Urnex BioCaf Cleaning Powder 500g — Plant-Based Backflush without Phosphates
You open the tub and smell nothing. No chemical odour, no harsh caustic fumes in your face. You dose three grams into the blind basket, lock in the portafilter and press the continuous button. Ten seconds on, ten seconds off, five times. The same backflush ritual as with Cafiza — just with a powder that comes from plant and mineral sources, is biodegradable and contains not a single phosphate.
This is BioCaf: Urnex's eco line, which started out as "Full Circle" and has been on the market as BioCaf in recent years. Plant-based, biodegradable, phosphate-free — and just as effective as the classic Cafiza for home use. NSF-certified. Made in the USA. At Coffee Coaching Club, we are Urnex's Swiss partner for the BioCaf line as well.
Volume discount
🧹 Automatically cheaper from 2 Urnex products – no code needed
| Quantity (any combination) |
Discount |
| From 2 items |
5% |
| From 4 items |
15% |
| From 13 items |
40% |
Applies to the entire Urnex collection (Cafiza, BioCaf cleaning powder, BioCaf milk cleaner, Grindz) – combine them however you like, including several of the same product. The discount is deducted automatically in the basket.
What Sets BioCaf Apart from Cafiza
Both clean espresso machines, both work via backflush and soak, both come from the same company. The differences lie in the formulation and its consequences:
Plant- and mineral-based ingredients
BioCaf uses ingredients from renewable, natural sources — no petroleum derivatives. All ingredients are disclosed transparently. If eco labels matter to you or you want to reduce your café's ecological footprint, this is the honest alternative.
Phosphate-free
Phosphates are found in many classic cleaners and reach rivers and lakes via wastewater. Phosphate inputs promote algal blooms and harm aquatic ecosystems. BioCaf does without them entirely.
Odourless
No harsh cleaning smell when you open the tub, no residual aroma in your espresso after rinsing. If you are sensitive to chemical smells or keep the powder in an open-plan kitchen, you'll appreciate this.
Equally effective for home use
BioCaf removes coffee oils, residues and discolouration from the group head, valves and water paths — the same jobs as Cafiza. On heavily oiled professional machines with high volumes, Cafiza tends to be more aggressive. For home use with normal volumes, the two are equivalent. That's our observation from the showroom, one opinion among many.
How to Use: Backflush Routine
Requirement: a three-way solenoid valve in the machine (standard on E61 and saturated groups).
- Insert the blind basket into the portafilter
- Up to half a teaspoon (3 g) of BioCaf powder into the blind basket
- Lock the portafilter into the group head
- Run the brew button for 10 sec, pause 10 sec, five times
- Remove the portafilter and rinse it under running water
- Reinsert the portafilter without powder, clear rinse 5 × 10 sec
- Pull a test espresso and discard it
How to Use: Soak for Filter Baskets and Accessories
- 6 g of BioCaf in 1 litre of warm water
- Add filter baskets, shower screens and metal portafilter parts (no wood or plastic)
- Soak for 30 minutes
- Rinse thoroughly with clean water
You can also use the soak solution for coffee brewer baskets, carafes, dosing cups and stainless steel components with coffee stains in general.
At a Glance
| Use |
Backflush and soak for espresso machines, cleaning coffee equipment |
| Form |
Powder, odourless |
| Ingredients |
Plant- and mineral-based, biodegradable, phosphate-free |
| Certifications |
NSF |
| Backflush dosage |
3 g per cycle |
| Soak dosage |
6 g per 1 L of warm water, 30 minutes |
| Capacity |
500 g (17.6 oz) |
| Made in |
USA |
| Note |
Not a descaler, not for aluminium |
Good Companions
If you need the classic sodium percarbonate formula for heavily oiled professional machines: Urnex Cafiza 566g. For the grinder: Urnex Grindz grinder cleaner. For the milk system, from the same eco line: Urnex BioCaf Alkaline Milk Cleaner 1L. The full cleaning range: machine and grinder cleaning collection. Precise scales for dosing: Normcore barista tools.
Ordering, Delivery and Advice
You can order BioCaf 500g online from Coffee Coaching Club or pick it up at the showroom in Zurich Oerlikon or Bern. Delivery throughout Switzerland and to Liechtenstein in 2–4 working days. As Urnex's Swiss partner, we are the Swiss point of contact for all maintenance questions: [email protected].
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between BioCaf and Cafiza?
BioCaf is plant-based, biodegradable and phosphate-free. Cafiza uses the classic sodium percarbonate formula. Both clean effectively — BioCaf is the eco alternative for homes and small to mid-sized cafés. Cafiza tends to be more aggressive for heavily oiled professional machines.
Is BioCaf really as effective as Cafiza?
For home use, yes. On very heavily oiled professional machines with high volumes, Cafiza can work faster — but with a weekly routine, that makes no difference.
Can I use BioCaf in a bean-to-cup machine?
Yes. BioCaf is suitable for bean-to-cup machines and traditional espresso machines. On bean-to-cup machines, use the cleaning cycle described in the machine's operating manual.
How many uses per tub?
The manufacturer does not state a fixed number of uses per tub. What is fixed is the dosage: 3 grams per backflush cycle or 6 grams per litre of water for a soak. How long a 500-gram tub lasts depends on how often you use it.
Is BioCaf NSF-certified?
Yes, NSF-certified.
Can I use BioCaf to clean other coffee equipment?
Yes. It is also suitable for coffee brewer baskets, carafes, servers and dosing cups. Soak solution: 6 g per litre, soak for 30 minutes.
Is BioCaf environmentally friendly to dispose of?
Yes. Biodegradable and phosphate-free — because it contains no phosphates, its residues put considerably less strain on rivers and lakes than those of phosphate-containing cleaners.
Can I see BioCaf in person before buying?
Our showrooms in Bern (Gerberngasse 44) and Zurich (Hagenholzstrasse 50b) show a wide selection, but not our entire range – the display changes. Drop us a quick line at [email protected] before your visit, and we will check whether the product you have in mind is currently there.
Roastery Tip
BioCaf is my first recommendation for home setups that value clean machine care with a considerably smaller ecological footprint. My suggestion from showroom practice: if you use your espresso machine with light beans like Wild Peach, the odourless BioCaf formula is a real advantage — no residual aroma in the system after rinsing. With dense beans like Cozy Chocolate or Nutty Delight, the difference matters less, because the bean aromas mask any residual character. Clean is clean — the only question is how you get there. BioCaf is the honest eco route. That's my view from the roastery, one of many.
