For those who would like to take a more organic approach to keeping your coffee pot clean and fresh without having to run half a dozen cycles of water through to diminish the soapy aftertaste, use vinegar.

This completely natural substance is probably already in your kitchen and is perfectly safe to run through your machine. On top of cleaning and disinfecting the pot and water holding area, the slight acidity in vinegar will also diminish hard water mineral buildup even in the fine tubes that run around the base.

You can use a vinegar soaked rag to wipe off surface dirt and only need one or two clean water cycles to have your cup of coffee back to it's delicious original flavor.