Dumb newbie question that's been bugging me since I picked up my Isomac Millenium- which has the classic flower shaped steam knobs and valves typical on E61 machines....
I notice that it takes a full 2.5 revolutions of the knob to fully open/close the steam valve. Thats a lot of small-knob twisting when you're steaming 4oz of milk! Is it really necessary to "fully" open the valve when steaming milk, or will one full turn suffice?

On paper, I would think opening the valve half way would mean it's only half open.... however it seems to achieve full steam pressure after opening only a 1/4 turn.

I really like the design of the mondiale and the new ECM where you flip a lever rather than turning a knob....

PS, this mornings drinks were EXCELLENT... I have to admit the 1-2 really excellent drinks I get every week keep me hooked on continual improvements & learnings...(with the other days still being pretty good to my tastes)

Math answer : when the valve is backed out more than the area of the tip holes, the valve is fully open.

Simple answer : no need to back out all the way

Thanks- that's what I was hoping to hear!

Usually a half turn is enough. These valves tend to be all or nothing. Ball type valves are variable but these are basically a rubber plug in a brass cup at the end of the shaft. That simply covers the hole when closed.

My recommendation is that if you want to moderate the steaming speed to use a different tip with smaller or fewer holes.

Jim, that is great information.
I really had steaming down with my La Pavoni W/ the brooklynshot 1-hole tip. The Isomac has been a transition, I wasn't happy with how the steaming was going with the stock "new" 2-hole tip. I tried blocking 1 hole and things are much better now. So maybe it's OK to not open the valve all the way since my steam wand tip is down to %50 of stock output. The main reason I am looking into this is, I find with the single hole, it's taking 2-3 seconds after I close the valve for the steam to stop.

I haven't seen 10mm single-hole steam wand tips anywhere, but I can live with the toothpick fix if needed.

By the way- typical routine for me is to steam only about 3-4oz of 2% milk at a time. With stretching it's enough for my wife's 4-5oz drink and my own 2-3oz size macchiatos. Here is this AM's 3oz drink... not pretty but it did taste good!

If you listen, you can tell pretty when the steam valve is open to "full power", regardless of how many turns it took you to get there. I might be wrong, but I'd be really surprised if it had been designed to require more than a full turn to get there. Get your biggest pitcher and try turning on gradually, see if you can notice about where additional turning stops making a difference. Note that point, and don't bother going past it.

Agree with pp... you'll get best results at "full power", regardless of what volume that may be.

You know, moving up to a higher steam output machine (or tip) can be an opportunity to stretch and grow as a barista. Though there is nothing wrong with modifying your gear to work like you are used to, getting outside our comfort zones from time to time is a good thing. To kinda turn what Jim said on its head - the faster you have to go, the better your steaming technique will become. It forces you to pay more attention to the details of what you are doing, and really hones your skills. Upsize your pitcher for a couple of weeks if you are having trouble with it spilling out, you'll drop back down to your current size once you get the hang of it.

I understand where you are coming from, though... I hated our uber-fast machine when we first got it, and couldn't get good fine texture for a while. Now though, I can get great texture with it (and pretty much any machine made) because that machine made me get better.

Hope that helps.