How to Remove Burnt Coffee on a Coffeemaker Warming Plate

Without your trusty coffee maker there to help up, you would have so much trouble getting out of bed and out the door every morning. But coffee makers can and do breakdown, and could leave in you a bitter mood.

Coffee makers, like any other household appliance, do need routine maintenance to stay clean and assure that they are working properly. This includes not only the coffee pot, but also the brewing system. Sometimes, burnt coffee can become stuck on the warming plate of a coffee maker, which can be removed with a couple of household items and just a little bit of time.

To clean the hot plate on your coffee maker, you won't need many items, and most of them you may already have right in your own kitchen. Generally, burnt coffee can be removed from a warming plate with a little water, some baking soda, a tooth brush and possibly a little vinegar if the stains are extra stubborn. It's also a good idea to keep a lint-free cloth on hand to wipe away your burnt-on coffee, along with any additional dirt and grime.

To clean your coffee maker heating element, which is the hot plate that keeps your coffee pot (and the coffee inside of it) warm, you'll need to start by turning your coffee maker off and unplugging it from the wall. Make sure that the hot plate is completely cool before you start working on it. Once your plate has cooled down, use a damp, lint-free cloth to wipe away anything resting on the surface of the warmer. Doing this may wipe away a good amount of the burnt coffee, and if you don't have excessive staining to contend with, this may do the trick for you.

If a rag and water alone aren't quite cutting it, you can lift the stain with either baking soda, vinegar or both. To start, create a paste by mixing a couple of tablespoons of baking soda with a bit of water until a heavy but easily spreadable consistency is reached. Using a toothbrush, gently scrub the mixture onto the surface of your coffee maker's hot plate in small circular motions, covering the affected area. If you have particularly stubborn stains, you can add a bit of white vinegar to the mixture, then wipe the area clean.

Over time, spilled coffee can cause a coffee maker's warming plate to rust and the coating to flake off, which will need to be addressed to ensure that your coffee maker works properly and that your coffee is tasting great.

Let's say your Cuisinart coffee maker hot plate is rusting and natural solutions aren't doing the trick. Work not! You can soak the surface in rust dissolver or oxalic acid for about 30 minutes before wiping it clean with a towel. Additionally, soaking the surface in soda has been known to remove rust, as does rubbing the affected area with a wet strip of aluminum foil, which will gently remove rusty flakes without damaging your plate.

If you have a particularly rusty plate and ended up removing a good amount of the plate's surface coating, you will need to recoat the hot plate using a surface element cleaner designed for stovetop burners, which will restore the material and protect it from rusting in the future. To prevent rusting, take care to clean up spills that get on your warming plate as quickly as possible.