Espresso Machine Cleaning (Daily Backflush) (Free Template)
A dirty espresso machine makes bitter coffee and wears out gaskets and valves early. This is the end-of-day clean for a commercial machine with a three-way solenoid valve, the kind most cafés use. It's written for the closing barista and takes about 15 minutes on a two-group machine. Check your machine's manual first: some machines, including lever machines, should never be backflushed.
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What you'll need
- Blind basket (no holes)
- Espresso machine cleaning powder or tablets
- Group head brush
- Clean cloths
- Container for soaking
The steps
Take the baskets out of the portafilters and put them in to soak.
Use hot water and cleaning powder, in the amount on the product label.
Scrub the group head gasket and shower screen with the brush.
Run water through the group for a second while you brush to flush out loose grounds.
Fit the blind basket into a portafilter and add the cleaning powder.
Use the amount on the product label, usually about half a teaspoon.
Lock in the portafilter and run the group for 10 seconds.
When you stop it, you'll hear the pressure release into the drip tray. That's the backflush working.
Repeat the 10-second cycle until you've done 5 in total.
Let the group rest for a few seconds between cycles.
Watch out: Never more than 5 cycles with detergent. It dries out the group gasket.
Rinse the detergent out with 5 more cycles of clean water.
Take out the portafilter, rinse the blind basket, lock it back in and run 5 cycles of 10 seconds.
Run a short flush of water and smell it.
If you can still smell detergent, rinse again. Leftover detergent spoils tomorrow's first coffees.
Repeat the backflush on every group.
Do one group at a time so you don't lose count of the cycles.
Scrub the soaked baskets and the metal part of each portafilter, then rinse well.
Keep the handle out of the soak; only the metal part goes in.
Watch out: Soaking the whole portafilter cracks the handle over time.
Wrap the steam wand in a damp cloth and purge it for 2 seconds.
Then wipe the wand from top to tip. Use a wand cleaner if milk has dried on.
Unscrew the steam tips once a week and clear the holes.
Use a paper clip or the tool that came with the machine.
Empty and wash the drip tray and its grate.
Wipe underneath the tray too, where coffee builds up.
Wipe down the outside of the machine and the cup warmer.
Use a dry cloth on hot panels.
Leave the portafilters out of the group heads overnight.
It lets the gaskets rest. Only turn the machine off if your owner says so; many cafés leave it on.
How to adapt it
- Check your machine's manual for the right cleaner and number of cycles.
- Use the same brand of cleaner every time so the dose stays the same.
- Put a QR code for this procedure on the side of the machine.
- Add a weekly step to clean the grinder burrs with grinder cleaning tablets.
Turn this template into training your team will actually open
In ShowHow, your staff read each step on their phone, with photos, in their own language, and you see who has confirmed it. Start from this template or film yourself doing the job.
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