Grounds in bottom of cup?

[JJJ]

In the last week or two ive noticed that theres been some residual grounds in the bottom of my cups (usually about 15-20 tiny particles i guess) and ive got no real idea why its happening.

The obvious solution would seem to be to coarsen my grind however im loathe to do that because ive found a grind setting thats giving me good, if still a little quick, extraction with my very basic machine and obviously going coarser will only exacerbate the already too quick extraction.

Could my terrible machine, the Breville 800ES*, be the problem, perhaps my tamping technique or is it more likely to simply be a too fine grind?

As an aside, getting a well timed extraction with my machine is incredibly difficult (im getting about 19-20 seconds now, any finer with the grind and ill likely choke the machine, any coarser and itd shoot through in about 16 seconds).

Thanks lads.

BTW I did an extensive search prior to starting the thread as having been here for a while now i understand how frustrating it is to see the same questions asked over and over, but i didnt find anything that really tackled the issue of leftover grounds in ones cup.

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* Im desperate to upgrade but on the advice of many here, im holding off until i get my experience and knowledge up.

[A_M]

Re: Grounds in bottom of cup?

1: Single or double floor basket ?

2: When did you last clean the Group / seal

3: When did you last flush/ clean with a chemical cleaner


Sorry to not answer... But not enough info provided..

My first guess is the system is not clean some where...

[Dimal]

Re: Grounds in bottom of cup?

Gday Ristrom...

Which baskets do you use mate, the original pressurised ones or one of the various standard types?

Mal.

[JJJ]

Re: Grounds in bottom of cup?

Sorry lads, wasnt sure just how much information i needed to provide.

1: Single or double floor basket ?

Double.

Which baskets do you use mate, the original pressurised ones or one of the various standard types?

Im using the Krups double unpressurised basket.

2: When did you last clean the Group / seal

I give it a cursory wipe once a day or so, although that only started recently because i stupidly didnt really know it needed to be cleaned.

I dont even know if the basic wipe i give is sufficient, but it does remove some residual grinds.

I always remember to clean my group handle, my basket, my steam wand etc. after every use, but im only just starting to realise that further (and more in depth) cleaning is required.

3: When did you last flush/ clean with a chemical cleaner

Ive not actually used a chemical cleaner before.  :-[
Ive had the machine for about three years but it was barely used up until about two months ago, since then it gets used once or twice a day.

I flush/purge it out once every few days (i tend to forget about it as its a new concept to me) but ive not used a chemical cleaner, basically because there seem to be so many different products available and its all a little overwhelming for a noob like myself.

[shawty]

Re: Grounds in bottom of cup?

What grinder are you using?
My guess is an uneven grind

[A_M]

Re: Grounds in bottom of cup?

Sorry lads, wasnt sure just how much information i needed to provide.

AngerManagement wrote on Yesterday at 19:16:
1: Single or double floor basket ?


Double.

Mal wrote on Yesterday at 19:18:
Which baskets do you use mate, the original pressurised ones or one of the various standard types?


Im using the Krups double unpressurised basket.

No need to apologise... Were happy to try to assist... But Assumptions get us into trouble

When you look at the two responses above... You confused me for a second..

Thus am assuming.. A double shot in size but with a single floor - ie lots of holes when you hold it to the light.

didnt really know it needed to be cleaned.

I dont even know if the basic wipe i give is sufficient, but it does remove some residual grinds.

Could well be that it needs a chemical clean..AND a new group seal...

And yes... What grinder are you using.. Could be an issue if it is uneven and an excess of coffee fines are being created.

However, if the Grounds in the cup are as large as I have seen in other systems.. It comes back to cleaning and or choked double FLOOR baskets... But your not using them.

[maheel]

Re: Grounds in bottom of cup?

this going to sound a bit to simple but........

when you dose / tamp etc you dont put the Ghandle down on any little piles of grinds around the grinder and get them stuck on the bottom of the spout of the ghandle do you?


HEY !!!
i just looked in the bottom of the latte i just made and drank

there is 20 odd grinds in my cup to ........ !!!!????

wonder if it was the Chinese home roasted beans i was using ???
tasted good but

[TC]

Re: Grounds in bottom of cup?

Yeah- hate it when there are grounds in the cup...

Why just yesterday I cupped some of Andys Kuza and I reckon the grounds in the bottom were 10mm deep! ;D

[maheel]

Re: Grounds in bottom of cup?

2mcm

stop drinking it from the plunger......

[JJJ]

Re: Grounds in bottom of cup?

What grinder are you using?
My guess is an uneven grind

And yes... What grinder are you using.. Could be an issue if it is uneven and an excess of coffee fines are being created.

Im using a K3T.

Thus am assuming.. A double shot in size but with a single floor - ie lots of holes when you hold it to the light.

Thats correct.
Sorry for the confusion, im slowly learning the multitudes of detailed coffee terminology but still have the odd slip up.

when you dose / tamp etc you dont put the Ghandle down on any little piles of grinds around the grinder and get them stuck on the bottom of the spout of the ghandle do you?

Guilty as charged :-[
Ive been a bit slack with wiping my tamp mat so its got quite a lot of grounds on it.
Ill give it a good wipe when i get home and see if im still getting any grounds in my cup.

As for cleaning products, should i just get a standard cleaning solution for thermo block machines, or do i need to buy a range of products?

Thanks for all the help, lads, i really appreciate it.

[A_M]

Re: Grounds in bottom of cup?

ve been a bit slack with wiping my tamp mat so its got quite a lot of grounds on it.
Ill give it a good wipe when i get home and see if im still getting any grounds in my cup.

As for cleaning products, should i just get a standard cleaning solution for thermo block machines, or do i need to buy a range of products?

Thanks for all the help, lads, i really appreciate it.

We are here to help, if we can

Grinder = OK

If ya close to a Sponsor.. Go an get some of the backflush cleaning stuff.. If in doubt... Breville have some recommended products that should be available from any number of agencies..

[JJJ]

Re: Grounds in bottom of cup?

If ya close to a Sponsor.. Go an get some of the backflush cleaning stuff..If indoubt... Breville have somerecommended products that should be available from any number of agencies..

Thanks, ill definitely go through one of our excellent sponsors.

Are these products easy to use? Im still a dunce when it comes to all this stuff (still fearful of even considering taking apart my K3T to clean it) so anything overly tricky and im out of my depth at this stage.

[GregWormald]

Re: Grounds in bottom of cup?

My *guess* would be the size of the holes in the Krups basket.

How is your dosing? If it is a bit low then you will be grinding finer than you would for a full dose just to get the slower extraction.

When I was looking for a unpressurised basket for the office Breville Ikon, I decided I would modify the existing double basket because the holes in the available Krups basket seemed large. (I never did actually try the Krups basket.)

Greg

[JJJ]

Re: Grounds in bottom of cup?

How is your dosing? If it is a bit low then you will be grinding finer than you would for a full dose just to get the slower extraction.

Im getting about 12 grams to fit comfortably (remember the basket is only 51mm), however that fails the 5c test with the coin not even making an indentation.

Id need to updose to about 16 grams to have any success with the 5c test i imagine, but doing that would make it difficult to do the whole finger smooth and sweep routine prior to tamping given id need to leave a sizable mound of coffee to fit 16 grams in the basket.

And if ive totally misinterpreted your question (which is entirely possible), i apologise. ;D

[GregWormald]

Re: Grounds in bottom of cup?

And if ive totally misinterpreted your question (which is entirely possible), i apologise. ;D

No apology necessary--youve got exactly what I meant.

I suggest trying the larger dose with the slightly coarser grind, and taste the results. For me 12 grams is a really small single 8-), my doubles run between 20 and 23 grams depending on the bean. And yes, the uncompacted coffee is mounded above the rim of the basket.

Greg