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Profitec pro 700 purchase experience and first impressions

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  • #16
    Yes in theory, but sorta no.

    Most (all?) machines which alternate priority to the boilers will attend to the brew boiler until such a time as it's in equilibrium. What this means is if you pull a shot and are texturing milk simultaneously, there will be no power applied to the steam boiler until such time as the brew boiler is in equilibrium. This is not required with the Duetto as both boilers receive power simultaneously. PID behaviour is easily observed when the covers are removed from a machine to allow the SSRs to be visible.

    Regardless, so long as there is sufficient steam reserve to allow for a milk texture event, it's probably academic so long as the steam boiler has sufficient capacity. I don't think that a serial strategy in a machine with 800ml steam boiler would prove all that successful.

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    • #17
      Originally posted by Talk_Coffee View Post
      I don't think that a serial strategy in a machine with 800ml steam boiler would prove all that successful.
      Not an issue with the Profi 700 though, which has a 2.0Lt Steam Boiler volume...

      Mal.

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      • #18
        Great choice I had bought one in March

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        • #19
          god damn it. I didn't know that we cannot run 15amp. I got new cable, circuit breaks all ready to rock, just been lazy running out the cable. Main issue was that my bar fridge draws from same point as my studio moniors cause them to crackle when the compressor kicks in.
          I wish this was stated as a option prior to purchase.
          How much is the PID replacement?

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          • #20
            Originally posted by Pasic View Post
            god damn it. I didn't know that we cannot run 15amp. I got new cable, circuit breaks all ready to rock, just been lazy running out the cable. Main issue was that my bar fridge draws from same point as my studio moniors cause them to crackle when the compressor kicks in.
            I wish this was stated as a option prior to purchase.
            How much is the PID replacement?
            pm sent

            charlie

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            • #21
              Or......food grade silicon grease which will not accelerate deterioration of internal seals

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              • #22
                Originally posted by herzog View Post
                I get why they did this. Many (or even most) domestic users will use these machines on timer switches, Wemo's and the like.

                These devices all have limits of 2400W or less.

                The last thing an importer wants is a spate of house fires from one of their products. Look at how much trouble Samsung is in at the moment. Err on the side of safety.
                Surely the 15A machine would have had a 15A plug on it, preventing use in common 10A timers. Sure you'll get the occasional idiot replacing the plug so it fits but I tend to think the 10A alternating arrangement is just more appropriate for the home market.

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                • #23
                  Only a side note. You are able to draw 2570w from a standard outlet as most power circuits are run on a 20 amp breaker. P=IV 2570 = I x 230 . = 11.17 amps. An available circuit wattage is generally 4600watts but normally if appliances are rated over 10 amps will have 15amp plugs to encourage dedicated circuits to stop overload or nuisance tripping. A friendly sparky just run a circuit easily enough

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                  • #24
                    As a result of Jetblack supplying a couple of Profitecs to a Perth retailer I was able to obtain one locally. I had done a lot of research and I wanted to avoid the desire to upgrade in the future. Hence this is my last fling.
                    The machine is great and I am now getting a very satisfying brew.
                    If anyone needs a good look at the Profitecs, whole Latte Love have some good YouTube videos.

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                    • #25
                      Originally posted by Johnd80 View Post
                      I had done a lot of research and I wanted to avoid the desire to upgrade in the future. Hence this is my last fling.
                      Yeah....good luck with THAT one....

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                      • #26
                        6 Month update

                        Hi, it's been 6 months since I purchased the machine and I figure I should give some feedback on how it's been going with a few insights which maybe not completely obvious without using the machine every day.

                        I expected the novelty would fade or wear out after a few months, but the machine has been a joy to use every day since buying it. I'm still genuinely excited to make coffee every day, the extraction is always spot on. The only variation is finding the right grind settings when buying new beans, otherwise the Profitec is spot on every time.

                        Here's a pic of the machine, pretty much the same as when I bought it. The biggest problem with the machine is keeping it clean, the mirror finish stainless steel is a PITA to keep shiny. I use a spray bottle with a mix of isopropyl alcohol, white vinegar, mint oil and corn starch, it sounds strange but it works a charm. You can see on the right I've added a automatic switch timer to the plug so the machine has time to warm up in the morning. The glasses on top rattle around when the pump is on, but they stay nice and toasty so the trade-off is worth it IMO.

                        A few months ago I took the plunge and started drilling holes in my kitchen bench so I could attach the machine to the water mains and add a drainage hose for the drip tray. If you haven't done this already I highly recommend it, without the plumbing the drip tray seems like it fills up every second day. Without the water mains, the tank seems to always be empty when I'm about to make a coffee (really annoying). One of the added benefits is I can use the brew water to clean the basket before and after making a coffee, the drip tray is now like a sink which is fantastic. I'm happy to give any pointers if you're planning on doing this yourself.

                        Attaching the machine to the water mains was much easier than I expected. I have a three stage water filter purchased from The Water People, they supplied me with the correct adaptor to connect their thin blue water pipe to the metal mesh one supplied with the Profitec. It took about 1 hour total. The Profitec pump handle has three positions: 1.off 2.open but no pump 3.open with pump. You can only take advantage of the second position when the machine is plumbed as the water mains pressure will push through the brew boiler regardless of the pump being engaged or not. Here's a video of the three handle positions in action https://youtu.be/nN-8DD-PoPM. Using the water mains to pre-infuse is also quite handy.

                        Here's a shot of the underside of the machine. I had to jack the Profitec screw in feet up to their highest setting to get everything to fit neatly. The biggest challenge was getting the drain hose to run smoothly, it was tricky getting it to drain quickly enough to handle the pump at full speed, even now I'd prefer it to drain quicker. Here's a shot of the drain pool which sits below the drip tray, I assume one purpose of this design is to stop the drain hose clogging up with coffee, you can see coffee building up around the sides (I never clean this).

                        Having the machine turn on before I wake up makes it very convenient to make tea using the hot water wand from the boil tank. However, despite the 2 litre volume of the boiler, the tank can only output about 600ml before running out of pressure. To maximise the amount of hot water output from the boiler Profitec actually recommend switching the machine off before opening the valve to avoid the pump pushing cool water into the boiler and reducing the pressure. Here's a video of the hot water wand doing it's thing https://youtu.be/t5QgGDBZnbI , you can't really hear too well, but the pump engages as soon as the valve is opened reducing the water pressure and stopping the flow. I assume the water mains can't push freely into the steam boiler like with the brew boiler.

                        The steam wand is fantastic, one feature I never knew I wanted was the "cool touch" feature which is basically an insulated layer in the steam wand to stop the metal in contact with the milk getting too hot. This makes it super easy to clean after steaming milk, there's never any hardened milk built up on the tip. I've been meaning to increase the temperature in the boiler from the factory setting of 128°C, I find it hard to get a super silky microfoam due to a lowish steam pressure (in comparison with my Rancilio Miss Silvia).

                        I figured the Pesado 22g basket would be my everyday basket but I find it a bit fussy to get a good tamp with (any tips are very welcome). Used in conjunction with the Pesado Naked Black Portafilter a less-than-perfect tamp will result in coffee spraying all over my shiny machine. I've been using the 18g basket supplied with the profitec as my go-to. The two portafilters supplied with the machine have VERY tight basket fittings making it extremely hard to remove the basket without tools. It'd be a real pain using the Profitec portafilter on a daily basis if I wanted to change baskets regularly. I highly recommend the Pesado portafilter, it's amazingly well built and compliments the machine perfectly.

                        The Quamar Q50 Push grinder has been a solid unit so far. I have no complaints at all. It has a timer dial on the side to help dose out the correct amount of coffee, which isn't 100% accurate and takes time to set correctly with new beans, but does a good enough job. Here's a video of it dosing out 18g https://youtu.be/Y10AQH8JIIU

                        Let me know if you have any questions about points I may've missed.

                        EDIT: I'm still bummed at the machine being supplied with a lower spec PID controller. I contacted Jet Black Espresso directly after purchasing the machine in May to ask about switching the controller and was quoted several hundred dollars for the changeover (my existing PID was now used as I'd taken it home so I needed to purchase a new one outright ). I haven't done this modification yet.
                        Last edited by enricomanchez; 13 November 2016, 04:21 PM. Reason: Commercial Link(s) Removed

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                        • #27
                          Originally posted by enricomanchez View Post
                          EDIT: I'm still bummed at the machine being supplied with a lower spec PID controller. I contacted Jet Black Espresso directly after purchasing the machine in May to ask about switching the controller and was quoted several hundred dollars for the changeover (my existing PID was now used as I'd taken it home so I needed to purchase a new one outright ). I haven't done this modification yet.
                          I tried mine in the default one-boiler-at-a-time mode for a few days... That got old fast, especially trying to do a 600ml jug with 300ml of milk. Might be ok if you like doing the milk (or at least have it well underway) before brewing but in my opinion a dual-boiler when you can't run both at once is only half a machine. Since the online documentation from the manufacturer advises it's possible to run both at once via a user-accessible setting (with protection from accidental change and appropriate warnings) and yours doesn't I personally wouldn't have accepted that. Under NZ consumer laws I'd have redress - not sure what you have over there.

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                          • #28
                            Originally posted by WiredArabica View Post
                            but in my opinion a dual-boiler when you can't run both at once is only half a machine.
                            Can't agree with this. Most domestic dual boiler machines work this way - it's completely normal.

                            The boilers are large and insulated, and there's plenty of thermal mass there so the alternate heating works fine.

                            This keeps the machine comfortably under the 2400W limit of a standard domestic power socket, and it allows the machine to be used with timer switches (these also top out at 2400W).

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                            • #29
                              Originally posted by herzog View Post
                              Can't agree with this. Most domestic dual boiler machines work this way - it's completely normal.
                              Oh? That's interesting, I didn't know that. My previous dual boiler was the Breville BDB which also runs both at once, though obviously the total power loading is much lower.

                              I think the boiler priority in the Profitec 700 could be optimised a bit more, eg if it's pulling a shot and the steam boiler temp drops it'd be better to give the steam element at least some power rather than exclusively the group. Might be a better compromise.

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                              • #30
                                Originally posted by enricomanchez View Post
                                EDIT: I'm still bummed at the machine being supplied with a lower spec PID controller. I contacted Jet Black Espresso directly after purchasing the machine in May to ask about switching the controller and was quoted several hundred dollars for the changeover (my existing PID was now used as I'd taken it home so I needed to purchase a new one outright ). I haven't done this modification yet.
                                Yep, for what they are and the very average level of control they provide, these things are way overpriced. Depending on the room behind the location of the controller, you may be able to fit a decent quality industrial unit. Cheaper than any of the so-called specialist espresso machine controllers but way, way better in all respects...

                                Mal.

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