How to Clean and Descale Breville or DeLonghi Machines

Maintenance Guides · Coffee Machine Care

By Mik Di Pacci, Founder & CEO, Di Pacci Coffee Company

Breville and DeLonghi machines are two of the most common coffee machines in New Zealand homes, and both rely on regular cleaning and descaling to keep working properly. This guide covers how to clean and descale each brand, the differences between them, and how to tell when your machine needs attention — whether it's a Breville, a DeLonghi, or something else entirely.

1. Breville vs DeLonghi: what's different

Both brands make good home coffee machines, but they're built differently, and that changes how you look after them.

Because the internals differ, a "one size fits all" cleaning routine doesn't really apply — but the underlying principles (regular cleaning, regular descaling, and using the right products) are the same for both.

2. How to clean a Breville coffee machine

• Backflush the group head

  Using a blind filter basket and a cleaning tablet, run the backflush cycle your model supports to clear coffee oil residue from the group head and shower screen. Check your manual for the exact button sequence, as this varies by model.

• Clean the portafilter and basket

  Remove the basket and give both a proper scrub after your last coffee of the day — coffee oils build up quickly and affect flavour over time if left.

• Purge and wipe the steam wand

  Purge a short burst of steam after every milk drink, then wipe the wand tip with a damp cloth before milk residue dries and hardens.

• Empty and rinse the drip tray

  Empty daily and rinse — a full drip tray is one of the most common causes of a lingering coffee smell around the machine.

• Wipe the exterior

  A soft, damp microfibre cloth keeps the housing free of coffee dust and fingerprints without scratching the finish.

3. How to descale a Breville coffee machine

• Check for a descale mode

  Some Breville models have a built-in descale programme; others don't, and require you to run the descaling solution through manually as you would a normal brew or hot water cycle. Your machine's manual will confirm which applies.

• Dissolve the descaler

  Follow the product's dilution instructions and fill the water tank with the solution.

• Run the cycle

  Run the built-in descale programme if your model has one, or cycle the solution through manually per the descaler's instructions.

• Rinse thoroughly

  Run several full tanks of clean water through afterwards to flush out any remaining descaling solution before making coffee again.

4. How to clean a DeLonghi coffee machine

• Remove and rinse the brew unit

  Most DeLonghi automatic machines have a removable brew unit designed to be rinsed under running water — check your manual for how to release it, as the mechanism differs slightly by model.

• Run the built-in cleaning cycle

  Many models prompt a cleaning cycle automatically once the internal counter reaches a threshold — follow the on-screen instructions if yours does this.

• Clean the milk carafe or frother

  If your model has an automatic milk system, most have a dedicated milk-clean cycle — run it after each use to stop milk residue building up inside the lines.

• Empty the grounds container and drip tray

  Automatic machines eject used grounds into an internal container — empty it regularly alongside the drip tray to avoid odour and overflow.

• Wipe the exterior and bean hopper

  A dry cloth for the bean hopper (moisture here can cause the beans to clump) and a damp cloth for the rest of the housing.

5. How to descale a DeLonghi coffee machine

• Wait for the descale alert (or check the manual)

  Many DeLonghi automatic machines display a light or on-screen message once descaling is due, based on water hardness settings and usage.

• Fill with the descaling solution

  Follow your descaler's dilution instructions and fill the water tank as directed.

• Follow the on-screen prompts

  The built-in programme typically guides you through the cycle step by step, including when to empty and refill the tank with clean water.

• Complete the rinse cycles

  The machine will usually prompt one or more automatic rinse cycles at the end — let these run fully before your next coffee.

6. Products that make it easier

You don't need brand-specific products for every step, but a few genuinely make the job easier and safer for your machine:

Breville Eco Residue Cleaner

Official Breville-branded cleaning tablets for backflushing the group head — matched to Breville's own cleaning cycle.

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Clean Machine Triple Action Descaler

A universal liquid descaler formulated to work across major brands, including Breville and DeLonghi.

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Clean Machine Milk Cleaner

For the milk system on either brand — steam wand or automatic frother — to stop residue building up inside the lines.

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Either a brand-matched product or a verified universal one works — the main thing is checking your machine's manual for anything it specifically advises against.

7. How often should you clean and descale

There's no single number that fits every machine or household — it depends mainly on your water hardness and how often the machine is used. Hard-water areas and daily heavy use both mean scale and residue build up faster; filtered water and lighter use both slow it down. As a general routine: wipe down and purge the steam wand or milk system after every use, do a fuller clean (group head, drip tray, brew unit) weekly, and descale when your machine's built-in alert triggers or every one to three months if it doesn't have one — adjusted for your local water hardness. Running your machine on filtered rather than straight tap water is the single biggest lever for slowing scale buildup in the first place; browse our water filters if you're not already using one.

8. Frequently asked questions