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  • lopsided Silvia?

    I think my Miss Silvia is, for lack of a better word, ... lopsided. Ive been noticing that the cup on the left usually contains significantly more coffee than the one on the right, and assumed that there must be something wrong with my leveling and tamping technique, which there was.

    But now I think Im packing the grounds pretty level but still there is a difference, and it seemed fishy to me that it was always more coffee on the left side. So I just pulled a few blank shots in a row and sure enough, the cup on the left fills up more quickly than the one on the right. If I let the water run to the point where it just reaches the rim on the left, the right cup still has a few mm of space left. I switched from the LM double basket to the standard double, and it made no difference.

    Is there something Im doing wrong here, or is my machine, sob, defective? [smiley=cry.gif]

    Thanks,
    Julio

  • #2
    Re: lopsided Silvia?

    I dont have any experience (yet) with the Silvia, but I think the water dispersion washer is what spreads the water out and its removable. Try removing it and seeing if there are any blockages in it or something. You could also run a shot with no PF and see if, visually, theres more water coming out of one side of the showerscreen.

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    • #3
      Re: lopsided Silvia?

      rd,

      stupid question, but have you checked the level of the machine? The kitchen bench may not be perfectly level.

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      • #4
        Re: lopsided Silvia?

        I did think that, or maybe one leg was squashed or something, but I reckon the pressure in the PF would overcome that. But maybe not once it gets into the spouts? Worth asking.

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        • #5
          Re: lopsided Silvia?

          Originally posted by Matt G link=1163626959/0#2 date=1163628017
          rd,

          stupid question, but have you checked the level of the machine? The kitchen bench may not be perfectly level.
          Doh! Didnt even occur to me. Ill have to acquire a level and check. Failing that, will look at the distributor.

          Thanks,
          Julio

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          • #6
            Re: lopsided Silvia?

            You dont even need a level. Just put a glass on top of the machine and fill it with water close to the brim and youll see if its off level.

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            • #7
              Re: lopsided Silvia?

              Mmmmmm.....interesting. My Silvia flows more from the right! I only ever pull one at a time, so doesnt really matter. Im sure its level, but I might just check it anyway.......(runs to shed to fetch level).........Yep, its slightly off level. But, get this, it slopes to the left. Any other explainations?

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              • #8
                Re: lopsided Silvia?

                Slopes to the left as measured where? Accross the bottom of the grouphead? Or someplace else that may be at a different level than what the portafilter sits at? :-? :-/ ;D


                Java "Just whats level?" phile
                Toys! I must have new toys!!!

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                • #9
                  Re: lopsided Silvia?

                  Originally posted by cafeoholic link=1163626959/0#6 date=1163762514
                  Mmmmmm.....interesting. My Silvia flows more from the right! I only ever pull one at a time, so doesnt really matter. Im sure its level, but I might just check it anyway.......(runs to shed to fetch level).........Yep, its slightly off level. But, get this, it slopes to the left. Any other explainations?
                  The pf spouts on the silvia have a little bowl-shaped bit in the bottom where espresso can collect. If some espresso gunk builds up around part of it it might mean that more has to build up before it can flow over. The la marzocco/cimbali/bfc open spout is a much better design in this regard. So maybe one thing that you could do is to get a pipe cleaner and use it to scrub out the holes where the espresso exits into the spouts.

                  Cheers,

                  Luca

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: lopsided Silvia?

                    Originally posted by luca link=1163626959/0#8 date=1163768547
                    The pf spouts on the silvia have a little bowl-shaped bit in the bottom where espresso can collect. If some espresso gunk builds up around part of it it might mean that more has to build up before it can flow over. The la marzocco/cimbali/bfc open spout is a much better design in this regard. So maybe one thing that you could do is to get a pipe cleaner and use it to scrub out the holes where the espresso exits into the spouts.
                    I spoke to Renzo at Di Bartoli on Thursday and he suggested the very same thing, but there has been no buildup there yet (havent had the machine long enough I suppose). Also I had verified that the machine was resting level. I looked at what was coming out of the shower screen without the pf and it did seem to favour the left a bit so I cleaned the screen thoroughly and I think the problem may have gone away. It hadnt occurred to me that it could be so simple, but Ill keep an eye on it and see what happens...

                    Thanks for the suggestions.

                    Cheers,
                    Julio

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: lopsided Silvia?

                      Mine does (did its not working now) exactly the same, more from the left than the right, I just thought it may have been a common thing with Miss Silvia as Ive cleaned it, changed the screen etc and no change.

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                      • #12
                        Re: lopsided Silvia?

                        Originally posted by Javaphile link=1163626959/0#7 date=1163765862
                        Slopes to the left as measured where? Accross the bottom of the grouphead? Or someplace else that may be at a different level than what the portafilter sits at? :-? :-/ ;D


                        Java "Just whats level?" phile
                        Good question Javaphile, nobodyd guess Im an engineer. The group head is level, so that doesnt explain it. I must say, the problem seems random, sometimes its fine. I was wondering if it was to do with a tendancy to tamp slightly lopsided.

                        Ah well, the coffees still good.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: lopsided Silvia?

                          The pf spouts on the silvia have a little bowl-shaped bit in the bottom where espresso can collect. If some espresso gunk builds up around part of it it might mean that more has to build up before it can flow over. The la marzocco/cimbali/bfc open spout is a much better design in this regard. So maybe one thing that you could do is to get a pipe cleaner and use it to scrub out the holes where the espresso exits into the spouts.

                          Cheers,

                          Luca
                          You can can also take off the spout and check theres no metal dag in the middle where the coffee hits. This was a problem in my daughters nemox (I attached a new spout) and in an old boema spout I had- the espresso hit it and wasnt evenly distributed.
                          Brett

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                          • #14
                            Re: lopsided Silvia?

                            if you are doing everything correctly, and its only the level of coffee in one cup compared to the other, how about just raising one end up slightly so that it pours out evenly?

                            My backyard isnt level and when im mucking around with Silvia (too messy for my kitchen) i just need to prop it a mm or two to get even flows.

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                            • #15
                              Re: lopsided Silvia?

                              My Expobar does this sometimes but I think its probably the occasional uneven tamp.

                              One of the first things I did when setting her up on the bench was measure the level across the top of the machine.

                              Now Im gunna have to check the level at the group head out of curiosity now that thats been raised.

                              Thanks Java "instilling paranoia" phile.  :P

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