jaz419 wrote:Ok thanks for the info. Wish I had the counter top space to fit a kettle.

I haven't been really interested in the Decent espresso machines.... But this could make a difference for me.

It's also neat in that you can program the exact temp and volume of water so it is easy enough to dilute your espresso into an Americano in one push and have it drinking temp right away.

Ben Z. wrote:I don't think mixing valves are all that rare. My cimbali m20 had a heavy brass fixture inside that you manually adjusted to pick your temperature. IIRC, it had tons of range, from pretty much all boiler to all inlet line.

True.

They are rare in home machines, but quite commonplace on commercial machines like Cimbali, Kees, LM, Slayer (but not on the single group), Synesso, etc...

Jake_G wrote:Hey Colin,
Nearly (but not quite) all other machines outside the SBDU (Single Boiler Dual Use) category pull from the steam boiler. General consensus is that boiler water doesnt taste great and is rarely the correct temperature for making making americanos, so a dedicated kettle is the preferred solution. I would say the 3 machines listed above are the exception to the rule and can likely be used to make tasty americanos, with the GS/3 having the caveat that you have to make them very regularly, lest the water in the boiler become saturated with minerals, as happens every time you use the steam wand.

R91 is another one that has adjustable temp at the hot water tap.

The hot water from the machine is actually fine for making coffee/tea drinks - under a couple of important conditions.

As you say, you must use the hot water regularly. Ideally aim to turn over the boiler contents every 3 days or so

With a 2 litre boiler, that's around 2 cups of water per day being drawn off. Even if not making americanos, tea etc, it's always a good idea to use the hot water wand for prep or cleanup. Our kids use it for cup noodles. All good, keeps the fresh water cycling through the system.


The other consideration, which most here are already doing is to use filtered water in the machine.

Even for machines without a mixing valve, there's always the option to add a dash of tap water to the cup before adding the hot water from the machine. This will bring it down from near boiling, to the ideal 80C or so for americanos.

Is it a bad idea just to take water from the group?

You're bound to get some particles coming from the group. This may sound gross to folks, but pull a shot of water straight from your group into a cup after you pull a shot...

The puck is a depth filter and does a great job keeping particulates out of the cup. If you use a puck screen as part of your normal workflow, I suspect group water would be cleaner, but I still bet you'd get some "stuff" in the cup. Pulling americano or tea water through an empty double basket may do the trick, but I am not sure.