Faema e98 Compact S1 - Milk with strange taste

[TBREW]

Hi All

I am new to coffee snobs and to owning a machine at home.

I have just bought a second hand Faema e98 Compact S1. I bought it from a coffee machine technician who had torn it apart and cleaned it all up. Machine works well however, I seem to be getting a strange taste in my milk after texturing. I have run some milk steamer solution and machine cleaner through the machine, but still no change in the taste.

I can smell the taste that I am getting in my milk in the steam.... if that makes sense. Any ideas on what this could be and how to fix it? Very frustrating as I have been unable to produce a nice coffee from my new machine!

Any help would be much appreciated!

Thanks
Tbrew

[Ron_Chambers]

How does the water from the water dispenser smell and taste ?

[TBREW]

The water tasted fine from the dispenser and the shot itself tastes fine as well. Can it be possible that the taste is coming from the steam wand?

[Ron_Chambers]

Hi TBREW, It looks like the steam wand, steam tap, boiler to tap copper pipe and the inside of the boiler above the water is all that is left.
I have a Cimbali S1 2002 model that a friend kindly gave me, which I think is similar to your machine.
I believe Javaphile is the resident expert re. Cimbalis.
Wish you well, Ron.

[Javaphile]

If there's no problem with the boiler and/or the hot water tap then by process of elimination the problem lies somewhere in the steam line. Milk has probably been sucked back up into the wand and hardened in it. I'd suggest removing the steam tip and the wand and inspecting them for any signs of hardened milk and give them a good cleaning including using a wire brush to get out any crud in the wand. Also disassemble the valve and inspect it for any signs of residue. If there's any sign of residue in the valve I would remove the valve and all piping back to the boiler and give everything a thorough descaling and cleaning. When you reassemble the valve use the opportunity to do a rebuild on it while you have it apart.

FYI you can find the manuals for your machine here: http://coffeesnobs.com.au/documentat...ing-parts.html


Java "Cimba!" phile

[TBREW]

Thanks for the info!! So the technician I bought the machine off said he had stripped and cleaned it. Mentioned he did an acid wash or something?? Could the taste be coming from the newly cleaned machine? And if so does it just take time to get rid of that taste?

Thanks again.

[Javaphile]

If he did an 'acid wash' (Descale?) of the boiler and that is the source of the bad flavor then the taste should be present in water from the hot water dispenser as well as the steam wand as they both get their water/steam from the boiler. You can fill/drain the boiler multiple times to try and flush out the remnants of the chemicals he used.


Java "Clean what?!" phile

[TBREW]

Hey, ok so i am thinking i will fill and drain the boiler a few times. I was trying to find some info on the correct way to drain this machine but I get a few different answer and I am not quite sure. Any advice?

[artman]

Faema e98 Compact S1 - Milk with strange taste

Depending on your model the boiler can have a drain. It's a fitting with a nipple in the middle. You can fit a hose over the nipple and crack it open to drain.

Otherwise use the boiler pressure to force water out through the water wand.

One thing I am weary of is refilling the empty boiler with cold water when the element is hot in terms of the thermal shock. Not sure if this is an actual issue. Likewise you need to make sure the element does not turn on when the boiler is empty.

So safest way is get boiler up to pressure, turn off machine, open water tap to drain. Let cool, refill boiler and repeat.

Another way is to unplug the machine and pressurise the boiler with compressed air and open the water tap. Refill via the anti vac valve and repeat as necessary.

Cheers

[artman]

Faema e98 Compact S1 - Milk with strange taste

Actually you could also use a water hose from a tap to fill and pressurise the boiler and let it flush through the boiler water outlet.

This way the boiler can be fully filled and you can also easily flush the steam circuit.

Cheers

[Dimal]

I use a small Pond-Pump with appropriate hoses/fittings for this sort of thing.
Very easy to use and ideal for those times when you want to descale the boiler...

Mal.

[TBREW]

Hey, Thanks for all your help machine is cleaned and running well. I saw in another post you had filled the rediculously large holes in the steam tip. What did you use to fill the holes?
Cheers
Tom