<p>Word on the street is that:</p>

<ol>
<li>The milk residue will get "baked on" by the heat of the steam wand, making it even more difficult to clean than if you'd just done it when the milk was still wet.</li>
<li>Any milk left on the tip of the wand will get sucked up into the machine's water reservoirs by changes in air pressure, where it will stay and become rancid and ruin everybody's drinks.</li>
</ol>

<p>This is according to Joel's biweekly beratings on the topic. We might ask him to cite his sources.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-01-28T18:47:46.387Z
Joel? Joel who? I don't know of any Joel.
stevvve
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-01-29T02:14:14.203Z
@stevvve: I don't even work at SE and I know who Joel is.
Alex A.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-01-29T21:35:59.227Z
Haha @Alex my comment clearly needs a " ;-) " to properly convey my tone.
stevvve
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-01-30T01:18:50.170Z
@stevvve: I could infer your ";-)" but I should have added my own ";-)" to my comment. ;-)
Alex A.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-01-30T01:22:31.690Z
;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-)  :-)
stevvve
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-01-28T18:43:46.300Z
2015-01-28T21:04:16.600Z
2015-01-28T21:04:16.600Z
hairboat
<p>I cant speak for this particular machine,  but i failed to clean the steam frother on my old machine and residual milk caked on to the (aluminum) wand! I tried everything to get the residue off but not even sandpaper worked.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-01-28T18:15:44.733Z
2015-01-28T18:15:44.733Z
Alex
<p>Our lovely <a href="http://www.lamarzocco.com/en/products/linea.html">La Marzocco Linea</a> at Stack HQ is a workhorse. Lots of people making lots of drinks, many of which require the frothing of milk. We are regularly reminded to clean the steam wand to prevent damage to the machine.</p>

<p>But what happens to the machine if you fail to thoroughly clean the steam wand?</p>

<maintenance>
What happens if you fail to clean a steam wand after frothing milk?
stevvve
# What happens if you fail to clean a steam wand after frothing milk?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2015-01-28)

Our lovely [La Marzocco Linea](http://www.lamarzocco.com/en/products/linea.html) at Stack HQ is a workhorse. Lots of people making lots of drinks, many of which require the frothing of milk. We are regularly reminded to clean the steam wand to prevent damage to the machine.

But what happens to the machine if you fail to thoroughly clean the steam wand?

**Tags:** maintenance


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## 2 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2015-01-28. Score: 7 | Accepted answer

Word on the street is that:

1. The milk residue will get "baked on" by the heat of the steam wand, making it even more difficult to clean than if you'd just done it when the milk was still wet.
2. Any milk left on the tip of the wand will get sucked up into the machine's water reservoirs by changes in air pressure, where it will stay and become rancid and ruin everybody's drinks.

This is according to Joel's biweekly beratings on the topic. We might ask him to cite his sources.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Joel? Joel who? I don't know of any Joel.  
> **username_2**: @username_0: I don't even work at SE and I know who Joel is.  
> **username_0**: Haha @username_3 my comment clearly needs a " ;-) " to properly convey my tone.  
> **username_2**: @username_0: I could infer your ";-)" but I should have added my own ";-)" to my comment. ;-)  
> **username_0**: ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-)  :-)  

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### Answer by username_3 on 2015-01-28. Score: 3

I cant speak for this particular machine, but i failed to clean the steam frother on my old machine and residual milk caked on to the (aluminum) wand! I tried everything to get the residue off but not even sandpaper worked.


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