How To Clean A Mr. Coffee Tea Maker

A Mr. Coffee Iced Tea Maker can be used to brew both iced tea or iced coffee. Like a traditional drip coffee maker, this iced tea device brews the tea or coffee hot by pumping heated water over a steeping basket that holds teabags or coffee grounds. It also may develop mineral deposits over time, much like a coffee maker. Most parts of the tea maker can be washed by hand, while mineral deposits in any part of the appliance require a vinegar treatment.

Standard cleaning of the Mr. Coffee Iced Tea Maker requires hand washing, as the individual portions of the appliance are not dishwasher safe. Wash the pitcher and lid, as well as the steeping basket and its lid, in warm, soapy water, then rinse them off. These items may be washed after each use of the iced tea maker. They should also be washed before using the appliance the first time.

Once the hand-washable parts are clean, fill the pitcher with water up to the "water level" line. Pour the pitcher of water into the reservoir in the plug-in portion of the iced tea maker. Add ice to the pitcher up to the "ice" line, then place the steeping basket and its lid atop the pitcher. Push the pitcher up into place against the iced tea maker, plug the device in and turn it on. Once the water finishes flowing through to the pitcher, the cleaning process has completed. Dump the water into the sink.

If your iced tea maker's pitcher or brew basket have white, chalky marks on them even after washing, these spots are mineral deposits left behind by tap water. These spots, though unsightly, are harmless. Get rid of them by wiping them down with white vinegar applied with a clean sponge or paper towels. According to Mr. Coffee instructions, for stubborn mineral deposits, soak the affected pieces in white vinegar for 20 to 30 minutes, then rinse.

Drying the items by hand can also help eliminate mineral deposits that appear after washing these plastic parts.

Read more: What Is the Vinegar-to-Water Ratio for Cleaning?

If your iced tea maker sputters or no longer functions as well as it should, there may be a mineral, or limescale, buildup inside the main unit. Pour a full quart-sized bottle of white vinegar into the water reservoir, then place a handful of ice cubes in the pitcher. Set the steeping basket and its lid atop the pitcher, push the pitcher against the base unit, then turn the unit on.

Once approximately 1 cup of vinegar brews through to the pitcher, unplug the iced tea maker and allow it to sit for 30 minutes or so. This allows time for the vinegar to remove limescale throughout the device. Plug the device back in, turn it on and wait for it to dispense all of the vinegar into the pitcher. Dump the vinegar down the drain, then repeat the brewing process once or twice, using tap water instead of vinegar. The tea maker is ready to use again once the dispensed hot water no longer smells like vinegar.

The same process can be used to clean a coffee maker.

Read more: How to Clean a Coffee Maker