Cleaning and descaling your Nove

A clean machine makes better coffee and lasts longer. Coffee leaves oil behind, and old oil turns bitter and ends up in every shot. Hard water leaves scale, the white chalk you see in a kettle, and over time it narrows the pipes and coats the boiler. Neither takes long to deal with: under a minute after each coffee, ten minutes a week, and half an hour every three months.

After every coffee

• Knock the used coffee into the bin and rinse the basket under the tap.
• Run water through the machine for two seconds with the portafilter out. This washes coffee off the shower screen, the metal plate the water comes through.
• On the Duo and the Pro, wipe the steam wand with a damp cloth and open the steam for a second, so no milk dries inside it.
• Lock the empty portafilter back in, so it stays warm for the next coffee.

Once a week

• Empty and wash the drip tray and the water tank.
• Soak the baskets and the metal part of the portafilter in hot water with a drop of washing-up liquid for ten minutes, then rinse. Keep the walnut handle out of the water.
• Brush the shower screen with a clean, stiff brush while the machine is warm.
• Wipe the steel with a soft damp cloth. When the walnut looks dry, rub in a drop of food-safe oil.

Descale every three months

Descale every three months, or every six if you fill the tank from a filter jug or your water is soft. Use a descaler made for espresso machines, and never vinegar, which leaves a taste behind and is harder on the seals.

1. Fill the tank with descaler and water, mixed as the packet says, and switch the machine on.
2. Run half the tank through with the portafilter out. On the Duo and the Pro, run a cup's worth through the steam wand too.
3. Switch the machine off and leave it for 20 minutes.
4. Switch it back on and run the rest of the tank through the same way.
5. Rinse the tank, fill it with clean water and run it all through. Do this twice, so nothing of the descaler is left.

When to write to us

Every Nove has a three-year warranty on parts and labour, including the pump and the boiler. If the gauge stays well below 9 bar with a fresh, fine grind, or water drips from around the portafilter while it is locked in, write to us. Every part has a number and the panels come off with one screwdriver, so most fixes are one part in the post. We keep parts in Turin for every machine we have sold.