How To Descale Breville Barista Express: A Complete Guide
The water used to brew espresso causes mineral buildup inside your Breville Barista Express machine. While not toxic, this buildup can impact the machine’s water flow, temperature and performance. It can affect the taste of your shot of espresso too. Descaling is a deep machine cleaning that removes mineral deposits to extend the life of your machine. Keep reading to find instructions on how to descale Breville Barista Express espresso machines using a commercial descaling solution.
How Often To Descale Breville Barista Express
In addition to regular cleaning, a good rule of thumb is that a you should descale your Barista Express every 3 months. The Breville Barista Express will show a solid light on next to the word CLEAN when it is time to descale. If the light is flashing, you only need to run a cleaning cycle.
You need to descale every 3 months whether you are using filtered water, bottled water or tap water with a low to normal mineral count. You will need to clean your machine more often if your tap has “hard water.” That means it contains higher level of minerals. If you are not sure about the level of minerals in your water, you can always get a low-cost water testing kit.
You should also descale if you are having any of these issues with your Breville Barista Express:
- Produces a lot of steam while brewing
- Runs for extended periods with only steam output
- Does not use the full amount of water in the water tank
- Brews slowly
Can You Descale Breville Barista Express With Vinegar?
You should not use water and vinegar solution to clean Breville Barista Express machines. White vinegar contains 5-8% acetic acid. This type of acid can wear down stainless steel and cause your machine to leak. Plus, vinegar cannot remove oils left by used espresso beans.
Instead, the best way to deep clean your espresso maker is with one of the below commercial cleaning solutions. They have safe and effective types of acids that won’t damage your machine. You may also want to stock up on cleaning tablets for regular care.
Breville Barista Express Descaling Solutions
Impresa Descaler
The Impresa descaler is a top selling cleaner. It has citric and sulfamic acids. Both of these are gentle on metal. Each pack contains two bottles. Each bottle has enough for two uses.
Essential Values Descaler & Cleaner
The Essential Values cleaning solution has a citric acid that is both odorless and powerful. Each bottle is good for two uses. A two pack will provide four doses. That’s a year supply if you clean your machine every three months.
De’Longhi EcoDecalk Descaler
The De’Longhi Descaler is made in Italy with high quality, plant-based lactic acid. This solution can be used to solve a descaling issue with any espresso machine, including those made by Breville. A 16.90 fl oz bottle contains enough solution for up to 5 uses.
Urnex Dezcal Powder Descaler
The Urnex Powder is a descaler that you can use with your Breville Barista Express. It is odorless and effective. Add 1 oz of the powder to 32 oz of hot water (a quarter gallon of water) to create a solution.
How To Descale Breville Barista Express
You’ll want to descale your Barista Express when the CLEAN / DESCALE light is lit and steady. If it is flashing you only need to run a cleaning cycle. For descaling, following these steps. Note that you should not let more than five minutes pass in between each step. If you do, the Barista Express will shut off and you’ll need to restart the process from step 2.
Prepare The Machine
- Empty the water tank. Add descaling solution and fresh water to the tank according the instructions on your solution’s packaging.
- To enter descale mode, press and hold the 2 cup button while holding the power button at the same time. The power button will start to flash as the machine heats up. You’ll know it is ready to start the descaling process when the several lights turn on and are steady.
Run The Descale Cycles
- First you will need to descale the coffee component. Press the 1 cup button. The button will start flashing for about 25 seconds. It will go steady once the process is complete.
- To descale the steam and hot water components, turn the steam dial right towards the steam icon. The first step will take about 13 seconds. When done, turn the dial to the left to the water drop icon. This will take 8 seconds to finish.
- At this point, there should be about half a liter of of the water-solution mix left in your tank. Repeat steps 2, 3 and 4 to empty the solution in the tank.
Rinse The Machine
- Remove the water tank and rinse it thoroughly. Refill it to the max line with fresh cold water. Repeat steps 2, 3 and 4 to rinse the machine and remove any residue.
- Press the power button to quit descaling.
You may also see pages 24 and 25 of your Breville user manual for these descale instructions.
Descaling Breville Barista Express Impress
Note that you should not let more than five minutes pass in between each step. If you do, the Barista Express Impress will shut off and you’ll need to restart the process from step 2.
Prepare The Machine
- Empty the water tank. Add descaling solution and fresh water to the tank according the instructions on your solution’s packaging.
- While the Barista Express Impress is off, press and hold the 2 cup button while holding the power button at the same time for five seconds. This will enter the unit into descale mode. It will start heating up and during this time the two buttons you pressed will flash. You’ll know it is ready to start descaling when the several lights turn on and are steady.
Begin Descaling
- First you will need to descale the coffee component. Press the 2 cup button. The button will start flashing for about 25 seconds. It will go steady and the machine will beep once the process is complete.
- To descale the steam and hot water components, turn the steam dial right towards the steam icon. The first step will take about 13 seconds. When done, turn the dial to the left to the hot water icon. This will take 8 seconds to finish.
- At this point, there should be about half a liter of of the water-solution mix left in your tank. Repeat steps 2, 3 and 4 to empty the solution in the tank.
Rinse
- Remove the water tank and rinse it thoroughly. Refill it to the max line with fresh cold water (about 2 litres). Repeat steps 2, 3 and 4 to rinse the machine and remove any residue.
- Press the power button to quit descaling. The lights will turn off.
You may also see page 23 of your Breville Impress user manual for these descale instructions.
