AndyS wrote:2. Some people claim that certain machine components (eg, gaskets) last longer when the machine is on 24/7. (Unfortunately, many of these people are probably just repeating anecdotal evidence that does not constitute real proof. One would think that the major machine manufacturers have a lot of good data on this, though.)

You'd think in vain, Andy, at least in my sample-of-one case. I was wondering if I could save power by putting my Techno on a timer. I asked Rene of Just Espresso, and he called his contacts at the Reneka factory. Their response was "this is a commercial machine, we didn't design or test it for that, why does he want to, and if he does he's on his own," or words to that effect. I wouldn't be at all shocked if the response from most of the major manufacturers was similar.

Best,
David

DavidMLewis wrote:Their response was "this is a commercial machine, we didn't design or test it for that, why does he want to, and if he does he's on his own," or words to that effect.

Except it was in French.

DavidMLewis wrote: I wouldn't be at all shocked if the response from most of the major manufacturers was similar.

Sadly, you're probably right.

DavidMLewis wrote:You'd think in vain, Andy, at least in my sample-of-one case. I was wondering if I could save power by putting my Techno on a timer. I asked Rene of Just Espresso, and he called his contacts at the Reneka factory. Their response was "this is a commercial machine, we didn't design or test it for that, why does he want to, and if he does he's on his own," or words to that effect. I wouldn't be at all shocked if the response from most of the major manufacturers was similar.

Best,
David

Hi, David. Nice to see another Techno owner - it seems a solitary world sometimes.

I used to have mine on a timer (not strictly a timer, but an x10 power outlet switched on a predetermined programmed schedule). I don't bother now. I just switch it to standby if I'm not intending to use it for a while, including overnight. It consumes much less electricity in that state, but comes back up to temp in a few minutes (with a couple of blank shots). I think Reneka had an intermittent fairly low volume commercial application in mind for the machine, so I hope that's what they DID "design it and test it for" ;o)

Some earlier posts seem to have missed the point about leaving a machine on 24/7 or switching it off being cheaper (from an energy point of view). Switching off an appliance that consumes electricity to create heat is ALWAYS cheaper than leaving it on. It might be different if we get into the latent heat situation, but we aren't really with espresso machines. The principle is "you pay for the heat you lose". If this were not the case, we would not bother insulating our homes or turning the heating down if we're going to be away for some time.

Obviously, the better a machine is insulated or designed to have a low rate of heat loss, then the difference becomes more marginal. The Techno has some insulation on both boilers, but still loses a fair amount of heat at full power.

Having said all that, I confess that I leave mine on 24/7 for convenience, and also because having been at the sharp end of IT equipment failures I do sorta subscribe to the on-off-on-off-on-off cycles putting machinery under stress viewpoint, especially where there is a large heating/cooling/contraction/expansion element involved. I WOULD NOT, however, leave a machine that uses a pressurestat to control the heater and/or has no autofill switched on unattended. I used to have an Isomac Tea and I never really trusted that to behave reliably unless I was around. It had no "standby" facility anyway and lost a huge amount of heat as part of its design.

I tell myself that during the house heating season, my approach is simply contributing slightly to the heat input to my home (albeit in a more expensive way than using gas central heating). In the summer...well, it is still more convenient, and it doesn't get scorching hot here anyway. I make myself feel a bit less guilty about it by replacing most of my lightbulbs with low energy lamps or LED's.

Rob.

Just for another data point, the fully warmed up, idle power consumption for Anita is 107.4 watts. I noted 1.89 kw-hrs over a 17.6 hour time period.

1.6 liter boiler?

Regards
Timo

Yes, according to the specifications data sheet, Anita has a 1.6 liter boiler and a 1400 watt heating element. The power consumption of 107.4 watts would also be applicable to Andreja and Vetrano under the same conditions, i.e. just sitting there at idle, fully warmed up.

Data was noted using the power meter that Jeff originally posted about - great link Jeff