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Sunbeam EM6910 thermoblock temperature issue.

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  • #16
    Re: Sunbeam EM6910 thermoblock temperature issue.

    On Sunbeams insistence my second machine has been sent back to them. They have a new machine, that they have tested to ensure it is working to the exact calibrated temperatures that the EM6910 is designed to operate at, on its way to me. I was told the machine should not be producing 65 degree water and that 87 deg C would have been considered normal in the opinion of the person I am dealing with.

    I asked a friend to test his three year old 6910, using my non-scientific method, and he got 82 degrees. If he had got 65 degrees I would have accepted this to be normal as his machine would have then been to the fourth to have done so.

    I cannot fault Sunbeams customer service in any way. It has been exeptional.

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    • #17
      Re: Sunbeam EM6910 thermoblock temperature issue.

      My third EM 6910 has been received, unpacked and tested as per the method used with the other two. The result is a water temperature of 85 degrees.

      I am more than happy with that. A great birthday present.

      Coffee time!

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      • #18
        Re: Sunbeam EM6910 thermoblock temperature issue.

        hi all,
        my sunbeam cafe series 6910 is making my coffee taste horribly sour! i have used both the sunbeam descale liquid along with the tablets as well, rinsed it out throughly and also had about a 250 g bag run through it and still it tastes really sour.. what other problem could this be?

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        • #19
          Re: Sunbeam EM6910 thermoblock temperature issue.

          Originally posted by 352132260C303227323F3A3D32530 link=1266222481/17#17 date=1277860519
          hi all,
          my sunbeam cafe series 6910 is making my coffee taste horribly sour! i have used both the sunbeam descale liquid along with the tablets as well, rinsed it out throughly and also had about a 250 g bag run through it and still it tastes really sour.. what other problem could this be?
          Set to default for head temp and when you did teh cleaning did you remove and clean the shower screens... A backflush / ds-scale will not clean the shower screens...

          Depending on how long you have had it.. They can get very dirty.

          1: What beans ?
          2: From Who ?
          3: Date roasted ON ?
          4: What grinder ?

          PS. Update ya profile with location and equipment details..

          Comment


          • #20
            Re: Sunbeam EM6910 thermoblock temperature issue.

            Originally posted by 3D293A2E04383A2F3A3732353A5B0 link=1266222481/17#17 date=1277860519
            hi all,
            my sunbeam cafe series 6910 is making my coffee taste horribly sour! i have used both the sunbeam descale liquid along with the tablets as well, rinsed it out throughly and also had about a 250 g bag run through it and still it tastes really sour.. what other problem could this be?
            Hows the temperature of the water running through the coffee? As stated above the coffee will be sour, so there may be something wrong with settings or the machine.
            But, again as above, it could be the coffee, try sourcing some freshly and locally roasted coffee.

            Comment


            • #21
              Re: Sunbeam EM6910 thermoblock temperature issue.

              Gday,

              Recently Ive also been a bit concerned about the water temperature on my 1 month old Sunbeam 6910. The only reason I thought this was due to the sour shots I have been getting (according to my untrained palate). I only really drink milk coffees but decided to start sampling my shot in effort to improve them.  Anyway after some testing (see below) I am much more confident and happy about the machine.

              Test Setup
              - 2 standard styrafoam cups, one inside the other
              - Tops of the cups trimmed such that they fit under the group head
              - Milk thermometer (best device I have) poked into side of cups
              - Two overflow holes poked on side of cups above point where thermometer is sitting.
              - Some kind of support to hold cups in place.





              Test 1 - Measure the top temperature leaving shower head
              - Brew temperature set to factory 92 degrees.
              - Allowed machine plenty of time to warm up (eg 15 mins)
              - Hit the Manual button
              - Recorded top temperature:  85 degrees ( few! )
              - After the top temp was reached it steadily dropped off so I recorded the descent...
                             15 secs after top temp:  83 degrees
                             30 secs after top temp:  78 degrees
                             45 secs after top temp:  75 degrees

              Test 2 - Measure the recovery time
              Measure the time it takes to return to the top temp after a 1 minute flush (single press of the Manual button).
              Recordings below:

              - After 1 minute:   82 degrees
              - After 2 minutes:  83 degrees
              - After 3 minutes:  84 degrees
              - After 4 minutes:  84.5 degrees

              Thats all I have time for...but it looks like full recovery will take approx 5 minutes.
              Next test would be to test the actual recovery time after pulling a standard 30 sec shot....maybe tomorrow

              So overall Im satisfied that my machine is not faulty. Probably just user error creating the sour shots. Will try hiking the brew temp by 4 degrees tomorrow.

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              • #22
                Apologies for resurrecting a 7 year old thread but this is the thread with the most info on EM6910/EM7000 temperature issues that I can find and I thought I would add to it rather than kick off a new discussion.

                I have recently acquired a used Sunbeam EM7000 and I suspect it too is not controlling the temperature correctly. Using the styrofoam cup method as demonstrated by Yash above I measured the water temperature at 75.5 °C on a digital meat thermometer (another thermometer reads within 1 °C of this). Changing the programmable temperature to +2 °C yields water at 78 °C and I suppose that using the +4 °C setting will take it to 80 °C.

                I am consistently getting a tan coloured crema and somewhat sour shots, which is what led me to suspect low temperature (after some researching). It could be down to something else though. I am only an espresso beginner, after all.

                Given that it's out of warranty, is it worth having the machine temperature looked at by a service centre? I also happen to have an EM6910 that I bought for $20 just to have an extra portafilter. It doesn't work but it does heat up. Does anyone know how difficult it would be to open it up to pull out the thermostat and put it into the EM7000 for testing?

                Many thanks.

                Comment


                • #23
                  Hi zeezaw
                  I would suggest that if you are confident enough to work on your machines safely you could try resurrecting the 6910 and compare the brew from this with your 7000. At least, this way you would have some idea if it is your beans causing the problem and would also have a spare machine to use if you did have the 7000 repaired.
                  The 6910 uses a thermistor attached to the outside of the thermoblock to sense its temperature. Its resistance changes with temperature and this is communicated back to the control board. I would assume that the 7000 uses a similar setup but have never worked on one. The thermistor is a fairly reliable component so I doubt that is likely to be causing your problems unless it has come loose from the thermoblock or the thermal grease under it has dried out. Either way, it would be a time consuming job to swap them over.
                  If the 6910 only cost you $20 you don't have much to loose if you stuff it up as long as you are confident you can work safely on a mains powered appliance.
                  Most common problems with the 6910 seem to be with either a scaled up steam thermoblock or a blockage between the brew thermoblock and the '3 way' solenoid valve.
                  ( Failing that, you could always strip the works out of the 6910 and make it into a letterbox - I have one and it really freaks out every who sees it )

                  Trev

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                  • #24
                    Thanks, Trev. I might give the 6910 a go, though given the amount of gunk I found in the 7000's shower screen I shudder to think what I'll find in the much older 6910—apparently it's been in storage for a while. When I did try to run it the lights came on and it made all the right noises but no water came through. Perhaps it just needs priming.

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                    • #25
                      Sometimes it takes a bit of 'brute force' to get it primed. I have found that a large syringe (from the chemist) and an adaptor into the water intake at the back of the water tank works well. Try pulling out the water tank and make a fitting to go into the opening - I once cobbled one up using a piece of black drip irrigation poly pipe (1/2" I think) coupled to the syringe with various odd bits of plastic tubing pushed together. Force the water in with the pump running. It seems that the valves in the pumps stick when the machine has been stored for any length of time. The pump will quieten down considerably when it is primed and pumping.
                      Once you have water pumping try both a descale with vinegar and backflushing with either the Sunbeam tablets or Cafetto powder (two separate operations).
                      If you can't get steam then the steam thermoblock may need cleaning - this can be a bit tricky but there are plenty of ideas in this section of the forum or just ask and I sure you will get advice.
                      Please let us know how you get on.

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