i’m not sure what your daily routine is, but lets start there;
Daily:
grind, tamp, put portafilter in, extract.
That’s the easy part we all should be doing, but what comes next is just as important.
As soon as you are done extracting either using garbage can or knock box you should be knocking out hot puck of grounds from portafilter (leave it in there and bad things grow).
Once its knocked out simply running it briefly under some warm water in your sink and giving it a quick wipe with a small tea towel should clean it all up.
With no portafilter in the group head you’ll then want to pull 2-5 seconds of water through the group head and through the screen to wash out any grounds that may have been stuck.
Then put portafilter back in for next pull.
Weekly:
While machine is up to temp get some cafiza and run it through the grouphead with a blind in the portafilter. Use a small toothbrush or proper espresso machine brush and clean the seal where the portafilter meets the group head and around the screen. Clean your steam wand and purge, etc.
Annually:
Depending on pH of your water you may want to run some descaler through your machine, this is a very hands on job and you’ll want to be careful with. Only making note of it here in case you weren’t aware.
Now that you understand all of that, to answer your question about “i have a dirty portafilter”.
Pop the basket out, soak it in some hot soapy water (dish soap) and then take a toothbrush to it after 15min. This should clean it all up no issue. Then just do the daily routine to avoid ever happening again.
If its beyond repair, and i would struggle to see why it is, you can always get a new basket. Skip the fancy VST its not worth the $$$
I would argue that unless you are using distilled water (and you SHOULD NOT use it for espresso) you should be doing descaling monthly. Its super easy to clog the boiler with junk if not done often enough.
Check with you machine manufacturer about backflush. Most machine need this too.
If this was a dedicated coffee forum I’m sure this would generate all kinds of debate. I didn’t want to wade into this prescriptive space, only to put it on folks radar, because one has to make a bunch of assumptions.
If you’re using a consumer device like 95+% of people on here appear to be doing, then sure run some DEZCAL through the water tank. But if you’re on a pro-sumer or above level (as I am) with hard wired water hooks and the like, this all gets much more complicated. Now you’re talking about water softening installation potential, or having to do a more much involved flush.
I know for my Brewtus IV-R it’s not a simple task and you’re basically inverting the machine to get all the stuff through the boiler tanks and out the mushroom on the E61 grouphead. Hence my comment of being careful.
Fair enough.
But for people with a common home setup its probably good form to use DESCAL more often than once a year.
I know for fact that not using it and just winging it could be costly…
Not sure if I posted this before but loving my cafelat robot I received two weeks ago. Love the white but wish I knew the red was being released and would have waited but still like the color.
IMO probably one of the best options with those features at that price point. The only other option I can think of off the top of my head that is the Profitec Pro 300. I don’t think $1700 is a bad price with those features.
I’ve had my Silvia V3 for about 8 years now and it’s OK. Like bikes, I’m always itching for an upgrade. I’ve learned the nuances of the Silvia, such as temp surfing etc. PID would be great, but I’d rather put that towards funding the new machine. Currently eyeing Profitec Pro 700 or ECM Synchronika, but need to find some counterspace.
I went from a Silvia to an ecm machine and the difference is amazing. The repeatability and flavours are so much better. Size wise it’s big, a lot bigger than the Silvia so be careful, no matter how much space you think you have you will need more lol.
I loved my wee Silvia it was the best budget machine available but dual boiler prosumer machines like my ecm are a different league. If your thinking about it, just do it
That is essentially the same process I apply. I don’t run cleaner through quite as often, based on my usage rate, but I do run the blind portafilter often. They don’t recommend descaler for my machine, but there is a “filter” deal for the tank.
The daily wipe and care of the basket seems to be plenty for me. As part of the weekly cleaning I do usually take it to the sink. After rinsing it out I’ll fill it with water and watch it drain a time or two to see that it’s not clogged up with anything fine.
The wands get cleaned after anytime I use them. I also use use them to wet towels and rags for cleaning other things. I’m don’t steam milk all the time though. I’ll go a few days where I’ll make a cap every afternoon and then a month where I don’t have any milk with my coffee at all.
On PID’s, when I was using a Gaggia I added one to the machine, which was a nice add on. I found it handy to know when the machine was ready, and to see how quickly it recovered and was ready for the next shot.
Now that I’ve got a more powerful machine, while it has PID I don’t really use it. I guess I could play with the temperature more than I do (I don’t) but the machine is ready once it’s warm and it can keep up with me. I’m curious if that new Rancho might be strong enough to do so as well. At $1700 I’d want it to be able to, imho.
I know! I have the same machine (Silvia V3) and feel the same.
Ive been wanting to upgrade for a while now.
Now that the Silvia was updated, do you feel strongly the EMC or Profitec would be better options, or giving your experiences with the Silvia, would you say the Silvia is a better option?
The Profitec 500 might be worth comparing to that new one. The 700 is a bit higher price bracket, and once you’re looking at that level I think the competition does start beating the Silvia on “looks” not that that makes the coffee taste any better.
No doubt the Silvia Pro is an upgrade over the regular Silvia. The PID and dual boiler are exactly things I’m looking for in a new machine. The relatively small footprint is also a plus.
For me, I just want to upgrade to a machine that’s good enough so that I don’t need to upgrade for a long time. “Buy once, cry once” (just like some bike stuff).
Well you COULD do that, or you could spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on an excellent home coffee setup and be perpetually unhappy chasing down the magic that is the elusive perfect shot! I half kid. Great coffee is great, but it reminds me of golf a bit; so much effort chasing down that ONE moment that makes it all worth it. There’s a part of me that wishes I just loved plain drip coffee as much as so many people do. (With the exception of roadside diner coffee, which is somehow always incredible.)
I half kid. Great coffee is great, but it reminds me of golf a bit; so much effort chasing down that ONE moment that makes it all worth it. There’s a part of me that wishes I just loved plain drip coffee as much as so many people do. (With the exception of roadside diner coffee, which is somehow always incredible.)