Coffee Maker Cleaner Tablets: How to Use Them in Every Type of Machine
Where the tablet goes depends on the machine. In a pod brewer like a Keurig, put it in the empty pod holder and brew the largest cup. In a drip or espresso machine, drop it in the water tank and run a brew or descale cycle with no coffee. Then pour out the water, wipe off loosened residue and run one full cycle of fresh water. At 1 to 2 cups a day, use one tablet every two weeks: a box of 24 BLITZ tablets lasts a year, about $1.04 a clean. Bean-to-cup machines (Jura, Miele, Philips, De'Longhi automatics) take their maker's own tablets.
Shop BLITZ Coffee Maker Cleaner, $24.95
In this guide
Where the tablet goes in each type of coffee maker
A coffee maker cleaner tablet dissolves in the water that runs through the machine and breaks down the scale and coffee oils inside, where a brush can't reach. What changes from machine to machine is where you put it.
Pod machine (Keurig and other K-Cup brewers): in the empty pod holder. Drip or espresso machine: in the water tank. Bean-to-cup machine (automatic, with a built-in grinder): the maker's own tablets, see below.
Not sure whether your machine needs cleaning, descaling or both? See coffee maker cleaning vs descaling. A BLITZ tablet does both in the same cycle.
How to use coffee maker cleaner tablets, step by step
You need: one tablet, fresh water, a sink, and a large mug or the carafe. Use one tablet per cycle, never with coffee or a pod in the machine. If you use a water filter, take it out first (Keurig has you do this before descaling).
Single-serve pod machine (Keurig and other K-Cup brewers)
- Prep: take out the used pod and fill the reservoir with fresh water.
- Tablet in the pod holder: drop one tablet in the empty pod holder and close the handle.
- Brew: put a large ceramic mug on the drip tray and brew at the largest cup size.
- Pour out and wipe: pour the water down the sink and wipe off any loosened residue around the pod holder.
- Rinse: run one more full brew of fresh water at the largest size.
If grounds or a weak flow show up, look at the needles. Keurig has you clear the exit needle with a paper clip; a tablet won't push out a clog of grounds.
When a Keurig shows DESCALE, the light turns off only once the brewer has been through its Descale Mode. Model-by-model steps are in how to descale a Keurig.
Nespresso Vertuo: BLITZ says its tablets work in a Vertuo too: one tablet in the pod holder, with no capsule. The steps and the orange light are in how to descale a Nespresso Vertuo.
Drip coffee maker
- Prep: empty the basket so there's no coffee in it, and put the empty carafe in place.
- Tablet in the tank: fill the water tank as usual and drop in one tablet.
- Run the cycle: a regular brew, or the machine's clean cycle if it has one. On a Cuisinart Brew Central, that's the Self Clean button.
- Pour out and wipe: empty the carafe and wipe off any loosened residue in the basket area.
- Rinse: run one more full tank of fresh water through.
Espresso machine (pump or manual)
- Prep: remove the portafilter and empty the drip tray.
- Tablet in the tank: fill the tank as usual and drop in one tablet.
- Run a cycle: start the descale mode if your machine has one. If not, run the water through the brew head as you would for a shot, with no coffee.
- Pour out and wipe: throw out the water and wipe off any loosened residue around the brew head and drip tray.
- Rinse: refill the tank with fresh water and run one more full cycle.
Get 24 tablets, about $1.04 a clean
Bean-to-cup machines: a built-in cleaning program
Automatic machines with a built-in grinder run cleaning programs built around the maker's own tablets, and the cleaning tablet usually goes in the ground-coffee chute, not the water tank. How often each one asks:
- Jura (E8 manual): the machine asks for a cleaning after 180 preparations, and the Jura cleaning tablet goes in the filler funnel for ground coffee.
- Miele (CM 5100 manual): degrease the brew unit about every 200 cups with Miele cleaning tablets in the ground coffee chute.
- Philips and Saeco: Philips coffee oil remover tablets go in the pre-ground coffee compartment to remove grease from the brew group. Philips notes they don't descale.
- De'Longhi automatics: take out the brew unit every week and clean it with water only.
BLITZ is made for pod, drip and espresso machines, and that's where one tablet does the whole inside of the machine in one cycle.
How many rinse cycles after a cleaning tablet?
One full cycle of fresh water, after you pour out the cleaning water and wipe off loosened residue. That's the BLITZ direction, so your coffee doesn't taste of cleaner, and it's the step people skip. On a pod machine that means a largest-size brew; on a drip or espresso machine, a full tank.
Makers' own descalers can ask for far more: Keurig's K-Elite guide calls for at least 12 rinsing brews after its solution.
Tip: Don't drink the water from the cleaning cycle. Sniff the rinse water before your next coffee: if it smells or tastes of anything but water, run one more rinse.
When it doesn't go to plan
| What you see | What to do |
|---|---|
| Coffee tastes of cleaner | Run another fresh-water rinse. Still off after that? See bitter coffee after cleaning. |
| Brewing is still slow, or half cups | Heavy scale: run a second cycle with a new tablet. On a pod machine, clear the needles too. |
| Grounds in the cup | A cleaning job, not a tablet job: wash the basket or pod holder and clear the needles. |
How often to use coffee maker cleaner tablets
One tablet every two weeks if you brew 1 to 2 cups a day. That's the BLITZ direction, and it's why a box of 24 lasts a year. BLITZ adds that machines used more, or in an office, need it more often. Coffee oils build up with every cup whatever your water, so even soft water gets the two-week rhythm.
Scale is where your city matters. On the USGS scale, Gatineau and most of Laval have soft water (under 60 mg/L), Montréal and Toronto moderately hard water (about 117 to 119 mg/L), and Edmonton, Calgary and Regina hard to very hard water (over 120 mg/L). In hard water, or at 3 or more cups a day, go weekly: a box then lasts about 6 months.
The simplest test: if brewing slows down, or a white film shows up in the tank, before your next tablet is due, clean more often. Check how hard the water is in your city.
What a cleaning tablet replaces, and what it doesn't
Vinegar works on scale only, and some makers sell one product per job: Philips says its coffee oil remover tablets don't descale. A BLITZ tablet breaks down scale and coffee oil residue inside the machine in one cycle, with no vinegar smell. The same box works in every pod, drip and espresso machine in the house.
What it doesn't replace: washing the carafe, basket and drip tray in warm, soapy water; Breville's CLEAN ME back-flush with its cleaning disc and tablet, which Breville calls "separate from decalcifying"; bean-to-cup care tablets; milk frother cleaning; and water filter changes.
The cost: about $1.04 a clean ($24.95 for 24). Keurig's descaling solution was $19.94 a bottle (one bottle per descale) on keurig.ca, and Nespresso's kit $13.00 for two descales on nespresso.com/ca (checked October 19 and 20, 2026; prices move). Vinegar costs less, but it smells, takes extra rinses and doesn't touch coffee oils: see descaler vs vinegar.
Why BLITZ coffee maker tablets
- One tablet for scale and coffee oils, in pod, drip and espresso machines. A year in one box: 24 tablets for $24.95.
- Septic-safe, from BLITZ, a Québec company based in Laval, with service in French and English.
- Free shipping in Canada on orders of $40 or more ($7.95 under $40). Most orders arrive in 2 to 3 business days.
- 10% back in store credit on goblitzclean.com, and a 30-day money-back guarantee. Also on Amazon.ca (no store credit there).
Rated 4.8 out of 5 (14 reviews) on goblitzclean.com. One reviewer who uses it in an espresso machine noted that "the tablet dissolved fairly quickly, taking about a minute."
Frequently asked questions
Where do you put a coffee maker cleaning tablet?
In a pod machine like a Keurig, in the empty pod holder (brew the largest cup). In a drip or espresso machine, in the water tank (run a brew or descale cycle with no coffee). Bean-to-cup machines take the maker's own tablets, usually in the ground-coffee chute.
Do coffee maker cleaning tablets descale too?
It depends on the tablet. A BLITZ tablet breaks down mineral scale and coffee oil residue in the same cycle. Some maker tablets do only one job: Philips says its coffee oil remover tablets don't descale, and Breville's cleaning tablet is for the back-flush, separate from decalcifying.
How many rinse cycles after using a cleaning tablet?
One full cycle of fresh water, per the BLITZ directions, after you throw out the cleaning water and wipe off loosened residue. If the rinse water still smells or tastes of cleaner, run another.
How often should you use coffee maker cleaner tablets?
Every two weeks at 1 to 2 cups a day, so a box of 24 lasts a year. Busier machines need it more often: with hard water or 3 or more cups a day, use one every week.
Can I use cleaning tablets in a Jura or another bean-to-cup machine?
BLITZ is made for pod, drip and espresso machines. A Jura or another bean-to-cup machine runs its own cleaning program, with the maker's tablet in the ground-coffee funnel when the machine asks for it (after 180 preparations on a Jura E8).
Sources: BLITZ product page and directions; Keurig, Nespresso, Breville, De'Longhi, Jura, Miele, Philips and Cuisinart manuals and support pages; keurig.ca and nespresso.com/ca; the USGS hardness scale and city water reports. Checked October 19 and 20, 2026.
Keurig, K-Cup, Nespresso, Vertuo, Breville, De'Longhi, Jura, CLEARYL, Miele, Philips, Saeco and Cuisinart are trademarks of their owners. BLITZ is not affiliated with them.
ONE TABLET, EVERY TWO WEEKS
BLITZ Coffee Maker Cleaner
One tablet breaks down mineral scale and coffee oil residue in pod machines, including K-Cup brewers, drip and espresso machines. 24 tablets for $24.95, a year of cleanings at two a month.
Free shipping across Canada on orders of $40 or more, 10% back in store credit on every order, and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
