The Truth about Keeping Commercial Beverage Equipment Clean, Performing and Serving Great-Tasting Drinks
Cold brew, refreshers, flavored teas, lemonades, and other cold beverages have transformed from a niche offering into a staple on café, convenience store, restaurant, and foodservice menus. As operators invest in premium beans, sophisticated brewing systems, and carefully crafted recipes, one area is still often misunderstood: How to properly clean cold brew equipment.
Unfortunately, there are plenty of misconceptions that can lead to poor beverage quality, equipment problems, and even food safety risks.
Let's separate fact from fiction.
Myth #1: " Cold Brewing equipment stays ‘Cleaner’ than Hot Brewing equipment"
False.
In reality, cold brew equipment often requires more attention than traditional hot coffee equipment.
Cold brew is extracted over 12 to 24 hours, allowing significantly more coffee oils to dissolve into the beverage. Buildup is hidden. Those oils don't simply disappear—they coat brew vessels, tubing, faucets, kegs, and dispensing lines.
Unlike hot brewing systems, cold water does little to help dissolve these stubborn oils during cleaning.
The result:
- Coffee oils oxidize and become rancid.
- Flavor deteriorates over time.
- Fresh coffee begins tasting stale or bitter.
- Residue continues building with every batch.
Cold brewing may happen at lower temperatures, but the cleaning challenge is actually greater. Cold brew systems often require equal or greater cleaning attention than hot brew equipment.
Coffee oils are hydrophobic, they don’t dissolve in water alone and require a dedicated cleaner formulated to perform in ambient temperatures.
Myth #2: "If I Can't See Any Buildup, My Equipment Is Clean"
False.
The majority of residue develops inside the system where operators rarely look.
Coffee oils accumulate in:
- Tubing
- Dispensing lines
- Valves
- Faucets
- Kegs
- Connectors
- Internal reservoirs
Even equipment that looks spotless on the outside can have significant buildup internally.
Many beverage quality issues begin where customers—and operators—can't see.
Myth #3: "Running Water Through the System Is Enough"
False.
Water removes loose product, but it doesn't remove coffee oils.
Coffee oils are hydrophobic, meaning they will not dissolve in water alone.
Without a purpose-built cleaner, those oils continue layering onto internal surfaces until they begin affecting:
- Flavor
- Flow rates
- Equipment performance
- Sanitation effectiveness
Rinsing is important—but rinsing isn't cleaning.
Myth #4: "Any Coffee Cleaner Will Work"
Not necessarily.
Many traditional coffee cleaners were developed for hot brewing equipment, where heat helps activate cleaning chemistry.
Cold brew systems are typically cleaned using ambient or cold water.
That means cleaners designed for hot water may not perform as effectively when temperatures are lower.
Cleaning products formulated specifically for cold or ambient applications are designed to remove coffee oils efficiently without relying on heat.
Matching the chemistry to the application makes a significant difference.
Myth #5: "Sanitizing Is More Important Than Cleaning"
False—and this is one of the biggest misconceptions.
Cleaning and sanitizing serve two completely different purposes:
Cleaning removes:
- Coffee oils
- Sugars
- Organic residue
- Mineral buildup
Sanitizing reduces microorganisms on surfaces that have already been cleaned.
If oils and residue remain on the equipment, sanitizers can't fully contact the surface underneath.
That's why every effective cleaning program follows the same sequence:
- Clean
- Rinse
- Sanitize
Skipping the cleaning step reduces the effectiveness of everything that follows.
Myth #6: "Coffee Is the Only Residue I Need to Worry About"
Not anymore.
Today's beverage programs include much more than coffee.
Modern dispensing systems often handle:
- Cold brew
- Iced coffee
- Tea
- Refreshers
- Lemonades
- Dairy-based beverages
- Plant-based milks
- Syrups
- Concentrates
Each leave behind different soils that require different cleaning considerations.
Coffee oils, sugars, proteins, tannins, and mineral deposits can all accumulate inside the same system.
As beverage menus evolve, cleaning programs and products must evolve as well.
Myth #7: "Cleaning Is Only About Equipment Maintenance"
It's much more than that.
Proper cleaning protects:
Beverage Quality
- Fresh beverages taste the way they're intended, without flavor carryover or stale notes.
Equipment Performance
- Removing buildup keeps valves, pumps, tubing, and dispensing components operating efficiently.
Equipment Life
- Routine cleaning reduces wear caused by residue accumulation and mineral deposits.
Food Safety
- Removing organic soils before sanitizing supports a more effective food safety program.
Customer Experience
- Customers may never see inside your equipment—but they experience the results in every drink.
The Truth: Beverage Cleaning Has Evolved and so has Urnex
As beverage menus have expanded beyond traditional coffee, cleaning challenges have become more complex. Different beverages create different soils, and different equipment requires different cleaning solutions.
Urnex has continued to innovate alongside the industry with purpose-built products for every stage of the beverage program:
Clearly Cold® – Specifically formulated to remove coffee oils from cold brew systems, delivering effective cleaning in ambient temperature applications, helping preserve beverage flavor and system performance. Its liquid formula is instantly soluble, eliminating the need to dissolve powders while ensuring fast, consistent cleaning with every use.
Complete Café™ – An EPA-registered sanitizer specifically designed for use on and around coffee, tea, cold brew, ice, and other café beverage equipment after the cleaning process. Its dual-chamber bottle features a built-in measuring reservoir for accurate dosing and consistent sanitizer concentration, making it easy to achieve proper PPM levels. Formulated for food-contact surfaces, Complete Café helps maintain a hygienic beverage environment while supporting beverage quality and food safety without requiring a rinse when used as directed.
One-Pro® – A high-performance cleaner that removes coffee oils, sugars, and organic residue from high volume beverage equipment, including bubblers, iced tea brewers, granita machines, and cold beverage dispensers.
Freez® – A professional-strength, citric acid-based cleaner designed to remove mineral scale and buildup from ice machines, helping maintain ice quality and equipment performance. Its nickel-safe formula is compatible with a wide range of ice systems, while the green indicator dye provides a visual cue to ensure proper rinsing after cleaning. Regular use helps extend equipment life, improve operational efficiency, and keep ice tasting fresh and clean.
Coming Soon: BEVZ™ – Developed for today's concentrated, cold, and ambient beverage dispensing systems, BEVZ removes multiple beverage soils in a single application, helping simplify cleaning across coffee, tea, refreshers, and specialty beverage equipment. Recognizing its innovation, BEVZ has been nominated for the 2026 Best New Product Innovation Award at the World of Coffee Brussels 2026.
Strengthen Your Beverage Cleaning Program Now!
From brewing to dispensing, Urnex delivers the industry's most complete portfolio of beverage cleaning solutions, helping operators protect beverage quality, maximize equipment performance, and keep every pour tasting its best.
Great beverages don't start with great ingredients alone—they start with clean equipment.
Whether you manage a single café, a national chain, or supply equipment across multiple foodservice locations, now is the time to evaluate your cleaning program.
Ask yourself:
- Are our cleaners designed for today's cold beverage equipment?
- Are we effectively removing coffee oils, sugars, and beverage residue?
- Are our teams consistently following the clean-rinse-sanitize process?
- Are we protecting beverage quality as well as our equipment investment?
New beverage trends continue to emerge. Your cleaning program should be ready for what's next.
Contact an Urnex Representative to learn more about our complete portfolio of beverage cleaning solutions that can help keep every pour tasting its best.