will cleanse the water lines and interior mechanical components without damaging your new machine. 

How to clean a Keurig or single-serve coffee machine with vinegar?

1. To remove any strange tastes from a new Keurig, add about 2 cups of white vinegar to your single-serve coffee maker’s reservoir (the tank on the back) and then fill it the rest of the way up with water. 
2. Press start and allow the machine to cycle the water through. You may have to brew several cups of vinegar water to cycle the entire tank. As the tank empties, keep adding water. 
3. For single-serve coffeemakers like a Keurig, you’ll likely need to cycle vinegar water through a few times.

* I JUST had this issue happen to me at home. Very frustrating! I had to cycle my new Keurig about 8 times to remove the lingering taste of plastics from my coffee. However, I have pretty sensitive tastes and am picky about my coffee. In the end, cycling it with vinegar did clear out the bad taste. Now it’s working just fine and my coffee is great!

How to clean a new coffee pot with vinegar? 

Vinegar does a great job of removing residue and chemical remnants safely from plastic and glass. To clean any lingering chemicals out of your new coffee pot, first, clean the entire machine and its removable components thoroughly with hot soapy water. Then, you can cycle your coffee machine with a combo of vinegar and water to clean out its interior elements and water lines.

Tips for using vinegar to clean a new coffee pot: 

Cleaning a new coffee pot with vinegar is easy. You will simply add a cup or two of white vinegar to the water tank and then hit the “start” button. After a pot of “vinegar water” has been brewed, you can cycle your machine one more time with plain water. This helps to prevent vinegar from getting into any future pots of coffee. 

This method should clear any funky plastic or chemical tastes from your new coffee machine. However, if it doesn’t work the first time through, just start the process over and repeat. Keep cycling clean water through your machine until you achieve your desired results. 

Why should you clean a new coffee maker before using it?

In a factory setting, cleaners, chemicals, and coated plastics can all be part of the assembly process for coffee machines. You definitely don’t want these sorts of chemical remnants getting into your coffee. Not only can they be bad for you, but they can ruin the taste of great coffee. 

Chances are, the instructions that came with your coffee pot recommend cycling it through a few times to remove any excess chemicals or plastics anyway. These instructions may even have recommended washing all of the removable parts of your coffee machine before its first use.  

How to cycle a coffee machine with vinegar water?

In your coffee pot reservoir, add 2 cups of white vinegar and fill the rest of the tank with plain water. Then, press start and allow the vinegar water to run through the water lines and interior pieces of your coffee machine. After the entire tank of vinegar water has been cycled through, clean everything once more. Then, cycle your coffee pot with plain fresh water one last time. This usually does the trick and removes any strange lingering tastes from the manufacturing process.  

The coffee from my new Keurig has a funny taste, why?

If a coffee from a brand new Keurig or single-serve coffee maker has a strange lingering aftertaste (similar to plastic, bleach, chlorine, or other chemical nuances) you likely need to clean the interior of your new machine out.

The instructions that came with your new machine probably mentioned cleaning out its components before using it to brew coffee. The easiest thing to do is rinse and wash all of the removable components, and then using vinegar and water, cycle your new coffee machine to remove any chemical or plastic remnants.