I'm trying to upgrade my home machine, looking for something in the range of the Rancilio Silvia or Quick Mill Silvano but with a heat exchanger and PID either integrated or mod-able. HX is my main concern because the boilers in these higher-end home machines come with a lead warning, and with a baby + nursing mother in the house I don't want to take that risk.

I don't need to pay extra for all the features of models like the Quick Mill Andreja - I can live without the E61 group head and have no use for the hot water wand. Plus, the Andreja takes up a lot of space.

Are any good options available? A good stainless steel single boiler machine that's aesthetically pleasing would also suffice.

msenator wrote:I'm trying to upgrade my home machine, looking for something in the range of the Rancilio Silvia or Quick Mill Silvano but with a heat exchanger and PID either integrated or mod-able. HX is my main concern because the boilers in these higher-end home machines come with a lead warning, and with a baby + nursing mother in the house I don't want to take that risk.

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If I remember correctly Rocket espresso machines are lead free brass boiler. only the prices will blow out your budget.

I presume the lead concern and preference for HX is because the brew water is always fresh from the reservoir and is not sitting for a long period of time in a brew boiler.

Although you don't plan to use the hot water wand, it's an important feature on a HX machine since it's the only way to empty water out of the steam boiler.

I would say the PID on the other hand is not an important feature on an HX machine since its controlling the steam boiler temp and not brew temp (albeit indirectly) and a pstat will provide exactly the same function.

what about waiting for decent to release their new machine??

While not a heat exchanger, the Breville Dual Boiler would seem to fit your requirements. It uses small boilers, so they would presumably be less liable to leach lead into the water. Not sure what the boilers are made from, but probably steel and not brass to keep the price down.

You can get the BDB for discounts that should put it at $1,000 or less if you are willing to wait for a sale. Black Friday sales are going on now, so it's a good time to shop for something like an espresso machine at many major retailers.

The BDB is pretty large, but not heavy compared to many machines in its general class, and easily moved due to rollers underneath.

The Decent machine also looks very promising, but it hasn't hit the market yet, and probably won't be available for several more months. Early reviews are very favorable though, so it could be worth waiting for.

Thanks for the advice everyone... I ended up going with a Quick Mill Silvano anyway. Chris's Coffee had a disclaimer that all Quick Mill boilers are built with low-lead brass using "TEA" electroplating. That was enough incentive for me, because that's the machine I really wanted.

I passed on the more expensive models with the E61 group head, mainly because my coffee bar isn't big enough for one.

Excited about the purchase! Thanks again.

( Quick Mill Silvano ) A good start into the espresso world. Congratulations