Coffee Line Cleaning: Keeping Coffee Lines Happy

As cold brew becomes more and more popular. The process of cleaning and sanitizing cold brew equipment has become more important. Coffee line cleaning is important because it helps to keep dispensing systems running smoothly. Having a regular cleaning schedule. Will help you dispense a more consistent product for customers.

If you are using a commercial cleaner, always read the instructions, and follow them exactly. Many commercial cleaners have a specific set of instructions as to what ratio the chemical to water should be. This ratio will clean the system properly so you can pour delicious coffee to your customers.

Choose the Right Coffee Line Cleaner

When choosing a cleaner for your coffee lines. It is important to select one that is designed specifically for coffee equipment. Coffee line cleaners are available at most homebrew stores, but we use MicroMatic's Coffee Line Cleaner. Be sure to follow the instructions on the bottle.

Use a Brush to Scrub Dispensing Parts

One of the best ways to clean your coffee lines is by using a brush. A brush will help you remove any build-up or residue that has accumulated outside the lines. Be sure to use a brush for outside the coupler. Around the Cornelius keg fittings, and when you take your Nitro Faucet apart. Use the brush to get into the nooks and cranny's and make sure the faucet and parts are cleaned.

Steps for Coffee Line Cleaning

• Disconnect keg coupler or ball lock fitting from product keg.
• Fill Cleaning vessel with warm (80-95) degree tap water.
• Place an empty bucket under the faucet.
• Engage the coupler on the water filled keg. Open the faucet until the line has been thoroughly cleared or product and clear water flows out of the faucet.
• Close the faucet.
• Vent Pressure from the cleaning vessel. Pull vent ring.
• Open a pressurized vessel, empty any water remaining in vessel add Coffee Line Cleaner. Do Not Dilute.
• Coffee Line Cleaner requires 1 oz per foot + 10 oz for any of the Nitro coffee equipment such as Mini Nim
• Place an empty bucket under the faucet.
• Re-connect keg coupler and pressurize container. Open the faucet until the line has been filled with chemical. The Chemical color is blue and will pour from the faucet. Once this has happened. Close the faucet and allow chemical to soak for 20 mins. This is known as a static clean.
• Disconnect the keg coupler, vent pressurized vessel. Open vessel and rinse out any remaining chemicals. Refill with fresh water. Also use Ph Paper to test for any remaining chemical.
• Rinse and attach coupler to product keg. Pull 12-20 ozs of coffee from the system and discard.
• Rinse and Dry the remaining cleaning equipment.

Here's a video showing a cleaning process without using a pressurized keg. If you have extra corny kegs. You can fill one with the right solution in one. Clean water in another. Then use the Nitrogen with your corny couplers to push water and solution through like the gentleman does in the video. One added step just to make sure all the chemical is out is use PH paper before you pump coffee back into the system.

Daily Maintenance For Cold Brew Nitro Coffee Systems

It's smart practice to remove the nitro faucet spouts and soak them either in carbonated water, or plain water. Also be sure to remove and rinse inlet dissolved filter inside. This practice will keep the working Nitro Faucet in working order.

Conclusion

Coffee line cleaning is an important step in making sure your cold brew draft system produces a consistent product. By using a commercial cleaner and following the directions carefully, you can clean your coffee lines in no time. Be sure to use a brush to scrub any build-up or residue from outside the lines. Use a bucket to catch the water from the faucet. While you rinse your system free of chemical. Finally, be sure to perform a daily maintenance routine on your faucets. To keep your nitro coffee system running smoothly.

For more information on cleaning techniques check out the rest of our blog. If you have any further questions you can always reach us here.

Lastly, if you are looking for a professional company to off-load beer line, wine or coffee line cleaning we can help you with that. Give us a call.

Cheers!