Cleaning your Niche Duo will help keep it producing quality grinds time after time. Because the Duo retains virtually zero grinds, there’s no need to scrub it daily. However, a semi-regular cleaning routine will keep it in tip-top condition. Maintaining the Duo doesn’t take long – especially with this helpful guide to hand!
When to clean your grinder
The Niche Duo is a virtually zero-retention grinder and does an incredible job of making sure that coffee residue is minimal. This means there’s absolutely no need to clean your Duo after every grind. You can change beans without fear of contamination.
Nonetheless, oils and extremely fine particles may cling to the burrs, so an occasional clean will help keep everything fresh. For regular, daily users, a two-stage cleaning routine should involve a light clean every couple of weeks and a deep clean every few months.
Light cleaning your Niche Duo
If the Niche Duo is a regularly used part of your kitchen coffee bar, it’s a good idea to lightly clean it every couple of weeks. To do this, you will need:
- A clear space – Putting down a clean tea towel or similar gives you somewhere to put the parts you take out of the grinder.
- A soft brush – The Niche Duo is supplied with a quality long-haired brush that’s ideal for sweeping away any coffee particles, but if you don’t have it to hand, a soft-bristled toothbrush offers a reasonable alternative.
- Cotton gloves – Light cotton or nitrile gloves will help prevent oils from your hand transferring to the burrs when you touch them.
- Cloths – A clean, damp cloth will be needed to wipe the outside of the machine, while a soft, dry microfibre cloth should be used to dry.
Step-by-step light cleaning your Niche Duo
It doesn’t take long to wipe over and brush out your Duo.
- Prepare your space – Make sure you have enough room to lay out the few pieces you will remove from the grinder.
- Unplug the grinder – Safety first! Never clean the grinder without unplugging it from the mains.
- Put the grind cup in place – Before you clean out the grind chamber, put the cup in place to catch any loose grinds.
- Remove the bean hopper and upper burr – Unscrew and remove the hopper, placing it to one side. Then lift out the upper burr and place it to the side.
- Sweep out the grind chamber – Using the supplied brush, clean the lower burr and chamber. The natural oils on your hands can damage the burrs over time, so make sure you are wearing gloves and avoid touching the exposed burrs. Sweep any residual grinds into the hole at the bottom of the grind chamber, where they will fall into the waiting grind cup.
- Clean the upper burr – Separately, brush-clean the removed upper burr, holding it carefully by the attached carrier. Return this to the grinder.
- Replace the bean hopper – Screw the bean hopper back into place.
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Sweep out the chute – Use the brush to loosen and sweep out any particles clinging to the inside of the chute.
- Wipe and dry the body – With your clean, damp cloth, finish by wiping over the body of the Duo, including the power cord and lid. Dry this immediately with the other cloth.
- Wash the grind cup – The grind cup can be simply washed with warm soapy water and dried as usual.
Note: Should you wish to vacuum clean the grind chamber rather than using a brush, it is important that you remove the three springs set into the outer ring of the grind chamber to avoid these being sucked up by the vacuum. Replace them once done.
Deep cleaning your Niche Duo – the extra steps
A deep clean is only needed every few months and just involves a few extra steps on top of the regular light clean. In addition to the tools needed for the light clean, you will need the supplied hex driver and some food-safe grease.
Step-by-step deep cleaning your Niche Duo
- Prepare your space – Make sure you have enough room to lay out the few pieces you will remove from the grinder.
- Unplug the grinder – Safety first! Never clean the grinder without unplugging it from the mains.
- Put the grind cup in place – Before you clean out the grind chamber, put the cup in place to catch any loose grinds.
- Remove the bean hopper and upper burr – Unscrew and remove the hopper, placing it to one side. Then lift out the upper burr and place it to the side.
- Remove the springs – With a small screwdriver or similar, hook out the three springs in the outer ring of the grinder and put them carefully to the side.
- Unscrew the lower burr – Using the hex driver, unscrew the lower burr and put it to the side.
- Clean the grind chamber – Use your brush to sweep out any grounds and then wipe the inner grind chamber with a dry microfibre cloth.
- Clean the upper and lower burrs – Brush-clean both removed burrs. Remember to wear your gloves, as the oils on your hands may damage the burrs over the longer term.
- Clean the adjustment threads – Use a soft toothbrush to clean the adjustment threads at the top of the grind chamber. These should then be lightly greased using food-safe grease.
- Reassemble the grinder – Replace the lower burr and screw, the springs, and the upper burr.
- Replace the bean hopper – Screw the bean hopper into place.
- Clean the chute – As with the light clean, brush out the chute. For this deeper clean, we also recommend wiping the inside of the chute thoroughly with your cloth. Dry afterwards.
- Wipe clean and finish- Follow steps 9 and 10 of the light clean to finish the deep clean.
Following a deep clean, we recommend you grind 18g of coffee and discard it.
Check out our helpful video that covers cleaning, zeroing and general maintenance of your grinder.
Looking after your Niche Duo
Keeping your grinder in optimum condition is easy with a few quick habits:
- Don’t avoid a light clean – Your Duo is an active piece of equipment that gets regular use, so don’t neglect it and allow it to get dirty. Lightly cleaning regularly will help ensure your coffee grounds are bright and fresh.
- Avoid moisture – Keep your grinder as dry as possible, situating it away from the steam produced by espresso machines and kettles. Never wipe the inside with a damp cloth without immediately drying it.
- Trust your taste – If your coffee is tasting flat or stale, it’s a good indicator that the grinder needs a clean.
- Evaluate the ground coffee – Your Niche Duo is a piece of precision equipment. Well-maintained, it will provide a uniform, consistent grind for years to come. If your grind is off, it’s time to clean.
When your grinder is fresh and clean, so too is the taste of your coffee – don't let it become dull!
Having a grinder that's easy to clean is very important, but there are a lot of things to consider when choosing a grinder – find out more here.
Cleaning your Niche Duo - FAQs
Q: How long does it take to clean a Niche Duo?
A: A routine light clean of the Niche Duo will take just a few minutes – it's just a brush down and wipe over. Preparing the space beforehand means everything will go smoothly. A deep clean adds ten minutes or so, as you brush and wipe out the grind chamber.
Q: Should I use grinder cleaning tablets/beans?
A: No. The Niche Duo is a virtually zero-retention grinder and doesn’t need more than a brush and clean cloth to clean. Grinder cleaning tablets often leave residue and are not recommended.
Q: Should I wash any of the parts in water?
A: No – except for the grind cup. Keeping your Niche Duo grinder dry is important, and if any parts come into contact with water, you should be sure to dry them immediately. Never put any part of your Niche Duo into the dishwasher or in direct contact with water.
Q: Doesn’t ‘zero retention’ mean zero cleaning?
A: Being a virtually zero retention grinder means the Niche Duo eliminates contamination between grinds, but oils and tiny particles of coffee residue can cling to the parts. Cleaning your equipment is part of a good maintenance routine.
Q: Do I need to zero or recalibrate the Niche Duo after cleaning?
A: No. Zeroing the Niche Duo should only need to be done if you experience a shift in the grind size. The precision engineering of the grinder means there’s no need to perform a recalibration or re-zeroing each time it’s reassembled.
Maintain a clean Niche Duo for tastier coffee
Coffee ground with a clean grinder is bright and fresh – a few minutes keeping your Niche Duo shiny and clean will ensure that you’re drinking your best cup each and every time.
Adding a light clean to your regular kitchen schedule and marking a day every few months on the calendar to take an extra ten minutes for that deep clean will make all the difference in both taste and grinder longevity. Enjoy delicious coffee with Niche.
Want to clean your Niche Zero instead? Find out more here.