bacampbe Senior Member Joined: 8 Oct 2003 Posts: 16 Location: Irving, TX Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Wed Oct 25, 2006, 10:28pm Subject: HX Hot Water Tap
I am considering upgrading from my Silvia to an HX or double boiler machine.
In discussion this with my wife (who is not a coffee drinker, but drinks hot tea every morning), we started wondering whether the water from the hot water tap of one of these machines would typically be hot enough for tea infusing. This is not a big deal from my perspective, but having instant tea water every morning would be a big selling point for her.
Can anyone comment on how well that works? Does the hot water tap use the same water path as the brew group? Will it have greater temperature loss since it is not passing through the preheated group?
Does water from the water tap of an HX machine have the same "water dance" as that from the group?
Posted Thu Oct 26, 2006, 6:05am Subject: Re: HX Hot Water Tap
The hot water tap is connected to the boiler.. The water is HOT! In most cases in excess of boiling. I think that's why the hot water nozzles are designed as they are, to allow expansion and cooling. That said, I'd fill the cup then add the tea.. She'll love it!
bacampbe Senior Member Joined: 8 Oct 2003 Posts: 16 Location: Irving, TX Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Thu Oct 26, 2006, 7:02am Subject: Re: HX Hot Water Tap
john_k Said:
The hot water tap is connected to the boiler.. The water is HOT! In most cases in excess of boiling. I think that's why the hot water nozzles are designed as they are, to allow expansion and cooling. That said, I'd fill the cup then add the tea.. She'll love it!
I wonder, then, why you get hot water rather than dry steam from the water tap? Maybe it comes from the bottom of the boiler rather than the top? Even so, I would expect it to flash into steam immediately upon leaving the pressurized boiler--not to mention come out with a lot of pressure behind it. I suppose there could be enough cooling at the tap to avoid this.
Luca Senior Member Joined: 27 Jan 2004 Posts: 2,658 Location: Melbourne, Australia
Espresso: H: Maver W: FB-80 Grinder: H: Super Jolly W: Brasilia... Vac Pot: Hario TCA-2 Roaster: Sample Roaster at Work
Posted Thu Oct 26, 2006, 7:10am Subject: Re: HX Hot Water Tap
I think that some HX machines have a separate HX for hot water ... the WEGA comes to mind ... but I wouldn't be surprised if most HX machines just drew the hot water directly from the bottom of the steam boiler.
leoz Senior Member Joined: 14 May 2006 Posts: 279 Location: CT Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: ECM Giotto P, Elektra MCAL Grinder: macap m4 stepless Vac Pot: Press Pot - Bodum Drip: Cuisinart DBG600 Roaster: Hot Top
Posted Thu Oct 26, 2006, 8:47am Subject: Re: HX Hot Water Tap
sorry i have to disagree. my machine outputs hot water at around 205 in the cup. ive seen it around 208-209. its under pressure in the boiler, so flashes when it comes out, and probably cools quite a bit because of it. for me, its more than enough, but my wife is a tea drinker like im a coffee drinker, it has to be correct! only BOILING water shall be used for her tea!
(trust me, i tried getting her kettle off the counter, it didnt work)
MADCoffee Senior Member Joined: 4 Oct 2006 Posts: 8 Location: Mid East Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Rancilio Epoca S1 (no tank),... Grinder: Nuova Simonelli Grinta Roaster: I-Roast 2, Air Popper (dead)
Posted Thu Oct 26, 2006, 1:44pm Subject: Re: HX Hot Water Tap
OK, I'm no expert on machines but this forum has been so much help to me to the point I feel I have to try and help someone here :-)
I'm "dependent" on both tea & coffee ;-) and I only like them when they're at least of B+ quality. So, my HX machine, a Rancilio Epoca S1, seems to be a good espresso machine and provides me with about a liter (32oz?) of boiling water at a time. I believe that adjusting the p-stat affects hot water temp too; but my boiler pressure is ~1.2 and the water is hot enough for my tea.
One thing comes to mind, though. I'm not sure what happens when the water stays there for a few days before you use it for tea. I'm sure one of the gurus here can better comment on this for you. I believe this is important because my tea is more sensitive to water taste than my coffee!
Truth is, I never use the hot water from my machine for tea because I usually make a liter+ of tea at a time and I have "special customes" ;-) for preparing it. When I bought my machine, I made-up other excuses for chilling out that much money ;-)
Posted Thu Oct 26, 2006, 2:54pm Subject: Re: HX Hot Water Tap
LOL :D
My wife just discovered the convenience of drawing hot water from the boiler of our HX for her tea. It's a plumb in so with a water softener and carbon filter in the line the water is cleaner than what comes out of the tap.
Off the top after an idle the water is hot, probably too hot for what's considered ideal extraction temp but depending on how large the boiler is as the level goes down the boiler will refill with cooler water. For a cup you can wait a bit before dropping in a tea bag if you want.
I draw enough for a 6 cup french press off our HX boiler every morning for go to work coffee. No problem with temp, the coffee is very good.
You can use the hot water for soup, hot chocolate or any other mix that needs hot water.
Posted Thu Oct 26, 2006, 6:17pm Subject: Re: HX Hot Water Tap
It is very convienent having hot water and steam ready for use with an HX machine ... a great kitchen addition. Much easier then heating water in the microwave.
Besides using the hot water supply I use the steam wand often to whip up hot choclate and / or tea .. like tea blended with frothed milk and honey. Ofcourse you can mix up your milk .. choclate mix and hit it with the steam wand.
Teme Senior Member Joined: 7 Jan 2005 Posts: 1,221 Location: Finland Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Izzo Alex Duetto II Grinder: Mahlkönig K30 Vario
Posted Fri Oct 27, 2006, 6:44pm Subject: Re: HX Hot Water Tap
I agree with Luca here. At least the Wega Lyra (or Mininova Inox in some markets) has a second HX for the hot water tap. The water from the tap in this machine will therefore be fresh from the reservoir (or more likely from the water line - depending on the exact model you have). I have no personal experience on this machine, but I would also assume that the water from the tap on the Wega is of a more appropriate temperature than on most HX machines.
epengr Senior Member Joined: 1 Apr 2012 Posts: 46 Location: Saskatoon Expertise: Just starting
Espresso: NS Oscar Grinder: Baratza Vario
Posted Wed May 2, 2012, 2:29pm Subject: Re: HX Hot Water Tap
Teme Said:
I agree with Luca here. At least the Wega Lyra (or Mininova Inox in some markets) has a second HX for the hot water tap. The water from the tap in this machine will therefore be fresh from the reservoir
Long dead thread, but worth a try. Is there a reason you can't pull a cup of hot water from your group if you want it fresh from the reservoir? It may be a bit slow, but faster than an cafe crema since there's no puck resistance?
As for temp, I'm no expect but as I understood it you don't want boiler water for black tea any more than you do for coffee. If you're making herbal tea that's different.
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