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my grandfather always used envelopes
for example, if your rent is 400 a month
you put 100 a week into the envelope
do the same for all your bills
Which gaggia?
When I dissassembled it, it was filthy and full of calcium buildup. I mean FULL. It took a full day of scraping and scrubbing to get it all out of the boiler. It's a very old machine and wasn't taken care of.Inside most machines there's a regulator valve that sometimes drains excess pressure back to the tank. You can try to find a manometer to check for the proper (what's it, 9 BAR) at the grouphead, if it's not 9 BAR at full temperature, fiddle with it. It's a hugely time consuming process, but I feel it's worth it.
I have a Cappresso burr grinder, I've heard that the blade grinders grind it unevenly, making too much dust by the time you get to the right size. I dunno, seems like you're doing better with your blade grinderTake a moment to assume that it may not be the machine, and it could be the grind. The biggest thing that makes people think their machine is broken is the grind is either too coarse, or much too fine. Either is bad. What kind of grinder? You don't need a $4589 grinder, just something that will consistantly grind the same size every time. I recommend a whirly-blade grinder with a self-timer to start with. Mine was $22 at Target.
I've been experimenting with tamp pressure, it seems like the harder I tamp it, the better the shot. Could this be a symptom of too much pressure?Keep in mind that you'll probably need to tamp it the same way each time, and this will take a while to get correct.
It takes about 18-22 seconds pulling a double shot. I think that's too fast, but I dunno.How long does it take to pull a full shot? How much crema do you get?
This is probably also one of the problems, I bought a fresh bag of beans and ground them 10 seconds before I pulled the shot, but it still ended up just really strong bold coffee, not espresso. The flavor was close, but the texture was all wrong.The crema you see is because I keep the beans in a vacuum sealed, water-absorbing container; and I grind enough for four shots (two double shot pulls) at a time. I rarely grind more than I need, and very rarely do I grind it, and wait more than 15 minutes before I pull the shots. Freshness is the key to good crema.
I'm charging the camera now, I'll get some pics up later.Do you have any pictures of your setup? Any pictures of a shot being pulled? I can try to help you out.
If you want, I can make a video of me pulling a couple shots this weekend. I'll go into work and use the my machine there, because I have no grinder at home anymore, lol.
When I dissassembled it, it was filthy and full of calcium buildup. I mean FULL. It took a full day of scraping and scrubbing to get it all out of the boiler. It's a very old machine and wasn't taken care of.
I found the valve which was a rubber stopper on a spring. It was in a threaded sleeve that could be adjusted, (I just thought of that now) but was tightened all the way, so that's how I rebuilt it. The rubber was old and hard, but I didn't have a replacement piece, so I just sanded it lightly to freshen the sealing surface. The pump is old and kind of loud, but makes enough pressure to push the valve open, maybe I just need to adjust that spring. How would too much pressure effect it?
I have a Cappresso burr grinder, I've heard that the blade grinders grind it unevenly, making too much dust by the time you get to the right size. I dunno, seems like you're doing better with your blade grinder
I've been experimenting with tamp pressure, it seems like the harder I tamp it, the better the shot. Could this be a symptom of too much pressure?
That's a little short. Too high of pressure, or too coarse of grind. The coffee should be about half the size of a grain of salt, not quite powdery, but not like salt either. It's a happy medium that takes a while to get correct. Like I said, it's all about consistency once you get the right mixture.It takes about 18-22 seconds pulling a double shot. I think that's too fast, but I dunno.
If I tamp it as hard as I can, I can manage a ring of crema around the edge, but no more.
This is probably also one of the problems, I bought a fresh bag of beans and ground them 10 seconds before I pulled the shot, but it still ended up just really strong bold coffee, not espresso. The flavor was close, but the texture was all wrong.
I'm charging the camera now, I'll get some pics up later.
If I tamp it good and hard (no idea how many pounds of pressure) it makes solid pucks with very little moisture. Less tamping tends to yield soggier pucks.Question though, how do the pucks come out after you pull a shot? Soggy, damp, or dry?
The seal between the boiler and grouphead had so much corrosion, the aluminum was pitted a few mm deep. I took a coarse file, fine file, then progressively sanded it to remove the pitting and make the surface smooth enough for the o-ring to seal.Strong, bold coffee sounds like it's not finely ground enough. How bitter is it? Does it taste like a mouthful of pocket change? That could be that it's not ground finely enough.