What Is The Black Flaky Residue When I Clean It?

There are a few things that you can do to prevent coffee oil from building up in your coffee maker and causing black flaky residue:

Clean your coffee maker regularly. You should clean your coffee maker after every use, but it is especially important to clean it if you are using flavored coffees or coffees with added oils.

Use a descaling solution. Descaling solution can help to remove coffee oil and other buildup from your coffee maker.

Use filtered water. Filtered water can help to reduce the amount of coffee oil that is released into your coffee maker.

If you have already noticed black flaky residue in your coffee maker, you can clean it by following these steps:

Empty the water reservoir and remove the filter basket.

Fill the water reservoir with equal parts white vinegar and water.

Brew a pot of vinegar solution.

Rinse the water reservoir and filter basket with warm water.

Brew a pot of fresh water to remove any residual vinegar taste.

You should also clean the carafe and lid of your coffee maker with warm, soapy water.

By following these tips, you can prevent coffee oil from building up in your coffee maker and causing black flaky residue.

This genetic difference may be one of the reasons that some owners of your particular coffee maker model complained about a plastic taste while others didn't ... I know that doesn't solve your problem, but maybe it makes you feel a bit better. Or worse. I don't know. Moving on...

There is also the issue of "outgassing" which is the release of gases that are trapped within certain man-made substances such as plastic. Outgassing is what creates the "new car smell" when you buy a new car off the dealer lot, and it seems that an awful lot of coffee drinkers have concluded that this is the cause of that coffee maker plastic taste and smell.

If your coffee maker rolled off the assembly line very recently, it may have more plastic odor and smell than one that has been sitting on a shelf (and outgassing) for some time.

There are numerous methods being suggested out there on The Interwebs to help you get rid of the plastic taste in coffee. First I'm going to suggest some coffee makers that are immune to plastic taste because, let's face it, it's the easiest way to solve the plastic problem.

After that, I'll teach you some of the most commonly suggested remedies, not in any particular order, along with a few longshot fixes. Since it is impossible to know which of these methods might remove your coffee machine plastic taste or smell, my recommendation would be to start with the ones that are the most convenient for you.

If you have whole coffee beans that you don't mind using for odor control, use them first. If cheap vodka or isopropyl alcohol is already in the house, then go with that. You get the idea.