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New Machine Advice - EM7000 or something Italianish
Well I finally bit the bullet and ponied up for the Sunbeam EM7000. I've had it a little over a week now and I'm pretty happy with the machine so far.
Compared to my old Breville it is better in every way, except the location of the steam wand.
I love being able to texture the milk and extract the espresso at the same time. I can make two coffees quicker now than it used to take me to make one with the old machine. It's Soo much quieter too.
Thanks for all your help.
Hi GazzPops, what did you pay for your EM7000? I'm in the market for a new machine and I think I have the exact same requirements as you!? Do you find it quick to heat up and not too noisy?
I picked my machine up from The Good Guys for $599 on special.
Heat up time is good and the noise is excellent. The noisiest part of using the machine is frothing the milk!
I have had problems with the puck sticking to the shower screen when I over tamp using the single basket. When it doesn't stick it doesn't come out all that cleanly either so I'm thinking about getting a VST basket.
I'm still really happy with the machine and loving my morning coffee.
I picked my machine up from The Good Guys for $599 on special.
Heat up time is good and the noise is excellent. The noisiest part of using the machine is frothing the milk!
I have had problems with the puck sticking to the shower screen when I over tamp using the single basket. When it doesn't stick it doesn't come out all that cleanly either so I'm thinking about getting a VST basket.
I'm still really happy with the machine and loving my morning coffee.
Thanks GazzaPops, I'll go to my local good guys and ask for that price. With regards to cleaning and maintenance, what is the expected regime? Descale, backwash etc?
I've only had my machine for a month so I haven't done a descale or a backflush yet. I give it a flush after every shot, I'm probably due to give the shower screen a clean.
I just posted this an another thread - hope it helps.
Length of service: depends how well you maintain them. My 2008* and 2007 SB 6910s are still going strong with no reliability issues after initial havoc. Fail to maintain it properly and you can kill any machine (yep, even $20+K commercial ones) in three months. Feed it poor WA tap water directly and it will die very quickly indeed. I expect the Brevilles are similar as the ones my friends have are well looked after and many years old.
First essential step (if you haven't already worked it out) is to feed it properly filtered water. IMO those in tank filters do terrible things to the flavour of the cuppa so I do not recommend them at all - I removed mine before I finished unpacking the machine out of the box, and I have a firm "throw out on sight" policy for any friend's machine I work on. FWIW, I use rainwater filtered both into the tank and out of the tank - that may be extreme, however after 18 months there is no residual in the tank - although where I live has very clean "virtually salt free" air and therefore very good quality rainwater to begin with.
At an educated guess I reckon the 6910 will give well over 10 years and the Silvia ditto given a fair amount of TLC without going over the top. The 7000 would be about a year less - it is just not quite as solid.
Second essential step - no2 phillips head screwdriver and remove the showerscreens (yep, like some seriously upmarket machines the 6910 / 7000 has twin showerscreens, and preinfusion for that matter). I buy my beans in 250g lots (light to medium roast SO's I like variety) and do the showerscreens every time I change a batch. I could probably get away with 750g on most batches. Oily dark roasts - every 150g or even more often.
Third essential step - a quick preflush starts to dissolve any leftover gunk / warms the machine up properly. I do the standard preinfusion plus a couple of seconds. Ditto a post "current series of shots" flush - after I clean the p/f, I place it back in the machine and do another standard preinfusion plus a couple of seconds. I then wipe down the group area.
Fourth step - the 7000 has both a clean and a descale. I don't do the cleaning cycle at home (remember my rainwater is probably cleaner than most "store bought" distilled waters), however friends with worse water do a cleaning cycle every week or so (depends upon their usage). A descale every few months is a good idea "whether it needs it or not". Basically, if either the steam or the shot "go off the boil" then do a descale before faffing around trying to troubleshoot it.
Fifth step - Note: Especially when learning, it is fairly common to pollute the steam wand's internals with dried on milk. I use a "over half full of water" large milk jug and let the wand heat it up, turn the steam off and leave the jug in place for a couple of minutes (hint: use the drip tray as a stand). That will slurp up some hot water into the wand. Then remove the jug and turn the steam on full - after a splutter of water into the drip tray there should be a plentiful supply of even steam coming out. If not descale it. After your technique improves both the group and the wand will need a descale at roughly the same time.
Enjoy your cuppa - I do...
TampIt
*my 2008 was supposed to be new in 2010, it wasn't and an initial botched repair followed by a proper repair in mid 2011 are its only initial issues. The 2007 6910 received an A to Z clean when I inherited it about 5 years ago. Since then, nothing for either 6910 - not even a seal. I had my Silvia for 9 trouble free years - the next owner took three years to kill it (like most dead Silvias, run it out of water once and pay around $500 for a new boiler / heater). If they had maintained my old Miss S correctly it would probably still be going.
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