Take this as an anecdotal observation from me...when running a hopper (on the K30), I found that my coffee tasted sweeter after a thorough cleaning session...Likely just a psychological effect or coincidence but I experienced it more than once..I always purge before using the grinder.

For single dosing though, I've never felt any noticeable difference with cleaning session (or not).

Maybe others who did cleaning on a hoppered grinder can chime in?

I don't notice any change in taste - I single dose too.
The main thing I notice is adjustment changes but I live in a pretty humid environment.

samuellaw178 wrote:Take this as an anecdotal observation from me...when running a hopper (on the K30), I found that my coffee tasted sweeter after a thorough cleaning session...Likely just a psychological effect or coincidence but I experienced it more than once..I always purge before using the grinder.

For single dosing though, I've never felt any noticeable difference with cleaning session (or not).

Hey, Sam,
Interestingly, what I tend to notice is that my coffee gets bitter over time, and vacuuming the grinder (even without deep cleaning with a brush) would improve the taste. Fines get removed to some extend, perhaps? Maybe it is just my psychological expectation (because I can feel some improvement in taste after I re-charge ion filter too).

So, yeah, it might be just my imagination/placebo effect. But I like the effect

aecletec wrote:I live in a pretty humid environment.

Hi Chris,
I think this is why cleaning the grinder makes such a difference for you.
At home I have aircon running almost 24/7, otherwise in Auckland everything gets dump and mouldy. I can imagine what it does to the grinds... yackeee...

Yep that's why I mentioned it

No need to worry just a little bit of rancid stale grinds go a long way taste wise and don't forget the wonderful chocolate colored crusty cuties that pool in various areas, age (vintage baby vintage,) and break off into your latest grind every now and then.

It can provide for a much more stiff and rigid burr carrier over time as well as personalize your grinder to your specific grind range only as your caked up crusties will prevent your adjustments from going over or under that range.

And oh don't forget the wonderful cheap burnt rubber robusta like smells as well as flavor enhancements that get more interesting as time goes by not to mention the occasional cogged up gunk filled cutting edges that make your grinder burrs spin while spitting out absolutely nothing at all but good luck getting your burr carrier to budge (unscrew) past the gunk filled threads.

While you don't have to be obsessive about cleaning your grinder it is a good idea to clean the crap out of the areas where it accumulates once every now and then.

How often do you think Cafes tear down and dissemble their grinders, clean them and then re assemble? They go through so much coffee. Probably more in a day than I do in 2-3 months.

My K10 manual specifically states "do not remove the burr assembly except if new burrs are required"..

I agree with some previous posters, when my shots get funky I do two things:

- clean my grind path
- clean my brew path

Seems to bring things back to normal every time I do this. I don't think it's entirely in my head. Coffee goes bad after a while so it would make sense that this stuff affects the taste of the drink you are running through it.

Also, as with all things mechanical, it is always a good idea to do some minimum amount of maintenance. No need to do a full disassembly every week, just use common sense.

So i vote for occasional teardown and cleaning as needed

I open up & clean my K10 WBC about once a month. The whole process only takes a couple minutes.

In Australia the high end places often open up and/or vacuum their grinders daily or several times a week. Climate, rotating beans or standards may be different here.