Coffee machine question - no water through portafilter

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#2766993 26-Aug-2021 13:36

If you can't find a filter basket and are handy with a dremel, you can butcher the bottom layer off a dual wall filter. google will be your friend for guidance

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Fred99

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#2767030 26-Aug-2021 14:31

martyyn:

So perhaps it's time for us to upgrade the grinder and basket as a first step to better coffee.

Yep. That's the way. Be prepared for a bit of a learning curve and experimentation to be able to get the grind right, packing a consistent load of coffee in to the basket, and tamping it consistently. It's worth the effort (and probably a bit of coffee wastage while you play around).

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#2767038 26-Aug-2021 14:50

Fred99:
martyyn:

So perhaps it's time for us to upgrade the grinder and basket as a first step to better coffee.

Yep. That's the way. Be prepared for a bit of a learning curve and experimentation to be able to get the grind right, packing a consistent load of coffee in to the basket, and tamping it consistently. It's worth the effort (and probably a bit of coffee wastage while you play around).

Now @martyyn you can join the descent into madness trying to achieve perfect fluffy grounds, avoiding channels and a truly level tamp. It's good fun.

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#2767048 26-Aug-2021 15:24

martyyn:

So last night I boiled up a concoction with a dishwashing tablet, baking soda and dishwashing liquid and left the filter in it over night. This morning I boiled it again in clean water.

After a couple of goes in the machine with no coffee it started to pour as normal again, so happy days.

@sen8or its the later. We have to leave it for a few seconds and slowly release the pressure to avoid making a mess. We have only have a cheap breville grinder with no control over the grind.

So perhaps it's time for us to upgrade the grinder and basket as a first step to better coffee.

I think if you are going to upgrade the grinder and the basket, it might be time to consider a slightly upgraded machine which comes with both. They can be worth their weight in gold in times like these and if you already know how to make a decent coffee using the Roma, you'll be just as good if not better using a model or two up...

Breville Barista Express

Down from $1199 to $699 at Briscoes. I've had 7 years out of mine now and it's been largely flawless until the last few weeks when we've been having odd noises from the pump, but it's well and truly paid for itself.

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neb

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#2767057 26-Aug-2021 15:34

sen8or:
google will be your friend for guidance

Google is never your friend for guidance. Google is the drunk you run into down at the pub who's friendly and helpful and with lots and lots of advice, mostly vague and often contradictory, for which you eventually realise that he's just making it up as he goes along.

Handle9

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#2767058 26-Aug-2021 15:34

sen8or:
those whirly blade grinders aren't designed for coffee really, they get far too hot and inconsistent to deliver a great coffee.

I picked up a Breville dose control grinder from a harvey norman outlet for about $100, similar workings to the dose control, but just a manual run/stop pressure switch as opposed to predefined amounts. If you can find one then its well worth the $. A cheap Sunbeam em0480 will also do the job.

If you upgrade the basket, you will need to upgrade the grinder. The pressurised baskets are designed to simulate the resistance offered by properly ground/dosed fresh coffee, hence you can get away with supermarket beans (regardless of freshness) and less than perfect coarseness on the coffee. Go the double basket, they are just easier to get right.

Even with the roma, fresh coffee (1-3 weeks old), freshly ground (per cup) and extracted with 50-60ml in 20-30 seconds will be a great coffee

The dose control is hard to beat at its price point. The grinder has much smaller steps than the one in the barrista express. I'd certainly upgrade the grinder and basket before touching the machine. The Roma, and all the breville machines, are excellent value machines. They are hard to beat at their price points. A lot of the other consumer machines are kind of junk.

Grinders and espresso machines are the kind of thing you can get at a reasonable price second hand. Just ask a few questions of the seller so you can figure out why they are selling.

JamesN

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#2767090 26-Aug-2021 16:05

Breville Barista Express

Down from $1199 to $699 at Briscoes. I've had 7 years out of mine now and it's been largely flawless until the last few weeks when we've been having odd noises from the pump, but it's well and truly paid for itself.

Anyone have this machine, what do you thnk about it?

Currently in the market for an espresso machine and this is one of my options.

martyyn

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#2767169 26-Aug-2021 19:19

I feel like I've opened Pandora's Box.

We really like what we get out of the Roma but will definitely be looking at upgrading. We have had it for more than 9 years.

Handle9

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#2767171 26-Aug-2021 19:22

martyyn: I feel like I've opened Pandora's Box.

We really like what we get out of the Roma but will definitely be looking at upgrading. We have had it for more than 9 years.

Don't worry you won't get really obsessive and geeky about it. Coffee definitely isn't like that.

ronw

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#2767174 26-Aug-2021 19:27

I would also recommend the Breville Barista Express model No BES 870. As per previous answer you can get good prices for this roughly half the normal price. I find Briscoes are good for having 50% off sales and also Farmers sometimes. Expect to pay around $600 on sale or $1100 dollars otherwise.
It is a great machine complete with Grinder. It comes with a tool kit and a choice of 1 or two cup portafilter. I use the two cup model as I had trouble getting up to correct pressure with the one cup. Only trouble is that two cup is slower in letting water through but that is what the pressure is for. Oh and use the blade for making sure coffee grinds are correct level in portafilter

Don't forget to do a complete clean depending on how often you use it. If making 2-4 cups per day I would recommend clean every 4-6 weeks. use the special cleaning tablets that Breville sell, and use white vinegar and water for cleaning the internal stuff.

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Handle9

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#2767177 26-Aug-2021 19:36

JamesN:

Breville Barista Express

Down from $1199 to $699 at Briscoes. I've had 7 years out of mine now and it's been largely flawless until the last few weeks when we've been having odd noises from the pump, but it's well and truly paid for itself.

Anyone have this machine, what do you thnk about it?

Currently in the market for an espresso machine and this is one of my options.

The Barista express shares most of the same features as the Infuser and Bambino with a grinder that isn't quite as good as the dose control pro. The dose control has smaller steps so is a bit easier to dial in.

Depends whether you want to go all in one or separates. If it was me I'd go for the smart grinder and the bambino. Buying those on special will cost about the same as the barista express and you get a much more versatile grinder and a machine which does excellent automatic milk.

They all make great coffee, I've had an Infuser and dose control (recently upgraded) for around 5 years. I've learnt a lot and made a lot of good coffee.

1101

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#2767349 27-Aug-2021 09:22

https://www.briscoes.co.nz/product/1060107/breville-bes810bss-due-temp-pro-coffee-espresso-machine/

Breville duotemp is a god coffee machine, as good as Italian Gaggia (Boiler machine) I had years ago
I wouldnt pay $600+ though, wait for Briscos to have a sale if you can, or try pricespy or trademe

Fred99

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#2767357 27-Aug-2021 09:39

1101:

Breville duotemp is a god coffee machine.

As a Satanist, that amused me. The devil's in the detail.

jonathan18

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#2767360 27-Aug-2021 09:41

While we're on the topic of good-value machines at Briscoes (and getting further from the OP!), they now sell the Breville Dynamic Duo package. On at least one recent occasion they had it at 50% off (shock!) which makes it a great deal, and a decent amount cheaper than the floor-shop model I bought at JB at the start of the year.

https://www.briscoes.co.nz/product/1091808/breville-the-dynamic-duo-coffee-machine-silver-bep920bss/

JamesN

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Master Geek

#2767364 27-Aug-2021 09:59

That looks pretty good, need to convince the mrs now 🤞

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