Supporting the Alexia / Eliane boiler would be a good idea. This should not happen under normal (brutal) handling.

And the float deal contributes nothing to the machine, except amusement. -- In fact, the selling price would probably be at least $25 to $50 LESS at retail if all of it were omitted.

dave

edna713 wrote:On the 16 or so Alexias I've modded --

1) I immediately remove the tank float relay and related parts. This un-needed in a machine of this type, as it has NO autofill controller, and you will KNOW right away when the water is out. While this is an improvement over the microswitch of the Isomacs, etc. it still is a tiddly annoyance for owners. In other words, if the tank is slightly out of position the machine will NOT work even when full.

2) Accessing the boiler heater connectors through the bottom plate, I make certain that the connectors are in place -- very firmly. One or both almost always FALL off in shipment due to movement of the boiler, which is only suspended on 2 copper tubes. For more permanent security, I use the correct size of heat shrink tubing to secure.

FWIW, I've had no issues with the tank placement and/or float switch. I typically fill the machine in place, and do not remove the tank but I have had the tank out quite a few times. The tank is positioned over a centering bracket that ensures proper placement (see the picture below).


Quick Mill Alexia - pourover reservoir centering bracket (left), magnetic float in reservoir bottom (right)

The heater terminals on my review machine arrived attached... and as Sebastian said they are quite tight, however I guess he has seen them jostled loose as well. The heat shrink is a good idea, one of the things you need to be careful of when doing the PID installation is shorting the heater terminals to the case, the heat shrink tubing would help here.

edna713 wrote:Supporting the Alexia / Eliane boiler would be a good idea. This should not happen under normal (brutal) handling.

Personally, I wish more prosumer and up machines had some sort of boiler support bracket. When the guy in the brown shorts throws your package around, lots of things can move in most of these machines. The only machine that I have noted a nice support bracket in is the new Isomac Tea II.

Isomac Tea II boiler bracket, nice idea! (picture coutesy of 1st-Line)

I'm only basing my comments on complaints from several new owner / customers who would call me, annoyed that their new machine would not "come on". -- That and the fact that it serves no useful purpose in a single boiler machine leads me to remove this additional point of failure (and expense) -- or annoyance, especially for the newbie.

QM needs to fab a bracket to support the boiler and prevent 120 volts from contacting the base of the unit when the connector(s) fall off in normal shipping. As has happened with about 90 percent of the Alexias I have received.

UPS or others are not responsible for this, especially when the unit is double boxed, in TWO double wall boxes.

It would also be good to eliminate the holes above and below the 'pid' controller opening, just for appearances.

And I found that with the boiler insulated the way I do it, internal temps never exceed 108 F. Naturally the lower the better.

You do take AMAZING PICTURES!!!

dave

jesawdy wrote:The only machine that I have noted a nice support bracket in is the new Isomac Tea II.

The Vibiemme Domobar Super has a support bracket underneath the boiler. There's probably others with similar supports; I haven't made a point of noting it, but probably should given UPS/FedEx roughhousing.

The Quick Mill Andreja Premium, Anita, and Vetrano's boilers are all secured to the bottom of the frame by the heat exchanger. The Alexia single boiler machine creates a challenge as to how to attach the boiler to the frame since the heater is bottom loaded and there is no heat exchanger to secure to. The Isomac Zaffiro has the same issue. Keep in mind it is a non issue other than during shipping. As always we continue to work closely with Quick Mill on ways to improve all the machines they make for us. I will be meeting with them in November in Milan at their factory.

jesawdy wrote:FWIW, I've had no issues with the tank placement and/or float switch. I typically fill the machine in place, and do not remove the tank but I have had the tank out quite a few times.

You do need to take the tank out regularly and clean it. It develops a slimely coating if left too long.

edna713 wrote:I'm only basing my comments on complaints from several new owner / customers who would call me, annoyed that their new machine would not "come on".

I am one of those customers. I have not yet disabled the float switch relay, just because I want to avoid mucking with the internals. In my case, it seems more like something is sticking rather than an alignment issue. I switch the unit on with the tank out and then lower the filled tank. About half the time I'll hear the relay switch on, but on the other half I don't. In these cases, I raise the tank just a bit and let it drop to very slightly jar the tank and internals. This seems to get the relay to kick on. This doesn't bother me much, but if I start putting the unit on a timer, then I'll probably need to disable the float switch (of course that's probably when I'd need the functionality of the float sensor the most!).

Aside from that, I'm extremely happy with Alexia and the ease of use that an expertly installed PID affords me.

doppio_s wrote:I am one of those customers. I have not yet disabled the float switch relay, just because I want to avoid mucking with the internals. In my case, it seems more like something is sticking rather than an alignment issue....

Hmmm, I have ran the tank empty many times... usually at inopportune moments (which would be my only complaint about the float switch). When the float switch indicates no water, both the heater and the pump are turned off, so if you are midshot the shot is ruined. When I add water to the tank, the heater immediately comes back on when the float rises up.

You may have some sort of alignment issue with the float and the sensor that is internal to the machine. Or maybe the float is getting bound up in its little cage?

It would seem that the float issue is a problem with some and not with others, and shipping does contribute to a very poor O.O.B.E. [out of box experience] for some customers when the shiny new $1,000 + machine appears to be dead on arrival.

Since the float system contributes nothing to reliability or performance on this or any single boiler machine, IMO it should be removed.

edna713 wrote:Supporting the Alexia / Eliane boiler would be a good idea. This should not happen under normal (brutal) handling.

And the float deal contributes nothing to the machine, except amusement. -- In fact, the selling price would probably be at least $25 to $50 LESS at retail if all of it were omitted.

dave

What is the intended function of the float switch and why does the machine not need it?