Espresso machines get dirty in two completely different ways, and the products that fix them are not interchangeable. Using the wrong one does not half-work — it does nothing at all, while the actual problem carries on getting worse.
Two problems, two products
| Scale | Coffee oils | |
|---|---|---|
| Comes from | Your water | Your coffee |
| Builds up in | Boiler, heating element, water lines | Brew group, screens, portafilter, baskets |
| You notice | Slow flow, weak steam, longer heat-up, flat or metallic-tasting shots | Bitter, ashy or stale-tasting shots; dull crema; a rancid note that will not go away |
| Fixed with | Descaler | Cleaning detergent or tablets |
A descaler is an acid that dissolves mineral deposits. A cleaning tablet is a detergent that lifts coffee oil. An acid will not shift rancid oil, and a detergent will not touch limescale. If your shots taste stale and you reach for the descaler, you have not treated anything.
Cafetto Renew: for scale
Cafetto Renew Descaler removes mineral scale from boilers, brew groups and batch brewers. It dissolves at one 25g sachet per litre of warm water, with a 15-minute contact time, and is rated safe on aluminium, brass and stainless steel.
Available as single 25g sachets for occasional use and a 2KG jar for sites descaling on a schedule.
How often depends almost entirely on your water, not your volume. We have written the full procedure separately: How often should you descale an espresso machine?
Cafetto S15: for coffee oils
Cafetto S15 cleaning tablets are made for the automatic cleaning cycle on fully automatic and bean-to-cup machines. Each 1.5g tablet is sized to dissolve completely within that cycle.
Available in an 8-tablet blister pack for smaller sites and a 100-tablet jar for daily use in high-volume operations.
Follow the cleaning routine your machine manufacturer specifies. Automatic machines differ in how they run the cycle and how often they prompt for it, and the manufacturer's instructions override any general advice — including ours.
Which one do I need right now?
- Shots taste bitter, ashy or stale — that is oil. Clean, do not descale.
- Flow has slowed, steam is weak, the machine takes longer to come up to temperature — that is scale. Descale.
- Both — clean first, then descale. Cleaning is the routine; descaling is the intervention.
- Neither has helped — the problem is probably grind, dose or a worn part, not chemistry.
What we do and do not stock
We carry the two Cafetto lines above: Renew descaler and S15 cleaning tablets. Cafetto also make milk-line cleaners, grinder cleaners and espresso backflush detergents, which we do not currently stock. If you need one of those, ask us — we would rather tell you where to get it than sell you the wrong thing.
Related guides
Browse espresso machine care.