How to Remove That Plastic Taste

What can be pretty standard with Keurig brewers is a lite plastic taste when brand new. So if you are getting this, do not worry; we can step you through how to remove it.

This problem typically comes from residue that can be present in the water reservoir. We are not sure if this is from the manufacturing process or perhaps the applied cleaning agents. But either way, it’s not very pleasant and most likely not all that good for you either.

Like many solutions we cover here at our site, there are generally two you can choose. One usually is fixing it yourself, and two, getting in touch with Keurig and get them to sort it out. We typically like to go for the fix yourself as this can often be quicker and less hassle. However, and sorry to mention again, anything to do with fixing your Keurig brewer when you are in warranty (i.e., you have had the brewer for around a year or less), you should always go for a replacement with Keurig themselves.

Solution 1

Moving on to getting rid of the plastic taste. This involves eight easy steps, set out below:

  1. Detach the water reservoir from the brewer and then fill the reservoir with warm soapy water. It needs to be filled to at least the max water mark. But we prefer almost to the top.
  2. Allow the solution to sit in the reservoir for approximately ½ hour.
  3. After its been soaking, take a non-abrasive cloth and give the reservoir a good wipe around inside.
  4. While you have this soapy water remove the K-Cup holder from the machine and wash thoroughly with the same cloth. Sometimes there can be residue build up in the holder too, so we want to remove any chance this is adding to the problem.
  5. Rinse the K-Cup holder thoroughly and dry with a soft cloth. It doesn’t need to be bone dry.
  6. Now tip the soapy water out of the reservoir and give the reservoir a good rinse out with warm water.
  7. Once the reservoir is thoroughly rinsed, you don’t want any of the soapy residue left, fill it up to is max level and then add ½ cup of white vinegar. We prefer to use distilled vinegar as it produces a better result.
  8. Place the reservoir back onto the brewer and you are now going to run through a few rinse cycles, ie with no K-Cup in the machine. This step of course is very much the approach we recommend in the de-scaling process and you can see these instructions on our other article here.

Solution 2

Give Keurig a call, and they will most likely send you a new reservoir. However, they will typically check if you have done a similar process to that above at least once or twice before they send you a new unit out. However, if you have been through solution 1 and you can still detect the plastic taste, a new reservoir is what you will need. You can find Keurig’s contact details here.