Found out our office coffee maker hasn't been cleaned in 6 years

I was refilling the water tank yesterday and noticed this weird slime buildup under the lid. So I looked up the model manual online... turns out it says to descale every 3 months and replace the internal filter yearly. Checked our maintenance log. Nobody has done either thing since 2018. Six years of old mineral deposits growing God knows what in there. I brought it up to my manager and she just shrugged. Has anyone else found something gross lurking in their office kitchen?

2 comments

2 Comments

riley86015d ago

actually the thing about descaling every 3 months might be a bit off for most office machines i've seen. usually it's more like every 3-6 months depending on your water hardness and how much coffee gets made. but yeah not cleaning it for 6 years is seriously bad, that's just asking for mold and bacteria growing in all the internal parts. the slime under the lid is probably biofilm which is basically a colony of microorganisms that can make people sick. i'd honestly start bringing my own coffee from home or use the hot water dispenser for tea until they get it sorted, because there's no way that machine is safe to drink from anymore. maybe suggest they just buy a new one since a deep clean on something that neglected would cost more than a replacement anyway.

diana31415d ago

bringing your own coffee is honestly the smartest move here. that biofilm stuff is no joke, it can really mess with your stomach if you keep drinking from that machine. i had a similar situation at my old office where the keurig was totally neglected and someone finally took it apart, it was terrifying what was growing in there. sounds like they need to just scrap it and start fresh with a new machine that actually gets cleaned on a regular schedule.