Looks like La Marzocco and BWT (Best Water Technology) have paired up for a La Marzocco branded RO system:
No MSRP yet

Looks expensive.

No sign of it on the LM USA or LM Home sites. Any word if and when they might carry it?

Interesting that they test only TDS and not hardness/alkalinity.

Also interesting that the 80 ppm TDS shown in the video is a tad lower than LM's published TDS minimum of 90 ppm.

I saw it come across their Twitter feed this morning. They replied to the MSRP question with: "...Prices for the Reverse Osmosis line will soon be available through La Marzocco's authorized distributors."

I've been contemplating redoing my current basic charcoal/softener setup to an RO setup and "remineralizing" back to the proper hardness, so it did pique my interest. That will most likely be shot down once the pricing is released though

I thought the wastefulness of RO was frowned upon by experts in the area of water for espresso, especially a few years back. Of course, anything produced by LM will be priced accordingly (i.e., not affordably!).

In what way is RO wasteful?

Pure RO has never been acceptable for espresso machines because it doesn't have the minerals required for good extraction. Further, it can be too acidic.

I believe there was some frowning by espresso machine makers a few years back concerning the Everpure system, which produces RO and then blends tap water back in to achieve a more favorable mineral content. The concern was that with certain input water compositions, the output was too acidic and could cause corrosion. I believe LM was one of the critics of the system.

The fact that LM has developed its own system is interesting in that it must produce output that they find acceptable for their machines and for optimum extraction. But I'm curious how it works -- does it blend tap water back into the RO produced by the second cartridge or does it blend in minerals (and thus require periodic refill of those minerals)? What does the electronics box do and why is it so large? Does it require AC power? I guess we'll find out!

If the system is priced under $500 it would be an attractive alternative to my cation system, but I'm guessing this thing is going to cost over a grand.

I've used RO for the espresso machine for more than 9 years now. I changed to RO after seeing what was in tap water post distillation. Distill 4 litres of water, then take what remains in the still about 100 ml, look at it, smell it, then add it back to the water you just distilled....I guarantee you wouldn't want to drink that water....and the UK is meant to have great tap water!

Theres a lot of crap in water, flourides, chlorine, rust copper, calcium carbonate etc.. etc.. don't tell me this makes espresso taste good. I can still remember the taste and smell of water last time I was in Florida.

RO...then remineralise however you want is the only way to absolutely control what's in the water. me I like pure RO water with Sodium bicarb added back as a buffer to bring the pH to neutral and the TDS at about 70-90. Makes great coffee, with enough ions in the water so your taste buds work just fine.

For a change I agree with what LM are doing.

P.S. Also because all that other crap is out...I simply don't get machine faults any more....I'm sure I will have some, but nothing for the last 9 years

Peppersass wrote:In what way is RO wasteful?

The amount of water discharged (3-4 gallons?) for every gallon of filtered water produced.

Peppersass wrote:In what way is RO wasteful?

The fact that LM has developed its own system is interesting in that it must produce output that they find acceptable for their machines and for optimum extraction. But I'm curious how it works -- does it blend tap water back into the RO produced by the second cartridge or does it blend in minerals (and thus require periodic refill of those minerals)? What does the electronics box do and why is it so large? Does it require AC power? I guess we'll find out!

No tap water back blend IMO. And no mineral refill. You can't refill the BWT Bestmin filter, it's closed. You need to change it every 10.000 liters or 1 year of use. The electronic box is the RO. Usually inside there are 4 filters + RO membrane and probably also a pump, so you must need AC power.

JohnB. wrote:The amount of water discharged (3-4 gallons?) for every gallon of filtered water produced.

Fortunately latest ROs has near 1:1 waste ratio.