A surprise company perk! - Page 2

by **nixter** on Mon Jun 29, 2009 4:47 pm

Yeah I've already found the steam wand encrusted in milk a few times.

I've just decided not to care about the whole thing anymore. Much easier.

by **nixter** on Thu Jul 09, 2009 12:34 pm

I ended up buying a Zassenhaus hand grinder! Very cool but lots or work for a double shot of espresso. I now have all I need to make great espresso at work. I'm still trying to find the right flush for the La Scala though. It can be tricky as I generally don't know how long the machine has been on or when it was last used. I often find it turned completely off during the day as well. I've considered writing a company email with a list of friendly reminders about the machine and it's use but I've decided against it seeing as I'm technically just a contractor here and don't want to be "that weird guy who's really into coffee". The sound of me spinning my Zassenhaus for several minutes twice a day has taken care of that. Or maybe it's the sight of me pumping away on my Vacu-vin container at my desk. From the wrong viewing angle that can look a bit odd.

by **JmanEspresso** on Thu Jul 09, 2009 6:38 pm

A Zassenhaus ehh? Very nice!

As to the flushing/machine being used by others/turned off,, etc etc..

In that particular situation, I would suggest maybe asking everyone to simply not turn it off at all. It seems there are a few people using it besides you, and apparently, some turn it off when they're done. I say, leave it on 24/7, unless no one will be in the house for longer then a day. My rule is, if no one will be home for a period longer then 48hrs, I turn it off. But day to day, while no one is home, it stays on. The butterfly, Im almost positive, has autofill, and a thermal overload fuse, so it wont be a problem. Maybe if you dont use the water tap or steam a lot, drain the boiler once a week to refresh the water inside..(thats what I do)

Is the machine the levetta or the volumetric version? If its the Levetta, I think Erics Therm adaptor will fit on the grouphead..

But as to the flush.. Since its not your daily use/home machine and you cant just spend a few hours with it whenever you feel like it.. I suggest using the flush method outlined in the HX Love Article. Flush X seconds past the water dance, wait 20-40 seconds, pull shot. I imagine everything is set to the factory settings, and I find that method is the easiest "plug&play" method for an HX. A little mirror, like from a compact makeup or something similar helps to watch the water dance so you dont have to bend down under the grouphead every shot you want to make.

Basically.. I would suggest asking everyone in the house to just leave the machine on all the time.

Im happy to hear you got a grinder to use with the machine...Its very lucky to have such a machine in such an environment. But, careful now.. Now that you bring fresh coffee and a proper grinder.. People are going to start to notice a difference in your drinks and theirs!

Enjoy!

P.S. I chuckled at the Vacu-vin joke.. I have one as well.

by **nixter** on Thu Jul 09, 2009 8:04 pm

I thought of suggesting it be left on all the time but it's kind of pointless. There's way too many people that work here for that to work. I'm familiar with the water dance flush as I have an HX at home. It seems to be working well now that I have the rebound sorted. Somewhere between 30-60 seconds. I'll have to start timing. I can just see it, "That weird coffee dude's got a timer now!"

The Zassy is quite nice but wow, quite a bit of work. Would a large burr set speed things up? I can't imagine this thing ever being used for more than one shot at a time! I'm thinking about some way I can attach a low speed hand drill to this sucker

by **networkcrasher** on Fri Jul 10, 2009 11:51 am

Could you stick a note to it to "please leave on during daytime hours" or something?

by **nixter** on Fri Jul 31, 2009 1:42 pm

Well well well. It all makes so much sense now, the fancy espresso machine and the crap grinder. I just learned that the La Scala was left here by the previous tenants who vacated the premises rather quickly leaving chairs, files cabinets, and one plumbed in La Scala Butterfly!

HA!

by **Espin** on Sat Aug 01, 2009 3:57 pm

The only method I've found to wake up my coworkers to the benefit of doing it right is to invite them to share a coffee - I'll make it for us.

This usually gets followed by "wow, this is really good - when I make the coffee it never tastes like this", which is a perfect opportunity for "Oh, I can show you how..." and then "that grinder doesn't work very well, and it makes the coffee come out like..." and "those beans are stale".

Sadly, this also leads to "hey, can you make me a coffee?"

A note stuck on the machine next to the power switch, in properly scary language like "Hey! Leave this turned on - it takes at least an hour to warm up!" is probably in order, too.

by **nixter** on Sat Aug 01, 2009 7:30 pm

That's exactly what I do! I can't go through a lb of beans myself before they go stale so I make a 2nd drink for whoever wants one when I make mine. I'm slowly gathering followers. It's even been suggested I give a company demo on how to properly use the machine.

by **nixter** on Wed Aug 12, 2009 8:02 pm

well my 2 or 3 daily shots have resulted in a routine that is producing very very drinkable shots each and every time! I've got the flush sorted and I can almost predict the amount of adjustment the Zass requires on a daily basis. I haven't even turned on my Oscar at home for over a month now. I have never really able to get consistent results with it. I tried all sorts of flush and rebound lengths. Who knows, maybe after the experience with the La Scala something will click when I try Oscar again. Hmm... could it be the Zass? I thought my Baratza Vario was doing a decent job.

by **Chert** on Wed Aug 12, 2009 9:02 pm

I suggest that since it is a freebie to your workplace and you are the only one who knows how to use it that machine should be yours. I wish our break kitchen had such an item. But then my 30 minute lunch would be shot through very quickly. This reminds me of the threads in which people describe finding cheap or free Olympia Cremina machines.
:wink:

by **Spironski** on Thu Aug 13, 2009 5:41 am

I have a La Scala at home, and it hurts my brain to think about this machine in an office environment. What will happen with it after you have gone? Perhaps a mercy killing is in place... :oops:

It is a fine piece of equipment. I have installed the Erics Therm. and it shows that the machine needs quite a long flush, like 8 seconds after waterdance (250-300 cl?) but of course YMMV (my pressostat is at 1.0-1.2). It has all the autofil and shut off etc., so you don't have to worry about that. For the rest: it's just a 2 liter HX, so what's there to tell?

If you have any questions left don't hesitate to ask. But I reckon you have worked it out already.
Couldn't you swap the Butterfly for a superauto, when you will be going...?

by **nixter** on Thu Aug 13, 2009 12:51 pm

Hey there, glad to see another Butterfly user! Interesting about your flush length. I only flush for about 2 seconds after the dance and our p-stat is between 1.1-1.4 I think. I will confirm that in a minute when I make my morning shot. I usually rebound for 30-45 seconds. Are you listening for water dance with portafilter on or off? Here's what I do... I put the pf gently in the grouphead and flush for 3 seconds and then let it sit for another few seconds to get the pf warmed up. I then remove the pf and continue the grouphead flush + 2 seceonds. During the rebound I'm wiping the pf dry, dosing, tamping, etc.

I'm here for another 6 weeks probably. I think I may have a demo session and also write up a detailed user guide.

by **Spironski** on Thu Aug 13, 2009 6:28 pm

With the Erics thermometer I no longer pay attention to the waterdance, I just look at the temperature read out

. But before I installed the Erics I would look at the water coming out from the pf. I didn't listen, partly because the machine is too loud, but also because visual signs would seem enough for me: the water boils, then flows "uneasy", then comes to rest. That is when I would start to count a few seconds and stop. But after the installation of the Erics, my flush has become somewhat longer. I now see it needs a few seconds longer to cool it down to 90 C (after the rebound you get, like, 94C). I have to say that just a few weeks before the Erics, I retrofitted a flowrestrictor, and these two together were a big change.

I normally do a flush with pf in place, then 30-40 sec. rebound.


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