Look, my espresso machine had that funky smell again today. You know – stale coffee mixed with something vaguely sour. Time to grab my brush. I'm talking that ugly little tool they throw in the box nobody uses enough.

Step 1: Turning the Thing Off and Cooling It Down

First things first, I yanked the power plug. That hot steam nozzle? Not something you wanna accidentally bump with a metal brush handle. Played on my phone for 15 minutes while it cooled.

Step 2: Taking Apart the Easy Bits

Grabbed the portafilter off the machine – that heavy metal cup thing holding the coffee grounds. Twisted off the basket where the grounds sit. Found the steam wand tip – just unscrewed it with my fingers. Already saw gunk building up inside. Gross.

• Portafilter - Whole chunk of metal
• Basket - Little metal cup inside it
• Steam Tip - Small metal doodad off the steam wand

Step 3: Letting the Brush Do Its Ugly Job

Got my cleaning brush wet under the tap. Started scrubbing inside the empty portafilter like crazy. Dark brown water poured out. Then tackled the basket holes – really shoved the brush bristles through each one. Tiny clots of old coffee popped out. Satisfying, kinda.

That steam tip? Held it tight and went at the tiny holes with the brush tip. Some weird milky-white gunk came loose. Probably calcified milk, yuck.

Step 4: Dealing With the Nooks and Crannies

Put the basket back into the portafilter holder. Focused on the seal where the basket locks in – gave it a good scrub with the side of the brush. Coffee grounds always hide there. Then moved to the group head where the portafilter clicks onto the machine. Dry coffee grounds were stuck to the gasket. Brushed them away.

Step 5: Rinse it All Off Like Mad

Ran everything under hot water forever. Portafilter, basket, steam tip – all rinsed until the water ran clear, no more brown or white gunk. Made sure to rinse the brush itself too. Then I just dumped it on a clean dish towel to air dry.

Putting it back together felt good. Machine smells fresh, just like coffee should. Takes maybe 10 minutes if you don't let it get filthy like I did. Seriously, just use the stupid brush every week. It ain't rocket science, just scrubbing away gunk.