A question for the espresso machine owners in the group

[Stinky The Clown]

I have two of these little gems. A Saeco Vienna Deluxe ......



and a Saeco Magic Deluxe .......



Now, you might ask, how does one man, who lives with only his wife, the nest just recently having emptied, wind up with two such appliances?

Well, it is quite simple, actually. We bought the Vienna deluxe and were very happy with it. It made great coffee and was sooooo easy to use. No worries. Push a button, get a cup.

I read, but chose to ignore, the instructions about decalcifying the machine. It is a simple process and takes only a few minutes every month or three. No big deal. Really.

But did I do as the manufacturer suggested? Ooooooh Nooooooo.

After almost three years of great cuppa, la macchina infernale decided it was time to force the issue. It peed on my counter! I called an espresso machine repair guy up in Philadelphia. Yup, he says, ya gotta clean 'em weekly and decalcify ..... in your area ...... once every 4 to 6 months, although monthly is better. A new boiler, I ask? Yes, he says. Big job, I ask? Not so big, he says. How much, I ask? About a hundred and twenty five, he says. Plus shipping, he adds.

So off goes the machine. For two and a half weeks, Sparkly and I are going nuts. The Bunn Pour-Over? Okay, but not espresso. The stove top Mokka pot. Bitter. The vintage vacuum pots? Schweeeeeet! But no staying time and a lot of work to make ... sorta like a science experiment, what with all that glass and tubes and stuff. French press. About the best we could do. Even got back to some French vanilla oily flavored beans for a while. A change of pace .... but for our now spoiled palates, not *real* cafe, yanno?

Anyway, the Vienna makes its triumphal return. Just a few stitches scars on the back. but the surgery was successful. It was again making great cuppa at the push of its little gray button.

Six months later .... it pees on the counter again. Another boiler????? Damn! Call the espressofixit guy. Probably the steam valve, he says. Izzit 'spensive, I ask? Nope, maybe twelve ... fifteen bucks, he says. Plus shipping, he adds. Ya sure that's it, I ask? No, he says. That's what you described, he says. I won't know for sure until I see it, he says. Three to four weeks, he adds. Busy season.

Off it goes again.

This time we are NOT going to scrounge for real cuppa. Ohnowe'renot. Besides, what if the Vienna DeLuxe needs another boiler? I'll dump it on eBay, broke as it is and get what I can for it.

Online. Whole Latte Love. Saeco magic DeLuxe. Factory rebuilt. On sale. Cheap. I buy one! I am NOT gunna live without real cuppa.

It gets here in two days! Unpack it. Read the instructions. Plug 'er in.

Cuppa!!!!!!

The Vienna comes back. No stitches this time. New steam valve. Twenty bux, shipping included (cuz the espressofixit guy knows us by now and takes pity on our run of bad luck).

So now we have two fully functional espresso makers.

Sell one on eBay says the ever practical, ever frugal Sparkly.

I set up the Vienna DeLuxe down in my office. The Magic stays in the cucina.

That was a year or so ago. Now we own both and even Sparkly's no longer crabbing at me to sell one. Ya just sorta get used to these things .... yanno?

So ..... my question ...... how often do you decalcify YOUR espresso maker?

(Note, this long winded post is my way to avoid Chimpus Khan's blathering bullshit in his State of the Reich speech. I mean, I **do** want to know your answers to my question ..... but this serves that other purpose quite well, too. Sorry about that!)

[NMDemDist2]

1. i use filtered water

I feel your pain tho... my grinder died in the Magic, I was calling Canada to get the part overnighted LOL

short answer? every 3 months. when I write the check to my pro machine maintence guy, i do the home machine that weekend


pure water in, very little maintence. bad water the bane of 'spresso machine

since I do 'spresso for a living and spend 5 figures on my professional machines, I have learned a clean machine with good water is a happy machine

[Stinky The Clown]

2. Ayup ... but .......

.... even the best of them are attention whores. All are very high maintenance

[NMDemDist2]

3. mine is pretty low maintanence, but we do make a lot of cuppa

so maybe that's why :shrug:

my Schaerer at work needs much more attention

[bearfan454]

4. Can you run white vinegar through it followed by

several plain water cycles to get rid of the vinegar taste ? My regular coffee maker was taking forever to make coffee and I did the vinegar treatment. It's good now.

[Stinky The Clown]

5. Vinegar will work in a non pressurized coffee maker

but not in a pressurized espresso maker. They have a pump and boiler that is central to their operation. All the manufacturer's recommend one of two cleaners .... their own or this stuff:



It is a powder you mix with a full tank of water and then run through the machine. You then rinse by running two full tanks of clear water. By the way, it is not so much coffee oils you're removing. It is lime scale - the minerals in water. Due to the heat of the process, they leach out of suspension and collect like concrete on all surfaces the water touches. The machine fails when the lime scale builds to the point that it blocks the water flow. Virtually the same as arterial sclerosis in we humans with high cholesterol. The pump pumps but with no where to go, the water just finds another exit ..... and the machine pees on your counter.

The coffee oils collect in a whole other area of the machine - the brew head (group). But that is fully accessible and easy to clean the way you might clean any other coffee maker.

[Trailrider1951]

6. Well, I use only distilled water for making espresso

and my espresso maker is just a bit more primative (but still makes delicioso espresso)






www.sanmarzanoimports.com

[eleny]

7. Same here

[Stinky The Clown]

8. That's so cool. It looks like a mini version of my La Pavoni

I love that "mechanical" look. That looks like what an espresso machine is **supposed** to look like. I don't know about yours and how much you use it, but my La Pavoni sits in our dining room as a piece of sculpture. In all my tries, I think I got two or three really good shots from it. No matter what I did, the machine was so finicky it never allowed me to make good espresso.

But it is just so gorgeous! Chrome and shiny and valves and levers and gages and whiz-bangs.

[eleny]

9. I got it because I can take it camping

Making a latte in the forest is a kick. But I mostly use it at home. It works very well for my needs.

It would be great to have an electric model. But with so many out there, I wouldn't know which to get. They're all so pricey. The stovetop was an all around good compromise. I love fiddling with it and steaming the milk. It came with a stainless milk carafe, too.

I like the mech look of your Pavoni.

I just hunted in the freezer and I have no espresso beans. And I want some espresso real bad. Looks like I have to curl my hair and head out. We have a family run coffee roaster shop nearby. See what you started?!

[Stinky The Clown]

10. When I go camping I always take a

****very**** long extension cord. For the microwave. And the cuppa machine.

That is ... if I actually camped ... s'what I would do.

I'm actually laughing at your post. The things we do for self indulgence. But ya know ... we're worth it! :hi:

[NMDemDist2]

11. camping is why God made motorhomes n/t