Reply to: Brown stuff

[Troll]

Wot about the Nespresso jobbies - not a huge coffee fan but do like an occasional cup?

stick to instant or worth a go?

[v8gaz]

Waste of time poncing about with quality machines when you fill it with crappy London water. Your tea sucks big dog's as well.

Scottish water, on the other hand, makes a great cuppa.

[d000hg]

Cheap gadgets can still use embedded software
Anyway, those with more money than sense can buy them and keep us in work. Luckily, no matter how deep we sink into recession, or how horrific the austerity we have to adopt, the proportion of the population with more money than sense is something to be optimistic about.

[Mich the Tester]

That's a truly terrible argument for spending a lot on home items. By that logic I should spend £2000 on a fridge because it is saving me money compared to the pub. The fact a £400 fridge would do the same job is apparently not a factor.

I put it to you that if people stop spending large amounts of money on expensive gadgets and appliances controlled by software, we're all fooked.

[doodab]

That's a truly terrible argument for spending a lot on home items. By that logic I should spend £2000 on a fridge because it is saving me money compared to the pub. The fact a £400 fridge would do the same job is apparently not a factor.

It's not an argument for spending a lot, and it's nothing to do with saving money. It's an argument that £1000 isn't actually a lot to spend on a coffee machine relative to the other costs involved in drinking lots of coffee.

If I could find one with a brass boiler, heat exchanger, heated brass group head and rotary pump for £400 I would certainly check it out. As it is they seem to start around £7-800.

Anyway, it turns out that the modern gaggia home machines are known for corroding because they have a mixed brass / aluminium boiler. So I suspect if I bought another it would die in 4-5 years or so just as the last one did.

[suityou01]

No, I used the manufacturers descaler (despite it rather disturbingly having "baby cleaner" written on the packet) but after 4 years or so it stopped working, when I dismantled it I found theinside of the boiler / heating element (which didn't seem to be brass but aluminium) was quite badly corroded.

Don't you have some software to not install properly? Have you tried angry birds? I've heard that's really tricky to get working.

Like it

[GreenLabel]

Don't you have some software to not install properly? Have you tried angry birds? I've heard that's really tricky to get working.

He doesn't have time. He's already at seven thousand percent utilisation.

[d000hg]

Well, lets say I go to the coffee shop three times a day, 200 days a year and spend £2.50 a time. That is £1500 a year. The other 150 days a year I make coffee at home. If the machine lasts 5 years that's £200 a year, if it lasts 10 then it's £100 a year. That's a bargain in my book.

That's a truly terrible argument for spending a lot on home items. By that logic I should spend £2000 on a fridge because it is saving me money compared to the pub. The fact a £400 fridge would do the same job is apparently not a factor.

[doodab]

So you failed to read the instructions, put an industrial grade descaler through and fecked it.



Anyway I though us proper contractors had our water sourced from perrier direct.

No, I used the manufacturers descaler (despite it rather disturbingly having "baby cleaner" written on the packet) but after 4 years or so it stopped working, when I dismantled it I found theinside of the boiler / heating element (which didn't seem to be brass but aluminium) was quite badly corroded.

Don't you have some software to not install properly? Have you tried angry birds? I've heard that's really tricky to get working.

[suityou01]

Knob'ead!

FTFY

[Mich the Tester]

Well, lets say I go to the coffee shop three times a day, 200 days a year and spend £2.50 a time. That is £1500 a year. The other 150 days a year I make coffee at home. If the machine lasts 5 years that's £200 a year, if it lasts 10 then it's £100 a year. That's a bargain in my book.

I have to say I've done a bit of research on this to understand what makes an expensive one different than a cheap one. The main difference is that £1000 will get you a machine that heats the water via a heat exchanger from a boiler half full of steam (this is how most commercial ones work), so you don't have to wait between making coffee and steaming milk, or wait for the heater to cool down again to make another shot, and you get a more consistent brewing temperature. It might even have a very stable electronically controlled adjustable temperature, and hopefully a rotary rather than vibrating pump which will make it more reliable in the long run.

Anorak!

[suityou01]

I need a new coffee machine.

I used to have a Gaggia, it was OK (I could make better coffee with it than most shops sell) but it broke down due to corrosion in the brewhead as a result of the descaling (ooh the irony). So I'm thinking of investing in something a bit more upmarket & durable.

I'm thinking of one of these at the moment, which gets some very good write ups:

Caff Italia Professional Coffee Machines: Rancilio Silvia V3 2011 + Rancilio Crema Naked portafilter + 3 X 500 Gr. Ground Coffee !!! -Ref. RANSILV, Rancilio Coffee Machines, RASI

Although these look pretty good as well:

Caff Italia Professional Coffee Machines: Isomac Zaffiro Stainless Steel Coffee Machine -Ref.ISO210ZAF, Isomac Milano Coffee Machine, e-isomac

Any other recommendations? I'm really looking to stay under a grand, and avoid anything that requires it's own plumbing or electrical spur.

So you failed to read the instructions, put an industrial grade descaler through and fecked it.



Anyway I though us proper contractors had our water sourced from perrier direct.

[doodab]

For home use, I really cannot see the point in spending a grand on a friggin' coffee machine.

Well, lets say I go to the coffee shop three times a day, 200 days a year and spend £2.50 a time. That is £1500 a year. The other 150 days a year I make coffee at home. If the machine lasts 5 years that's £200 a year, if it lasts 10 then it's £100 a year. That's a bargain in my book.

I have to say I've done a bit of research on this to understand what makes an expensive one different than a cheap one. The main difference is that £1000 will get you a machine that heats the water via a heat exchanger from a boiler half full of steam (this is how most commercial ones work), so you don't have to wait between making coffee and steaming milk, or wait for the heater to cool down again to make another shot, and you get a more consistent brewing temperature. It might even have a very stable electronically controlled adjustable temperature, and hopefully a rotary rather than vibrating pump which will make it more reliable in the long run.

[Spacecadet]

Nooooooo. Where is the fun in pressing a button? What do you do if it's not *quite* right? Take the thing apart and start adjusting it? Well, OK some of the more advanced ones probably have the same sort of temperature and dosing controls as the more advanced "manual" ones but those are £1500+ and need their own plumbing.

The ones I've used allow you to change pretty much everything
Coarseness of the grind
strength of the coffee
amount of water drawn through the grinds

http://www.amazon.co.uk/DeLonghi-Per...235514&sr=8-13

You have full control over a number of features: fineness of grind, coffee strength, cup size, water heat

[GreenLabel]

What's the general view on using pre-ground compared grinding fresh? Is it really a big difference or does vacuum packing keep it nice and fresh?

And - is keeping coffee in the freezer just a pretentious gimmick or really worthwhile?

One of the quickest ways to improve your home coffee is to get a grinder and grind the beans fresh immediately before making a cup. It really does make a difference.

Refrigerating or freezing the coffee is counter-productive - it should (ideally) be at room temperature when you start.