Commercial espresso machine for home use

[ozscott]

I would find it hard to live without my 2 group commercial at home. They are wonderful to have around...mine is on 24/7. They come into their own at parties for sure...endless steam from a 11litre or so boiler is hard to beat. Mine costs about $1 a day to run but you save money off that not having to boil the kettle for tea, soups etc. My FAEMA is VERY heat stable and produces a great brew. Top is great for cup warming but also plate warming. The texturing is as you would expect from that much steam.

There was a post above about purging the boiler water....i have never seen a need as the hot water wand is used all the time at my place.

So yes i high end domestic machine is all that is required for excellent coffee (like for like with great beans, grinder and good technique) but no you are not mad wanting a commercial if you want to spend the dough. Good brand commercial machines are built to last (just look under the hood) and get the right brand and its crazy how easy it is to get parts for a 20 year old machine at very cheap prices.

As for power i ran my FAEMA on a cheat stick on a home circuit GPO and no probs...I dont recommend that of course and then got a 15 amp run put in. There are plenty of machines that run on 15 amp circuits.

Cheers

[TOK]

Sorry, but after reading further I'm not so sure this is an entirely legit thread.

Throwing a sack of money at a coffee machine is not going to get anyone better coffee.

Speedster - sure - if your thing is ultimate design engineering. A piece of espresso machine art.

GS3 - sure - another ultimate, but in this case in minimalist design engineering.

Do they make better coffee than other more realistically priced machines? Only in the minds of people who think they do OR, for people that have become so anal about coffee making that they may as well get an einstein perm, and dress in a white lab coat to make coffee.

Throwing money at equipment, does not a good cup of coffee make.

After reading all the above, the question is.....
Are you looking for
a) the most upmarket Bling or Bragging Rights or
b) the ultimate in design engineering or
c) a great cup of coffee.

If the answer is a), you should add to your list, the machine that elektra displayed at the last HOST exhibition in Milano (a privately commissioned design excercise).

Does it look like bling? Depends on individual taste.
Does it make great coffee? Irrelevant.

If you like the machines you have already mentioned and your budget is legit, by all means buy one. Just dont forget you are in control of the coffee not the designed image of the machine or dollars spent. If you spend that much in the equipment and it is said to offer something more, then you should be spending some more dollars in training to make sure you get out of it what it is said to be able to offer....otherwise from a purely "cup of coffee" oriented perspective, the dollars spent on the equipment have been wasted and I have seen plenty of that.


Hope that helps.

[samuellaw178]

Hi Hossa,

You certainly have a lot of money to burn. :P However, a lot of money and better machine definitely do not guarantee better coffee quality. Making good coffee consistently is an involved process and it requires understanding of the coffee-making process & technique learning. Your current machine/grinder combo (NS & K30) will already allow you to make the best coffee possible. Limitation is just on the technique and coffee beans used. You certainly won't gain much from buying another machine unless you feel obligated to spend the 10k, which I am happy to help you do so. ;P

If you feel your shots are not as good as it can be, your best bet is probably to hire a personal barista trainer or attend some courses. What beans are you using by the way?

But back to your question, it's not crazy, but rather irrational to have a commercial machine(that you proposed) at home. It does nothing to improve your coffee and wasteful (electric & water & counter space)

[chokkidog]

Agree Chris, absolutely.

Exactly why the 'better' thing is mostly irrelevant. It comes down to mainly preference.

I'm not sure that OP, given their budget, has made themselves aware of just what is in the market place.

Also not sure that there is a starting point of what they need, a position from which to build some perspective as to what they want.

Two different things....

And to be blunt, when some people ask the CS community 'what should I buy' it's saying a little too much ........

[deegee]

I'd argue that a DC in definitely not upward from a Vesuvius. The other two- as best sideways and then only due to design interest.

Just to clarify, I was referring to the upward price spiral - not the relative quality of the equipment.

Having not used any of them, or even seen them in the metal, I would never consider doing that !!

[TC]

My word, you just keep raising the bar !!

From a Nuove Simonelli Deluxe ?? to a GS3 or a Vesuvius, then onward & upward to a Dalla Corte Evo2 or a Speedster - WOW.

I'd argue that a DC is definitely not upward from a Vesuvius. The other two- at best sideways and then only due to design interest.

[deegee]

Hi Guys, i really appreciate your effort to help to figure out what could be the better alternative. Mu budget is 12-13k, so what would better a GS3?or Speedster?
Thanks again

My word, you just keep raising the bar !!

From a Nuove Simonelli Deluxe ?? to a GS3 or a Vesuvius, then onward & upward to a Dalla Corte Evo2 or a Speedster - WOW.

Just as well I'm a minimalist at heart, or I'd be seriously jealous.

[Lukemc]

if i had your budget id set some time aside to go and see chris and check out one of these too........Maybe paired with a kony e

Vesuvius- by Ambient Espresso | Talk Coffee

Hi Guys, i really appreciate your effort to help to figure out what could be the better alternative. Mu budget is 12-13k, so what would better a GS3?or Speedster?
Thanks again

[chokkidog]

Mu budget is 12-13k, so what would better a GS3?or Speedster?

Odd question..... as the straight answer is; neither is 'better' than the other. They are different but similar........

the original Speedsters were built on the GS3 innards/group/engineering and retain that essential design. ( Twin boiler, saturated group )


It's a question only you can answer.


And 'better' is not the right word; you should go and look at/try a range of

machines (as there aren't many single groups not in your budget) and then purchase the one you 'prefer'.

You have a generous budget so have a good look around but at the end of the day, for me, I'd rather wear a badge of honour that

said more about my coffee than my machine.

[Hossa12]

The coffee forum politically correct reply to this is to all jump in and pat you on the back and say what a wonderful / fantastic / magnificent idea this all is (sending you off on a wild goose chase wasting time, money resources and effort etc).

I favour the honest if blunt approach and that will be to answer your question with the truth. Yes, I am afraid that is a crazy idea. Thereby, hopefully I can stop you from wasting time, money, resources and effort on something that is totally unsuited for your stated use.

Check the TalkCoffee reply above. It's on the money. "...to be honest, I seriously doubt that the overwhelming majority of Aussies could distinguish an expertly prepared coffee from a well-configured $2k domestic HX machine when lined up next to that produced by a $10+ 2 group DC. Beans and technique are by far the most important considerations...."

Many years experience tells me that people buy certain equipment because they think (usually through their "research") it will deliver the best (perhaps even significantly / noticably better) coffee all the time. This is not so, and when they eventually bring it in for service, we find they have never adjusted the grinder away from the original setting, they have never adjusted the PID (if it has one) away from the original setting etc., and generally dont understand the principles of good espresso making....and as stated initally, they thought (were led to believe) just having the "right" brand/type equipment would take care of it all for them.

Afraid that is not so, and you dont have to spend squillions to get a great cuppa.

Are you (we / anyone) drinking the coffee, or the image that we think the equipment appears to portray especially if we spend the requisite amount of money ?

Hope that helps.

Hi Guys, i really appreciate your effort to help to figure out what could be the better alternative. Mu budget is 12-13k, so what would better a GS3?or Speedster?
Thanks again

[TOK]

Dear all,
I'm wondering to get help from you guys to see if buying a commercial machine for my home use would be a crazy idea?
My target model is: Dalla Corte Evo2
Thanks

The coffee forum politically correct reply to this is to all jump in and pat you on the back and say what a wonderful / fantastic / magnificent idea this all is (sending you off on a wild goose chase wasting time, money resources and effort etc).

I favour the honest if blunt approach and that will be to answer your question with the truth. Yes, I am afraid that is a crazy idea. Thereby, hopefully I can stop you from wasting time, money, resources and effort on something that is totally unsuited for your stated use.

Check the TalkCoffee reply above. It's on the money. "...to be honest, I seriously doubt that the overwhelming majority of Aussies could distinguish an expertly prepared coffee from a well-configured $2k domestic HX machine when lined up next to that produced by a $10+ 2 group DC. Beans and technique are by far the most important considerations...."

Many years experience tells me that people buy certain equipment because they think (usually through their "research") it will deliver the best (perhaps even significantly / noticably better) coffee all the time. This is not so, and when they eventually bring it in for service, we find they have never adjusted the grinder away from the original setting, they have never adjusted the PID (if it has one) away from the original setting etc., and generally dont understand the principles of good espresso making....and as stated initally, they thought (were led to believe) just having the "right" brand/type equipment would take care of it all for them.

Afraid that is not so, and you dont have to spend squillions to get a great cuppa.

Are you (we / anyone) drinking the coffee, or the image that we think the equipment appears to portray especially if we spend the requisite amount of money ?

Hope that helps.

[chokkidog]

There are more considerations to buying the DC .... do you have a 25 amp ( per specs) dedicated circuit into your kitchen?

Are you aware that you could easily and often exceed your 40 amp max domestic load. (Mal? Any thoughts?)

You will also have to regularly purge your steam boiler to prevent the staling of old water by constant heating

and reheating.

You wish to serve good coffee, nothing wrong with that. Chris has said how, above, in a nutshell.

You haven't mentioned grinder yet either; making good coffee is much more than pressing a button on a coffee machine! :-)

If you have up to 12-15k in your pocket for a machine plus grinder then, as Tampit has mentioned, a GS3 or at

10k+.... a Speedster.

[TC]

It's clear that a 4 group will be required so that those 8 coffees can be dispatched quick smart!

Hossa- to be honest, I seriously doubt that the overwhelming majority of Aussies could distinguish an expertly prepared coffee from a well-configured $2k domestic HX machine when lined up next to that produced by a $10+ 2 group DC. Beans and technique are by far the most important considerations.

Cheers

Chris

[Rolf]

I'm wondering to get help from you guys to see if buying a commercial machine for my home use would be a crazy idea?
My target model is: Dalla Corte Evo2Thanks

its not crazy,but why that machine?

In fact my concern is to get the better quality at home but we prepare and average of 8 coffees a day

for 8 coffees a day, I would take something like that: Astoria Perla AL 1 or 2

[Barry O'Speedwagon]

In fact my concern is to get the better quality at home but we prepare and average of 8 coffees a day

So, ignoring the specifics of your current favoured machine, why would you want to spend a significant proportion of your budget on obtaining a machine that can
churn out coffee-after-coffee for long periods of time? You'll get a better result if you follow TampIt's suggestion above, or several other similar strategies I'd think, if quality of coffee is what you are focussed on.

To answer your original question...no, you're not being crazy, but it is difficult to understand why your first thought is to buy a machine designed to work in cafes.

Cheers
BOSW.