cafine Senior Member Joined: 1 Apr 2005 Posts: 256 Location: Adelaide Expertise: Professional
Espresso: San Marino Jnr Plumbed Grinder: Mini Mazzer/SuperJolly
Posted Fri Feb 24, 2006, 4:54am Subject: Re: CLR, Limeaway, Durgol etc. Are these cleaners okay to use?
We get really heavy calcium scale and I use a phosporic acid (CLR) We tend to dilute ours down to the level of CLR and let it sit over night. Phosporic acid tends not to pit soft metals unlike Sulphamic and Hydrocloric. I've tried Citric but it dosn't have the grunt to move our crud.
Posted Fri Feb 24, 2006, 8:46am Subject: Re: CLR, Limeaway, Durgol etc. Are these cleaners okay to use?
Disclaimer...I am not a food chemist, doctor, etc. etc. Any advice you get from me, or ANYONE in these forums should be carefully considered...particularly when it comes to your health...
...but given that, while I always try to avoid using ANY toxic chemicals near anything that would come close to being ingested, I think the key to safe cleaning is just making sure that there is ZERO residue on any parts when you reassemble....and the best way to do that (IMO) is detergent and heat. My advice would be to take any parts that may come in contact with any "suspect" cleaning chemicals and run them through the dishwasher a couple times (even once is probably enough). The agitation, detergent and heat combination should be more than enough to remove most things.
Of course...you also have to ensure all the detergent is rinsed off as well....
Buster Senior Member Joined: 24 Oct 2005 Posts: 12 Location: California Expertise: Just starting
Posted Fri Feb 24, 2006, 1:48pm Subject: Re: CLR, Limeaway, Durgol etc. Are these cleaners okay to use?
You might also look into using some cleaners that are out there for home brewers (yes, I'm not just a coffee geek, I'm a beer geek too). They are food grade cleaners, and there are some nice strong ones designed for getting things clean, disinfected and decalcified. Copper is used in a lot of chillers, so most of the cleaners are safe for use on copper.
I barely want to use CLR on my tub, let alone in an espresso maker!
Posted Thu Mar 1, 2012, 1:49pm Subject: Re: CLR, Limeaway, Durgol etc. Are these cleaners okay to use?
DO NOT USE CLR!
The directions say not to. And to prove their point - like a total imbecile - I used it and have run about 40 gallons of water through it and my water still smells like industrial wastes and is STILL milky colored. I even used their 1:8 mix directions. The smell of CLR makes me want to puke now.!
I don't know how I can recover and am ready to throw it out!
Posted Thu Mar 1, 2012, 7:03pm Subject: Re: CLR, Limeaway, Durgol etc. Are these cleaners okay to use?
Don't toss it yet. Try: 1 - using a proper descaling mixture. Citric acid would be a good start. 2 - An alkaline solution of some sort to neutralize the acid (never heard of anyone doing that, but if you are thinking of tossing it, why not?). Maybe a solution of baking soda and distilled water..? 3 - disassembly, scrubbing, neutralizing bath, reassembly.
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