How to Clean an Electric Kettle

If the inside of your electric kettle is looking a little (or a lot) chalky, you’re going to need more than dish soap to get it clean.

Not surprisingly, the internet is rich with electric kettle cleaning tips. The most popular involves filling the inside of the kettle with equal parts water and white vinegar, bringing it to a boil, then letting it sit for about half an hour before rinsing.

Now, I love to clean with vinegar, but it’s not everyone’s cup of tea—especially because boiling a strong vinegar solution leaves a lingering vinegar smell in the air, often for hours. Sometimes it can be so potent you get a phantom vinegar taste in your mouth too!

My method doesn’t use vinegar, but it’s equally safe and it won’t leave your house smelling like a pickle factory. In fact, I happen to think my secret ingredient—food-grade citric acid—actually leaves a faintly pleasant scent in the air.

What is citric acid?

Citric acid is a compound originally derived from citrus fruits (it occurs naturally in lemon juice), and while it has some antibacterial properties, its real benefit is as a descaler. I use a crystal/powder form of citric acid to make a super-affordable DIY descaling/cleaning solution for my countertop ice maker and my Nespresso machine, and cleaning my electric kettle with citric acid is even easier.

What’s the white stuff on the inside of a kettle?

Before you clean your electric kettle, you should understand what’s making it look so dingy. The white, chalky stuff on the inside of a tea kettle is limescale, a buildup of minerals—primarily calcium and magnesium—that are present in all tap water. When water evaporates from a still-hot, nearly empty kettle, remaining calcium and magnesium crystallize into calcium carbonate (not to be confused with sodium bicarbonate, a.k.a. baking soda).

You’ve probably seen similar mineral deposits around the inside of your faucet spouts, on your showerhead, and in your coffee maker. There’s likely limescale buildup inside your hot water pipes too—and it could be in your cold water pipes if your municipality has noticeably hard water.

Is limescale dangerous?

It’s possible for limescale to harbor bacteria if it lingers in a kettle. Theoretically, this shouldn’t be an issue, since boiling water is often used to kill bacteria. However, according to the CDC, this is only effective if the bacteria is in contact with water at a rolling boil for at least one minute at sea level (it takes even longer at higher elevations). And if you’re like me, you remove your kettle from the electric heating element or stovetop the second it beeps or whistles at you to signal that the water has reached its boiling point of 212ºF. And if your target temp is even lower for pour-over coffee or specific types of tea, your water will never reach a rolling boil.

Unfortunately, the only way to prevent limescale buildup in your kettle in the first place is to exclusively use distilled water. But that’s a lot of trouble to go to when you have access to fresh water from your kitchen sink. Plus, it’s very easy to descale an electric kettle with citric acid.

Also, while not a health concern, it’s worth saying that too much mineral buildup can affect the function of an electric tea kettle because most rely on sensors inside of the kettle to maintain and display accurate water temperatures.

How to descale your electric kettle with citric acid

Step 1: To descale a tea kettle (electric or not), simply fill it with clean water. If the limescale is built up on the sides of a stainless steel kettle as well as on the bottom, fill to above the white stuff if you can.

Step 2: Bring the water to a boil, turn off the heat source or flame, then add a spoonful of citric acid. It can be a teaspoon-ish if you have a small kettle (under a liter), a tablespoon-ish if you have a large one (over a liter).

Step 3: Let your DIY solution sit for about 10 minutes, then rinse with fresh warm water until the inside of the kettle looks as good as new. If the buildup is really bad, you may need to let it soak a little longer or repeat this process. You can also let it soak overnight.

With this method, you shouldn’t have to use a cloth or brush inside the kettle at all—which is good because doing so could damage sensors or other electronic elements.

If you notice any limescale buildup on the outside of the kettle (I tend to get a little around the spout of my Fellow Corvo EKG) you can dip a microfiber cloth or other soft cloth in the solution that’s already in the kettle. Then use the cloth to soak and wipe away limescale buildup on the exterior of the kettle. You might need to repeat this a few times to dislodge mineral deposits. You can also use the damp cloth to wipe down the entire exterior.

Other citric acid kitchen cleaning products

I always keep Lemi Shine citric acid crystals under the sink because I can use them to make my own small-appliance descaler as well as pour them into my dishwasher’s detergent compartment when I notice dishes coming out cloudy. But if you’d rather not deal with mixing up a solution, you can use a premade citric-acid-based descaling solution to clean your electric tea kettle. Just keep in mind that it’s concentrated and does need to be mixed with water too. Lemi Shine has also branched out with more products for the kitchen too, including a dishwasher cleaner and a garbage disposal cleaner.