For many of us, the Dedica is the first and best entry-level espresso machine. But if your espresso suddenly tastes like shoe leather instead of perfectly extracted coffee, it's high time to think about a thorough cleaning.
Often enough, the machine itself is to blame – or more precisely: its cleanliness. While the DeLonghi Dedica is a great machine for a simple espresso, it still needs regular maintenance. Here we show you how to easily clean your Dedica – from a quick daily "in-between" clean to more in-depth care.
Looking for how to descale your Dedica? You can find the article here.
The daily routine – short and sweet
There's a simple rule: the cleaner your machine, the better your espresso. That's why you should clean the machine daily or after each use.
- Clean the portafilter: Remove the portafilter after each use, tap out the coffee grounds residue, wipe out the sieve, and run hot water through it to remove coffee residue and oils. You can rinse it with the espresso machine itself. Then you won't have to carry a dripping portafilter through the kitchen or living room.
- Wipe the shower screen: Briefly wipe the shower screen (the spot where the water hits the coffee grounds) with a clean, damp cloth. This prevents nasty deposits from forming.
Weekly cleaning – digging a little deeper
Once a week, the Dedica needs a little more love. Don't worry, it's not rocket science:
1. Clean the sieve thoroughly
- Remove the sieve from the portafilter with a small tool or a simple spoon. If it seems a bit tricky – don't worry, that's normal. Even if you feel like you're opening a hidden treasure chest. Unfortunately, the treasure chest is often a hidden dirt collector. Especially if you're using the original Dedica portafilter, this cleaning is really important. Much less dirt sticks to a metal portafilter.
- Clean the sieve thoroughly with hot water and a little dish soap to completely remove coffee fats and residues. This way, your espresso tastes fresh, not rancid.
2. Clean the brew head and gasket
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Carefully go into the bayonet fitting (where the portafilter locks in) with a damp cloth and especially clean the brew head gasket. Coffee grounds tend to collect there, which can otherwise produce unpleasant flavors.
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Attention: Always switch off the machine beforehand and ideally unplug it from the mains, so you don't accidentally scald your hands!
3. Clean the shower screen superficially
- Run some hot water and wipe the shower screen with a damp cloth. This is usually completely sufficient to remove most of the dirt.
The intensive shower – Caution, sensitive!
Every now and then – we're talking about every two to three months – you can unscrew the shower screen for a really deep clean. But be careful, the Dedica's thread is very sensitive.
- Carefully unscrew the cross-head screw of the shower screen. Caution: The thread is plastic! Don't overdo it here, or a service visit will be necessary.
- Clean the shower screen and the surrounding area thoroughly with warm water and a little dish soap. If you haven't cleaned for a really long time, you might be able to practice true coffee archaeology there – interesting, but not particularly tasty.
- The gaskets are now much more accessible. So repeat what you do during the weekly cleaning. Once rub out the bayonet fitting and the gaskets.
- Then carefully screw the shower screen back in, not too tight, otherwise the thread risks being damaged.
Descaling – important, but a chapter of its own
Very important and yet only briefly mentioned: Don't forget regular descaling! The machine itself will signal you with an orange light when it's time again. You can find out why and exactly how to descale in detail in our article "DeLonghi Dedica Descaling". Limescale is and remains the biggest enemy of your machine and your good coffee. Incidentally, limescale and hard water are responsible for more than 80% of all defects in espresso machines. It's really worth descaling the Dedica every two to three months, even if the orange indicator light is not on.
There is a guiding principle for the Dedica and all espresso machines with a thermoblock: as long as water is still flowing, descaling can still be done. If no more water flows, then the descaler can no longer reach the calcification. Therefore, really don't miss this window. Then you'll get much more out of your machine!
Conclusion – Small steps, great enjoyment
If you perform these cleaning steps regularly, your Dedica will reward you with really good espresso. A little attention here and there ensures that your coffee tastes exactly as you dream it would – and not like stale dishwater. Try it, your taste buds will thank you!
And if you want to delve deeper into the secrets of the Dedica, we have prepared an entire e-learning. We will publish it in a few weeks. If you want to be informed about it, then sign up for our KM-Dedica newsletter here.
Stay clean, Your Ben Kaffeemacher
