All faithful friends leave you eventually, and your loyal coffee maker might be next. It’s a fact that most gadgets and appliances aren’t meant to last forever, especially kitchen appliances that have to deal with extreme temperatures and various liquids on daily basis. One of these appliances is the coffee maker, which sees much more varied use than your toaster or microwave.
If you really care about the quality of your coffee, you’ll want to always stay on top of your brewing process. Any slight hiccup and you’ll be ready to take whatever actions necessary to correct that problem. No compromises on coffee if it’s literally the first thing you drink each morning. So let’s discuss when it might be time to retire your old friend in favor of a newer replacement.
If It Requires Constant Fixes, Ditch It
As gadgets and appliances both electrical and mechanical grow old, their parts slowly start wearing down and eventually breaking down as well. Your coffee maker is not exempt from the complications of old age, and it will show. If you’ve noticed that you’ve been requiring more and more fixes every day to keep your coffee maker chugging along, it is definitely finally time to put the girl to rest.
This applies to all manner of appliances, and it’s easy to see why. People often grow too comfortable with something, and the last thing they want is a change in their established daily routine. The thought of having to get a new coffee maker and learn how it works to the point you can operate it subconsciously is a bit unwelcome. However, look at it from a more rational perspective. You’re only costing yourself more money by continually getting your existing coffee maker repaired. And all the time it spends being repaired is time not spent brewing coffee. A week after purchasing a new coffee maker you’ll be thanking yourself, and we’ve written a handy guide to help you do just that.
The Temperature of the Coffee Feels Off
There is an established ‘perfect temperature’ for brewing coffee, though it’s not necessarily what everyone brews their coffees at. You probably have your own favorite temperature for the perfect brew. But, if you’ve recently been failing to achieve that perfect temperature, it might be time to get a new coffee maker so you can get back to drinking perfect coffee.
It’s no surprise really that the heating mechanism inside coffee makers is prone to failing after years of use. Anything that requires being heated up to extremely high temperatures literally every day is bound to give up sooner or later. Heat and electronics are already natural enemies, so it is perfectly reasonable for this mechanism to fail. Sure, you can try to get it fixed or replaced. But, as we’ve just discussed above, ask yourself if it’s really worth the hassle and unpredictable functioning later on. Odds are you’ll decide ‘no’, and get a brand new coffee maker to abuse all over again.
The Coffee Maker is Too Dirty
If you haven’t been properly cleaning your coffee maker regularly, you’ll be needing to replace it very soon indeed. And if you have been cleaning it, you’ll still be needing to replace it sooner or later. Coffee makers should generally be cleaned very thoroughly. Not only can they accumulate stains alarmingly fast, if they’re not properly taken apart and cleaned in every corner, they will become unhygienic too.
Yep, coffee makers can’t just be wiped down in a hurry. You need to disassemble the removeable parts and clean them all separately. And even with good cleaning practices, it is inevitable that inaccessible reaches of the coffee maker will get coated in grime over the years. This might not have been that much of a problem if it was, say, a television. But this is literally something you use every day to make something you intake into your body. If it’s dirty, it needs to go.
It Has Developed a Leak
Extreme heat in an appliance that handles liquids is not a good outlook for the future of said appliance. If your coffee maker is leaking on to your kitchen counter, it is definitely time for a new one. Don’t even bother trying to get this fixed. Not only is it a pain to figure out where the leak is coming from, it’s also unhygienic and difficult to repair. And if you do manage to fix it, it will break down again pretty soon. If it’ leaking, just change it. Trust us.
Reasons Other Than Malfunctions
Of course, something breaking down or not functioning properly aren’t the only reasons one may want to get a replacement. There are other reasons as well, but you might have thought them to be non-issues that you shouldn’t waste money on. Let us assure you that if any of the following issues listed below are plaguing you, you are well justified to get yourself a replacement.
Not Enough Modern Features: If you’ve been wowed by the new coffee machines making their way on to the shelves as of late, treat yourself. There’s no reason to cling to old tech even if it’s working fine. It’s only natural to want something shinier, newer, and much more user friendly.
It’s Not as Efficient: Once again playing into the old vs new argument, getting yourself a new product to replace a very old one is perfectly reasonable and justifiable. Not only are older models less efficient in making coffee from the available resources, they’re also very likely power hogs adding a lot to your electric bill. Get yourself a nice, modern coffee machine and you’ll make up for it just in power consumption reductions alone.
It Can’t Make Enough in One Go: Finding yourself spending way too long in the kitchen serving up coffee for your guests? Frustrated at not being able to actually spend more time with them while your coffee maker slowly prepares another two mugs? It is time to get a bigger coffee maker. Putting aside the obvious advancements a newer model would provide, just the increased brewing capacity would be a Godsend if you have guests often.
It Can’t Make Newer Forms of Coffee: Coffee has been continually evolving ever since the first ever brew was made. So if your current coffee maker lacks the options to prepare some new flavor or type of coffee, it is as good a reason as any to replace it. After all, do you really love coffee if you settle for something below optimal?
Conclusion
Are you on your way to get a replacement already? Good, good. Very good. The decision to get a new coffee maker might have seemed an unnecessary one, but hopefully we’ve cleared up your head like any good cup of the stuff. If you’ve decided you do in fact see a reason to go out and buy a new coffee maker, we’ve done our job here and we hope you get a replacement befitting of your wants.