calblacksmith Moderator Joined: 25 Nov 2007 Posts: 5,772 Location: Riverside, Ca, U.S.A. Expertise: I live coffee
Espresso: ECM Veneziano A1 Grinder: Many different commercial Vac Pot: 40s era Silex Drip: Milita, Bunn&Curtis... Roaster: Cast iron pan, gas burner
Posted Thu Jun 7, 2012, 5:59pm Subject: Suitability for home use (2 lattes in morning): Nuova Simonel0v
hi and welcome.
you will not be able to use that machine with out a good espresso grinder. you cannot use freshly ground coffee as in bringing it home from the store already ground. aside from the fact that the coffee will be stale as ground coffee is stale in 15 minutes from when you grind it, you need to be able to adjust the grind for the way the shot is pulling and without a grinder there is no way to make an adjustment. other than that that machine would be able to do anything you wanted to do.
you can run the drain into a bucket with a hose, that is how I have my machine setup and it is infinitely better than continuously emptying that small drip tray.
In real life, my name is Wayne P.
Feed the newbs, starve the trolls and above all enjoy what you drink!
calblacksmith Moderator Joined: 25 Nov 2007 Posts: 5,772 Location: Riverside, Ca, U.S.A. Expertise: I live coffee
Espresso: ECM Veneziano A1 Grinder: Many different commercial Vac Pot: 40s era Silex Drip: Milita, Bunn&Curtis... Roaster: Cast iron pan, gas burner
Posted Fri Jun 8, 2012, 6:03am Subject: Re: Suitability for home use (2 lattes in morning): Nuova Simonel0v
Yes, take a grinder and fresh coffee.
It takes at least half an hour to warm up, any machine does but one like this takes at least that long and more is better. All you can do to check it out is to give it a good look over, look inside if the seller will let you, are there signs of leaking? How clean is it, what is the over all condition of the machine.
The answers to the above questions are not a lock that it is in operating condition but it will give you a hint at the kind of life it has had. I have machines that looked great but had issues and I have bought machines that look NASTY and the work fine, it just, ...... depends.
Pulling some shots will give you a look at how well it is working. Try all the buttons, they may or may not be programmed. Often they will be all the same if they are in default status but there is no way to know until you use them.
There should be no odd noises, leaks etc. If it works, it is likely that all is OK. The static boiler pressure should be between 1.0 to about 1.4 bar (this is boiler temp). If it is plumbed in, the brew pressure gauge will show the pressure of the water in the plumbing system it is connected to in a static condition. When brewing, it should hit about 9 bar, give or take a little. There is no assurance that the gauges are reading correctly as they do wear and change over time but if they show normal readings, they are likely OK. If they are off, use that as a point to try to reduce the price (anything you can point out is leverage but it may or may not get you anywhere depending on how much the seller knows) Gauges being off are no big deal but if they are reading off, you will need to check out pressure/temp with your own instruments for proper adjustment if you buy the machine.
In short, if it looks OK and works OK, it likely is OK.
LOL! it is clear you have never operated this class of machine, turning the steam on and seeing how long it steams..... it will steam until the tank runs out of water! The machine auto fills the boiler as it uses the water and the heater is big enough to just continue generating steam so you will be there a while! There will be a period of time when the steaming is stronger, when the reserve heat has been used from the boiler and you are only on the heater, it will be lower pressure, but it should continue to steam for a LONG time.
In real life, my name is Wayne P.
Feed the newbs, starve the trolls and above all enjoy what you drink!
ganglia Senior Member Joined: 30 May 2012 Posts: 14 Location: Seattle, WA Expertise: I like coffee
Espresso: Current: Nuova Simonelli... Grinder: Current: Baratza Preciso....
Posted Sat Jun 9, 2012, 3:49am Subject: Re: Suitability for home use (2 lattes in morning): Nuova Simonel0v
calblacksmith Said:
Yes, take a grinder and fresh coffee.
It takes at least half an hour to warm up, any machine does but one like this takes at least that long and more is better. All you can do to check it out is to give it a good look over, look inside if the seller will let you, are there signs of leaking? How clean is it, what is the over all condition of the machine.
The answers to the above questions are not a lock that it is in operating condition but it will give you a hint at the kind of life it has had. I have machines that looked great but had issues and I have bought machines that look NASTY and the work fine, it just, ...... depends.
Pulling some shots will give you a look at how well it is working. Try all the buttons, they may or may not be programmed. Often they will be all the same if they are in default status but there is no way to know until you use them.
There should be no odd noises, leaks etc. If it works, it is likely that all is OK. The static boiler pressure should be between 1.0 to about 1.4 bar (this is boiler temp). If it is plumbed in, the brew pressure gauge will show the pressure of the water in the plumbing system it is connected to in a static condition. When brewing, it should hit about 9 bar, give or take a little. There is no assurance that the gauges are reading correctly as they do wear and change over time but if they show normal readings, they are likely OK. If they are off, use that as a point to try to reduce the price (anything you can point out is leverage but it may or may not get you anywhere depending on how much the seller knows) Gauges being off are no big deal but if they are reading off, you will need to check out pressure/temp with your own instruments for proper adjustment if you buy the machine.
In short, if it looks OK and works OK, it likely is OK.
LOL! it is clear you have never operated this class of machine, turning the steam on and seeing how long it steams..... it will steam until the tank runs out of water! The machine auto fills the boiler as it uses the water and the heater is big enough to just continue generating steam so you will be there a while! There will be a period of time when the steaming is stronger, when the reserve heat has been used from the boiler and you are only on the heater, it will be lower pressure, but it should continue to steam for a LONG time.
ganglia Senior Member Joined: 30 May 2012 Posts: 14 Location: Seattle, WA Expertise: I like coffee
Espresso: Current: Nuova Simonelli... Grinder: Current: Baratza Preciso....
Posted Sat Jun 9, 2012, 3:52am Subject: Re: Suitability for home use (2 lattes in morning): Nuova Simonel0v
For non-plumbed use, can I access the reservoir to use it pourover style, or dip an intake pipe into a water container (like I do with the Francis X5), Or do I HAVE to get a flojet?
ganglia Senior Member Joined: 30 May 2012 Posts: 14 Location: Seattle, WA Expertise: I like coffee
Espresso: Current: Nuova Simonelli... Grinder: Current: Baratza Preciso....
Posted Sun Jun 10, 2012, 10:58pm Subject: Re: Suitability for home use (2 lattes in morning): Nuova Simonel0v
I got it!!! It only had one issue, the dispersion screen was completely blocked. Some aggressive cleaning and now it's unblocked! I'll give it an overnight soak in Cafiza ("green" version).
SO, the only thing stopping me from using it now is.... water intake (I cant plumb it yet). The machine came with an Everpure filter, which is rated for Min. Pressure of 0.7bar.
Two questions: - If I want to use the filter, do I have to use a flojet? - If I don't use the filter, can I just stick the intake line into a 1gallon milk jug?
Yes. The rotary pump doesn't require positive input pressure. I ran my Mac Digit out of a jug with no problems for a while, before plumbing in. Do not be afraid of plumbing, though. It can be as simple as a $0.99 tee-joint and 30 seconds unscrewing the cold-water faucet hose on your kitchen sink.
Also, if you're going to be putting this machine on a timer before waking up, there's a good chance you'll have to clean the vacuum breaker valve for false-pressure issues. My Mac Digit was quite stubborn when it came to this. You'll know if this is an issue for you if the pressure drops to zero right after opening the steam valve in the mornings.
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