Overview Of CLR
What Is CLR?
CLR stands for Calcium, Lime, and Rust Remover, a cleaning product that dissolves and eliminates stubborn lime and calcium residues from various surfaces.
Also, it is particularly effective in removing old and hard calcium deposits and stains from toilets, baths, sinks, dishwashers, glass, washing machines, and even coffee machines.
What Are The Ingredients In CLR?
CLR includes a variety of acids that aid in removing old and difficult-to-remove lime stains, water stains, rusts, and calcium residues from various surfaces.
Lactic acid, Lauramine oxide, Propylene Glycol, gluconic acid, glycolic acid, n-Butyl Ether, sulfamic acid, surfactants, citric acid, and water are the most common components in CLR.
Because of these more robust components, we believe CLR is far superior to regular vinegar in eliminating nearly all forms of lime and calcium deposits.
Can You Clean A Coffee Maker With CLR?
Before using CLR to wash your coffee maker, it's vital to understand where and when to use it.
Is It Safe To Clean A Coffee Machine Using CLR?
After researching the CLR brand, we discovered that it is neither safe nor suggested for use with a few major coffee machine manufacturers, including Keurig, Cuisinart, and Gevalia.
Aside from these brands, many people use CLR to descale and clean any coffee maker. Another thing to keep in mind is that you shouldn't use CLR in coffee makers that contain water continuously.
If you have a costly espresso maker at home, we will not advocate using CLR with it. Your machine may become clogged as a result, and it will no longer be applicable.
Many coffee machine manufacturers include crucial advice on how to use CLR in their handbooks. Some people think it's a good idea, but others don't.
Before using this approach, it is usually a good idea to read the user guide for the coffee maker you purchased.
If the coffee maker has a regular charcoal or carbon filter, you should also not use CLR to wash it since the CLR treatment contains the charcoal or carbon filter and, which is inside the filters.
Simultaneously, it's critical to replace coffee filters before washing them with a CLR solution. The primary reason for this is that your machine's filters trap the solution, making it extremely difficult to clean and remove the CLR deposits.
Which Brand Should You Use For Cleaning Coffee Maker?
After conducting considerable research, we discovered that there are numerous CLR brands on the market. Several of them are highly poisonous and acidic.
It would be best to avoid such items and never use them to treat your coffee machine. If breathed directly, these acid concentration cleansers and descalers can be hazardous to human health.
As a result, remember to wear face masks when using them for safety reasons. Rather than purchasing a highly acidic CLR, go for a moderate acidic, non-corrosive, and non-toxic CLR, such as this CLR Calcium.
The sort of CLR you use to clean the coffee machine must be safe for your health, which does not include too acidic.
It is crucial to remember since it will eventually maintain your coffee machine parts safe and sanitary for long-term usage.
How To Clean A Coffee Maker With CLR?
You can descale and clean the coffee makers and decanters using the non-toxic and non-corrosive CLR brand effortlessly.
With this cleaning agent, you can eliminate the quantity of calcium and lime buildup from your machine at home. The following is a step-by-step guide on using CLR to clean your coffee maker.
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Remove the coffee machine's internal filters. It's crucial to remove the filters because you cannot clean them with CLR, and such chemicals frequently damage them.
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Now remove the decanter and combine the CLR and water in the decanter. The real CLR to water ratio must be at 1:8, which means you'll need to fill the decanter with 1 part CLR plus eight parts water.
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Combine both ingredients thoroughly, then pour the entire mixture into the coffee machine's water tank.
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Finally, turn on your system and start the descaling procedure. Allow twenty minutes for the process to complete. Throw the filthy liquid from the container into your sink once the descaling procedure is complete.
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Fill the coffee pot with fresh water and repeat the descaling operation at least two times more. Some users repeat this procedure 5-7 times to remove the computer's CLR residual smell.
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In the meantime, for 8-12 cup coffee pots, this entire cleaning method is exceptionally suggested.
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If you're a four- or single-serve coffee machine, you'll need to reduce the solution slightly. In this instance, you may safely wash your coffee machine by mixing 1 part CLR with 12 parts fresh water.
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Lastly, if you wish to, you may use CLR to clean the coffee pot and carafe. If you do not want to clean them using CLR, you may put them in the dishwasher.
You can rely on the instructions in this video to better understand how to clean a coffee maker with CLR.
YouTube source: The Cary Company
Here are some frequently asked questions we have collected while researching this field.
1. Is CLR A Better Cleaner Than Vinegar For Coffee Makers?
Vinegar and CLR have no competition for cleaning effectiveness and the capacity to remove difficult-to-remove calcium and lime deposits. By a wide margin, CLR is the apparent winner of this tournament.
If the coffee maker is less than two years old and has no lime or calcium deposits, we recommend vinegar. This solution is relatively mild and aids in killing interior germs and a little bit of mold.
It is a weak solution that's ineffective at eliminating calcium deposits from your coffee maker. A harsher chemical solution is required to remove these ancient calcium deposits and lime stains thoroughly. It's where a CLR approach is beneficial.
If your coffee machine has many calcium buildup and limestone, we strongly recommend using a moderate, non-corrosive, non-toxic CLR solution.
2. Is It Alright If Leaving CLR Running Overnight While Cleaning My Coffee Maker?
How long can CLR be let to soak in the coffee maker? And should we put CLR in the coffee machine overnight? When we use CLR to wash coffee makers, these are the essential questions that come to mind.
After conducting an extensive study on the subject, we discovered that leaving CLR in the coffee machine overnight is not a good idea. Long-term exposure to CLR's different acids may cause machine harm.
For just a single brewing cycle, which takes around 20 minutes, you may wash and descale any coffee maker with CLR. We wouldn't suggest brewing with CLR for more than one cycle.
3. How To Get Rid Of CLR Smell From Coffee Machine?
If you've recently descaled and cleaned your coffee machine with CLR and you're getting a strange CLR scent in your coffee, you'll want to remove it as soon as possible.
You'll need to apply a descaling product that can thoroughly deodorize your coffee pot to get rid of the remaining CLR smell from the rubber and plastic parts.
This Urnex powder removes all sorts of odors and smells from your coffee maker with ease. It's also non-toxic and aids with the removal of all CLR leftovers and odors from mechanical components.
4. What Are Safer Alternatives Of CLR?
White vinegar and lemon juice are the most effective natural descalers. However, most major coffee maker companies strongly advise against using them since they may leave a lasting odor and cause harm to specific elements of the machine.
If you want to remove excessive calcium deposits from your coffee maker with a less acidic and gentle cleaning fluid, go for the Lime-A-Way or Urnex Powder.
Both these cleaning solutions are far less acidic and far safer to use. They do not leave an odor behind after cleaning and remain environmentally friendly.
So, after reading this article, you may answer the question: Can you clean a coffee maker with CLR?.
CLR cleaners effectively remove old and difficult-to-remove calcium, hard water, and lime deposits from your coffee maker. You can use it sparingly to eliminate the odor and run a safe cleaning cycle at least 7-10 times.
If the CLR scent is still present in your machine, you can repeat the cleaning cycle using the cleaning powder above.
Thank you for reading!
