Written by Mitali Bellamkonda
The alarm clock shrieks; your bloodshot eyes shoot open and quickly narrow to a piercing squint. It’s already way too bright out. Then, as soon as you rise to your feet, you get a blistering headache as if you’d just climbed Mount Everest. You’re only 3.5 ft above bed level, yet the air is even thinner.
When the start of your day is this irritatingly bad, you seriously consider burying yourself back under the covers and trying the whole thing again tomorrow. Fortunately, today is National Coffee Day! So, slip those chilly toes into your bunny slippers and pay homage with a nice hot cup of all that’s keeping you out of that nice warm bed.
But wait! Even that goes terribly awry. Is it too petty an expectation to think that the amount of water that goes into your coffee machine should roughly match the amount of coffee that comes out? Instead, your coffee cup has far less. What tomfoolery is this?
Turns out, you’re not crazy nor are you alone. It’s a common problem.
In fact, in our house, we’ve long cracked the mysterious case of the missing coffee water and have a few tricks for outwitting the invisible coffee thieves.
Want to maximize your coffee output until every sweet, sweet ounce is accounted for? Try these simple steps:
First, check to make sure the tubing is in the proper place. Loose tubing allows steam to escape the machine before ever reaching your coffee cup.
Second, flush out the tubing with vinegar. This should clean out any clogs or buildup that may be blocking the water flow.
Finally, clean out the tubing with as much water as needed to get rid of the vinegar taste…unless you want a tangy kick in your taste buds to really wake you up!
If these steps don’t work, consider bringing your coffee maker to an appliance repair professional or just get a new one if it’s one of the really cheap ones. Severe clogs or punctures in the tubing may be irreparable.
However, don’t let such thoughts bring you down today. This is your day to enjoy one of the things that makes getting out of bed more bearable. So, to all of you caffeine fiends out there, Happy National Coffee Day!
