Hints from heloise

Dear Heloise: My coffee has been tasting stale for a while now, and I have been blaming my husband, who makes the daily pot. Then I remembered that it could be the residue in the maker and it could need a cleaning, but I have forgotten the formula for cleaning it. Please advise. — Carol, via e-mail

Carol, I’d be happy to reprint the easy way to clean a coffee maker using my favorite — vinegar! All you need to do is run some full-strength vinegar through a regular brew cycle, followed by a couple of brew cycles with plain water. This should have your coffee tasting good again! — Heloise