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  • Brew Temperature of Levetta?

    What should be the temperature of the water coming out of my Levetta?

    I made a cappucino for my daughter the other day, which she said she liked, but thought it was a bit cool temperature-wise. I know there are lots of variables etc but it started me thinking. So I thought I would try and measure the water temperture.

    I started by boiling some water on the stove and put my temperature probe into it. It read a steady 95.7 C, so a little bit out of calibration. I put this water into a cup to heat it up and thought I would just run some water through the machine and portafilter and see what the temp was when it ended up in the cup. Not perfect I know, but easily enough done, chilly ambient air temp of 14.5 C. The machine had been on for at least 2 hours and already made a few coffees, so all should be warmed to operating temps. It started with the boiler light off, which came on during the second pour. These are the results, which need to have a small correction added to them from the boiling test.

    Do they seem a little low?



  • #2
    Re: Brew Temperature of Levetta?

    Originally posted by PhilMac link=1218701315/0#0 date=1218701315
    What should be the temperature of the water coming out of my Levetta?

    I made a cappucino for my daughter the other day, which she said she liked, but thought it was a bit cool temperature-wise. I know there are lots of variables etc but it started me thinking. So I thought I would try and measure the water temperture.

    I started by boiling some water on the stove and put my temperature probe into it. It read a steady 95.7 C, so a little bit out of calibration. I put this water into a cup to heat it up and thought I would just run some water through the machine and portafilter and see what the temp was when it ended up in the cup. Not perfect I know, but easily enough done, chilly ambient air temp of 14.5 C. The machine had been on for at least 2 hours and already made a few coffees, so all should be warmed to operating temps. It started with the boiler light off, which came on during the second pour. These are the results, which need to have a small correction added to them from the boiling test.

    Do they seem a little low?
    Hi Phil- you have full control over brew temp....Grab a screwdriver and you have access to the rheostat through the inspection hole on the top cover...Experiment!

    Chris

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Brew Temperature of Levetta?

      OK, thats great. The manual didnt mention anything like that, but I probably could have Googled.

      Clockwise increase temp?

      Thanks for the prompt reply

      Cheers

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Brew Temperature of Levetta?

        http://www.chriscoffee.com/products/home/espressoaccs/thermometerkit

        This is the kit developed by Eric S for the e61 group. Anyone have any thoughts on it ? It seems it would eliminate a lot of guesswork for comparatively few $.

        Regards,

        Ben

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Brew Temperature of Levetta?

          At least one CS member has one.
          I cant remember who.

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Brew Temperature of Levetta?

            Originally posted by Thundergod link=1218701315/0#4 date=1218709987
            At least one CS member has one.
            I cant remember who.
            hmm is it redzone on his VBM-DS?

            Oh yeah b4b

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Brew Temperature of Levetta?

              Beanz4brainz talks about his here

              http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1201093112/#16

              and there is some more here.

              http://users.rcn.com/erics/DigThermAdptr.pdf

              Rgds

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Brew Temperature of Levetta?

                Gday Phil,

                I wouldnt adjust anything without first making sure you can replicate the conditions of an actual pour at the water flow rate the machine is designed for.... A maximum of 60ml in roughly 30 seconds, wait for roughly how long it would take to replenish the PF Basket, then try again. If you are unable to get hold of a Scace Device or the parts to make one of your own, you can use a K Type Thermocouple bead resting on top of a normally prepared coffee puck, locked in and connected to a Thermologger or DMM. This will ensure that normal flow rates are maintained and that the temperature of the Brew Water is being measured in the right place, just under the shower-screen.

                The entrapment of the t/c cable between the Group and the PF doesnt harm the insulation very much and providing you lock the PF in properly, a good seal is maintained against the Group Gasket. Ive been using a setup such as this for a few years now and with the same t/c still performing reliably. You really do need to go to this extra bit of trouble as Groups and their attendant Brew Water Delivery Systems are designed to operate efficiently and properly at "normal" water flow rates. Too fast and the Brew Water will cool down in proportion to the excessive flow rate, with the opposite occurring when the flow rate is too slow. It doesnt really matter what type of Group and delivery system is being used, the same precautions need to be observed.

                Hope this is helpful mate....

                Cheers,
                Mal.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Brew Temperature of Levetta?

                  Thanks for that Mal,

                  Im getting fairly consistent pour rates, so Ill give that a go. I imagine that method will probably give a slightly higher temperature reading to, as the water hasnt travelled down to the cup.

                  Cheers

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: Brew Temperature of Levetta?

                    Mal,

                    I went and bought another thermocouple wire and tried the above. With a little tweaking of the stat, the temperature on top of the puck was a steady 90.8*C. The coffee is definately hotter now, the puck seems drier and possibly not as bitter in the taste. All good. (I think)

                    Cheers

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Brew Temperature of Levetta?

                      PhilMac,
                      Any chance of photos?
                      Have you measured the temp at the boiler?
                      Where did you get the thermocouple from?

                      Thanks,

                      Thomas

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Brew Temperature of Levetta?

                        Hi tominoz,

                        I could take a photo, but you wouldnt really see much, just a wire trailing from the p/f to the multimeter. All I did was as Mal said above, positioning the tip of the thermocouple fairly close to the centre of the tamped puck, carefully inserted the p/f and read the temperature from the multimeter.

                        I didnt measure the temp of the boiler, as
                        (a) that would be harder, involving a bit of dismantling, and
                        (b) as long as the water brew temp is correct, does it really matter?

                        The T/C wire ends up shaped like an S-bend, but it didnt damage the insulation. I bought the thermocouple from Jaycar Electronics, $9.95

                        Cheers

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Brew Temperature of Levetta?

                          How much movement did the Thermostat adjustment screw require? Clockwise to raise?

                          What was the initial temp at the p/f prior to adjustment?

                          I am really tempted to get that thermometer adapter for the e61 group to remove all the guesswork.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: Brew Temperature of Levetta?

                            Fellow Mac,

                            Not much movement, the screw was at 10-00 oclock and ended up being just past 11 when I got the temperature I was after (I think). Clockwise raises the temp.

                            I didnt measure the initial temperature of the p/f with the t/c as I had already fiddled with the screw since dipping the probe type t/c in the cup, but as you can see from the first graph, I suspect it was fairly low.

                            For $10, I think it gives a fairly accurate result, as when I put the t/c in boiling water, it came up with 99.5*C.

                            Cheers

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: Brew Temperature of Levetta?

                              Sounds like a pretty good outcome PhilMac.... 8-)

                              I think what you have noticed with the pucks is a good indicator that extraction is close to ideal and so long as the results in the cup meet with your approval, thats probably a pretty good place to leave it.

                              Good stuff mate,

                              Mal.

                              Comment

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