Back flushing question

[mikemalter]

How long do I leave the machine running when back flushing. I have read that we are supposed to backflush until we see some lights flashing, but they never flash. I chicken out at about 15 seconds, and have been backflushing for 10 seconds before turning off.

What is the correct time?

Thanks.

[Weska]

You have a mini, don't you? It must be that it's warning lights are not the same as for those of us with a rotary pump.

The lights on mine start flashing after about 10 seconds, and I let them flash a couple of times. From that, it would seem that you are in the right range.

[mikemalter]

Weska, thank you. Glad to hear I am not doing any damage.

[Mario]

Yes, I too have the mini and can confirm the lights do not flash in the same way that the rotary models do. I called Chris Coffee and Mary said that they generally backflush for about 20 seconds. Then wait 20 and repeat if you want. I've also used 10 and 10 and I don't see a whole lot of difference.

[Niko]

If you hit the "2 Cup" button to backflush on a VII this is what happens after about 10 seconds:

Doing it for about 15 seconds should be enough on a Mini since there's no pre-infusion.

[mikemalter]

Niko,

I actually did some testing and when the dial on pump pressure reaches max pressure ( 6 seconds), I shut off and I get as much backflush water as 10 or 20 seconds. You don't think that this is going to be a problem, do you?

Also, I did not know there was no pre-infusion on the Mini. What do you think the difference is in taste?

Thanks.

[Niko]

No taste difference in the lack of pre-infusion.
The rotary VII has a natural pre-infusion (whatever that means :? ) and I imagine the Mini is the same deal - no pre-infusion like an E61.

The way you're backflushing sounds pretty good to me, the only reason they mention 15-20 seconds is so that the detergent will work its way longer into the valves to clean out the oils.

[mikemalter]

I like the backflush. I do it after every cup, and it is a nice way to get everything up to temp.

Hey, I read on one of the messages you are looking for a new coffee grinder. I saw that one put out by the photo people- something labs - looks really good.

[Niko]

Yeah, the Versalab M3...
it looks great with a price tag to match a BMW M3
I was about to email them with some questions but a post on some other forum kind of scared me out of it, for now.
I've been looking into a Mazzer Kony but I don't feel like setting up the Empire State building in my kitchen.
I like the Robur but I didn't want to spend over $1500.
My head's spinning now but after I cleaned out the Mini, everything seems to be back to normal - not that a Mazzer would break, I was just getting mad enough to throw it out the window (and it would still work after that too!).

I actually made a new post about cleaning out the Mini, it was much easier than I anticipated

I really want another Mazzer (for the build quality) and the looks but I hate anything with a doser - reminds me of a bulldozer in the kitchen
...but you can't have everything.

[mikemalter]

What did the post say that you did not like?

I really liked that the beans were not in a hopper sitting on the blades all the time.

My grinder is the Cimbili Hybrid - it is a max with a small hopper. Chris designed it and bought a bunch of them so Cimbili would make them. They fit exactly under my kitchen counter.

How often should one clean out their grinder?

[Niko]

The M3 was falling apart on the guy, so far he's the only one it's happening to but with my luck I'd end up like him

I think grinders should be cleaned out every 3-4 months depending on the usage (home setting). I thought "Grindz" would do the trick but it certainly didn't keep my Mazzer from jamming.

I saw grinder Chris is selling, it did catch my eye and I have it on my list but I head Mazzer is coming out with some new stuff soon. I can wait, no hurry for the next grinder purchase.

[chas]

Using the lights to determine when to stop a backflush on the S1 and VII is based on the fact that, when the flow slows way down or stops, the flow meter triggers an alarm and blinks the lamps. Due to the way the rotary pump is plumbed, it maintains a constant output pressure so you can't go by a pump stalling sound like you can on lower end machines.

Since the Mini still has the volumetric dosing I would have thought it would be using the same flow controller and would alarm in the same manner. However, it could be that when the pressure exceeds a certain amount, it just dumps the water back into the tank which would keep some flow going and prevent an alarm. Come to think of it, when I had an Isomac Tea, I believe it had two hoses stuck in the water tank with one being just such a return line.

The bottom line in any case is that there is no problem just going by time as you are already doing.