Is Elektra Microcasa a Leva portafilter dishwasher safe?

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boren
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#1: Post by boren »

Is the MCaL portafilter (plastic handle) safe to clean using the dishwasher? If so, what is the maximum safe temperature?

Thanks in advance!

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drgary
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#2: Post by drgary »

In general, don't wash plastic handles in the dishwasher. It is very likely to dull the finish at least. Won't a hand wash take care of this?
Gary
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boren (original poster)
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#3: Post by boren (original poster) »

The part I want to use the dishwasher to clean is the internals of the portafilter, not so much the handle. It's very dark and difficult to wash by hand, and I know that it's going to resume it's original clean state after a few machine washes (judging by past experience with other hard to wash metal parts).

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drgary
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#4: Post by drgary »

If you soak it in JoeGlo or Cafiza that will do the trick without ruining your handle. If you can't get those products there perhaps someone can suggest their active ingredients.
Gary
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rpavlis
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#5: Post by rpavlis »

Brass items are normally coated with a polymer to make them looking beautiful without polishing.

The handles on the Elektra Microcasa portafilter are threaded on, you should be able simply to unscrew them. You should do this from time to time anyway (every month or so) to be sure that there is no corrosion. I always wrap mine with teflon tape each time I do that to reduce metal to metal contact. I would not put either a plastic or a wooden handle in the dishwasher. Dishwashing detergents tend to do nasty things to plastic and do terrible damage to anything made of wood.

I am sure that the polymer coatings on the metal would suffer damage from these materials at some point, I do not know whether immediately after a lot of exposure.

In my experience polymer coatings on portafilters fail much quicker than they do otherwise from contact with steam. My La Pavoni brass portafilter coatings failed long ago. When they started to do so I stripped them with paint remover. (After removing the handles, of course!!!) They looked ugly and blotchy from the metal having darkened where the coatings were failing, so I polished them up with brass polish.

If you simply wipe brass with a towel every time you use it will remain shiny without a coating. I also have a flannel cloth that I use for polishing brass things, and I rub them with that once in a while. Every few months I clean them up a bit with brass polish.

I think it better to remove handles and carefully clean them by hand. I occasionally also use a cloth soaked with grain alcohol for this purpose, but my portafilters are stripped of polymer coatings. (Again I only do this with removed handles!)

boren (original poster)
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#6: Post by boren (original poster) »

Thanks, I haven't thought about unscrewing the handle. This sound like an easy solution.

BTW, don't you think that manual cleaning using a typically abrasive dish washing sponge is more likely to remove coatings than the heat of the dishwasher? I'd assume such coatings should be resistant to heat.

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drgary
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#7: Post by drgary »

boren wrote:BTW, don't you think that manual cleaning using a typically abrasive dish washing sponge is more likely to remove coatings than the heat of the dishwasher? I'd assume such coatings should be resistant to heat.
You're thinking of cleaning the black oily stuff out of the inside of the portafilter, aren't you? Using a detergent specialized for removing coffee oils should be easy with an abrasive dish sponge. If you don't mind losing your clearcoat then a dishwasher wouldn't be such a risk.

About clearcoat, I've got a vintage MCAL and over time the clearcoat wears away, revealing metal that discolors. Robert's is one solution. I've thought similarly of removing the remnants of clearcoat with lacquer thinner. He says paint remover works, so I would go that way. What gives me pause about his method for my machine is that some of the finish underneath the clearcoat seems to be thin copper plating. Polishing it with a rag would remove that. So I may polish it carefully since it's fragile, then spray it with a high temperature clearcoat. It's a shame that Elektra doesn't do a better job of plating their machines and applying a clearcoat that's more robust.
Gary
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stefano65
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#8: Post by stefano65 »

rinse and wipe after each use with water
then (depending on the oil content of your particular beans)
once a week or more or less often espresso cleaner with a grouphead brush on the INSIDE and the basket
mild solution of soapy warm water for the outside and the handle
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rpavlis
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#9: Post by rpavlis »

It really is amazing how bare uncoated brass stays shiny when it is simply wiped after each use with a towel.

When I was in Peru and Chile for six weeks recently the bare la Pavoni brass portafilters were not wiped each day. They were dull and beginning to look ugly. I gave them a light polishing with brass polish and they were bright again. They look just as good now, a month later, as they did when I polished them because I wipe them carefully after each use.

The polymer coatings do not stand up very well to being hit with steam at each use.

Even though the portafilter on my MCAL is only six months old I can spots of deterioration of its polymer coat. I may have to get out the paint remover soon for it too. Mine seems to be solid brass.