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Main
Date: 03 Sep 2006 00:53:29
From: yoddeb
Subject: Gaggia Evolution sometimes running out of steam
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I have a Gaggia Evolution and I have replaced the steam wand with the
Rancilio wand. Most of the time I can produce great froth by following
the often recommended procedure of beginning the frothing before the
steam ready light lights up. Appr. 30 secs after hitting the steam
switch I start steaming, most of the times it works great. But
sometimes the machine/wand starts screaming and runs out of steam. I
can tell right away when it is going to happen, the temp. does rise
very slowly in the milk right from the beginning. So: what is happening
in these instances? I feel crippled cause I'm still not quite sure how
exactly a machine of this type works internally. If I did, I'm sure my
chances of avoiding this (HATE when it happens when a friend is here
waiting for a cappuccino) would increase.
TIA
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Date: 03 Sep 2006 02:18:49
From: yoddeb
Subject: Re: Gaggia Evolution sometimes running out of steam
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The wand is much better than the old one. With proper technique,
microfroth is possible.
I just read Your reply again and I think I understand now. I'll change
my routine to this:
* Grind
* Run appr. 6 cl of water through group and porta by pressing brew
button
* Fill filter, tamp
* Load filter, pray and pull shot
* Remove porta (new)
* Run appr. 6 cl of water through group by pressing brew button and
clean at the same time (new)
* Hit steam switch
* Let water out of steam wand after 25 sec
* Start steam after 30
Perhaps my problem is that "Run appr. 6 cl of water through group and
porta by pressing brew button" in my routine sometimes did remove to
much or to little water from the boiler.
Natalie Drest skrev:
> "yoddeb" <yoddeb@gmail.com> wrote in message
> news:1157270009.017077.230770@74g2000cwt.googlegroups.com...
> >I have a Gaggia Evolution and I have replaced the steam wand with the
> > Rancilio wand. Most of the time I can produce great froth by following
> > the often recommended procedure of beginning the frothing before the
> > steam ready light lights up. Appr. 30 secs after hitting the steam
> > switch I start steaming, most of the times it works great. But
> > sometimes the machine/wand starts screaming and runs out of steam. I
> > can tell right away when it is going to happen, the temp. does rise
> > very slowly in the milk right from the beginning. So: what is happening
> > in these instances? I feel crippled cause I'm still not quite sure how
> > exactly a machine of this type works internally. If I did, I'm sure my
> > chances of avoiding this (HATE when it happens when a friend is here
> > waiting for a cappuccino) would increase.
> > TIA
> >
>
> Hi.
> I'm just learing to use my new Evolution, & had exactly that happen to me
> about 15 minutes ago.
> Home Gaggias have very small boilers. You've probably used much of the water
> in it to pour your shot, leaving not much for steam production; either that,
> or you're steaming a lot of milk.
>
> The boiler gets filled by the pump, which is switched on when you push the
> espresso button. The manual says to do this *before* loading your
> portafilter, to ensure the boiler is filled with water. I'd forgotten about
> that- I just remembered this afternoon, did it the proper way & made some
> great shots- then had the steam prob.
> If you're going to be steaming more than a little milk, you might like to
> fill your boiler first by running some water through (as though you were
> pouring a shot). Then push the steam button in so the boiler heats to steam
> temp, & start steaming whenever you like.
> If you run out of steam, just run a little water through again (you'll hear
> the change in the sound of the pump when the boiler is full), bring up to
> steam temp again & you're good to go.
>
> So- how's the new wand? Mocopan Melbourne is out of o-rings, so I have to
> wait til mid-Sept. for mine. I've made do by putting some Blu-tack around
> the gap in the Turbo-Frother (perfect for making huge volumes of *cold*
> froth) that lets the air in. I can now use it normally- it's not too bad,
> though I'm looking forward to a new Rancilio!
>
>
> --
> "I won't go into binary counting here. For further information you can
> search the Internet, or cut off all but one of your fingers."
> -Roger Nichols
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> As I understand it, when you pour your shot, the pump fills the boiler with
> water from the reservoir & heats it to espresso temp- ~92 deg C.,
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Date: 03 Sep 2006 21:23:01
From: Natalie Drest
Subject: Re: Gaggia Evolution sometimes running out of steam
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"yoddeb" <yoddeb@gmail.com > wrote in message
news:1157275129.163232.99030@m79g2000cwm.googlegroups.com...
> The wand is much better than the old one. With proper technique,
> microfroth is possible.
> I just read Your reply again and I think I understand now. I'll change
> my routine to this:
>
> * Grind
> * Run appr. 6 cl of water through group and porta by pressing brew
> button
You don't need to run that much through. When water starts coming through,
the boiler has filled- so you can stop.
> * Fill filter, tamp
> * Load filter, pray and pull shot
> * Remove porta (new)
You can leave it in if you wish... really doesn't matter. Just have
something under it.
> * Run appr. 6 cl of water through group by pressing brew button and
> clean at the same time (new)
Clean? What's that? I don't have a clean button... just power, brew & steam.
And again, you don't need to run much through. When water starts coming
through, the boiler has filled, so you can stop. But you can run 6 cl
through if you want, it won't hurt anything.
> * Hit steam switch
> * Let water out of steam wand after 25 sec
> * Start steam after 30
That's it exactly- but you should add this right at the start:
"Insert the empty filter holder into the brewing head to warm up.
Wait until the machine has reached the correct temperature with filer holder
inserted (heating time of about 6 minutes)"
This is straight from the Gaggia manual. They add the following:
"Use this time to set table, prepare cups, coffee, milk, etc"
So- don't forget to set that table! ;-)
Seriously though, it's important to get the filter holder good and hot by
leaving it in the brew head for a while.
>
>
> Perhaps my problem is that "Run appr. 6 cl of water through group and
> porta by pressing brew button" in my routine sometimes did remove to
> much or to little water from the boiler.
>
Not likely. Running water through runs the pump, & keeps the boiler full.
Were you running water through the group *between* pouring the shot and
steaming? That refills the boiler. I find it's not always necessary. If I'm
just making myself a latte I don't bother refilling before steaming. If I'm
doing a couple of lattes, I'll refill before steaming so I don't run out
toward the end.
I'm really enjoying my Evolution. $80 from eBay! The sellers replaced it
with... a nice shiny Breville 800! Unbelievable. I think the Evolution may
have been too messy/too hard for them... you do have to get things just
right for an OK shot.
Disclaimer:
The more I learn about espresso, the more I discover there is to learn...
> Natalie Drest skrev:
>
>> "yoddeb" <yoddeb@gmail.com> wrote in message
>> news:1157270009.017077.230770@74g2000cwt.googlegroups.com...
>> >I have a Gaggia Evolution and I have replaced the steam wand with the
>> > Rancilio wand. Most of the time I can produce great froth by following
>> > the often recommended procedure of beginning the frothing before the
>> > steam ready light lights up. Appr. 30 secs after hitting the steam
>> > switch I start steaming, most of the times it works great. But
>> > sometimes the machine/wand starts screaming and runs out of steam. I
>> > can tell right away when it is going to happen, the temp. does rise
>> > very slowly in the milk right from the beginning. So: what is happening
>> > in these instances? I feel crippled cause I'm still not quite sure how
>> > exactly a machine of this type works internally. If I did, I'm sure my
>> > chances of avoiding this (HATE when it happens when a friend is here
>> > waiting for a cappuccino) would increase.
>> > TIA
>> >
>>
>> Hi.
>> I'm just learing to use my new Evolution, & had exactly that happen to me
>> about 15 minutes ago.
>> Home Gaggias have very small boilers. You've probably used much of the
>> water
>> in it to pour your shot, leaving not much for steam production; either
>> that,
>> or you're steaming a lot of milk.
>>
>> The boiler gets filled by the pump, which is switched on when you push
>> the
>> espresso button. The manual says to do this *before* loading your
>> portafilter, to ensure the boiler is filled with water. I'd forgotten
>> about
>> that- I just remembered this afternoon, did it the proper way & made some
>> great shots- then had the steam prob.
>> If you're going to be steaming more than a little milk, you might like to
>> fill your boiler first by running some water through (as though you were
>> pouring a shot). Then push the steam button in so the boiler heats to
>> steam
>> temp, & start steaming whenever you like.
>> If you run out of steam, just run a little water through again (you'll
>> hear
>> the change in the sound of the pump when the boiler is full), bring up to
>> steam temp again & you're good to go.
>>
>> So- how's the new wand? Mocopan Melbourne is out of o-rings, so I have to
>> wait til mid-Sept. for mine. I've made do by putting some Blu-tack around
>> the gap in the Turbo-Frother (perfect for making huge volumes of *cold*
>> froth) that lets the air in. I can now use it normally- it's not too bad,
>> though I'm looking forward to a new Rancilio!
>>
>>
>> --
>> "I won't go into binary counting here. For further information you can
>> search the Internet, or cut off all but one of your fingers."
>> -Roger Nichols
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> As I understand it, when you pour your shot, the pump fills the boiler
>> with
>> water from the reservoir & heats it to espresso temp- ~92 deg C.,
>
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Date: 03 Sep 2006 02:08:07
From: yoddeb
Subject: Re: Gaggia Evolution sometimes running out of steam
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I do not understand this:
"The boiler gets filled by the pump, which is switched on when you push
the
espresso button. The manual says to do this *before* loading your
portafilter, to ensure the boiler is filled with water."
Are You saying that I should press the brew button and then load my
portafilter? With the water running?
Anyway: I always follow the exact (and I mean exact) same routine, and
sometimes the problem that I described occur.
Natalie Drest skrev:
> "yoddeb" <yoddeb@gmail.com> wrote in message
> news:1157270009.017077.230770@74g2000cwt.googlegroups.com...
> >I have a Gaggia Evolution and I have replaced the steam wand with the
> > Rancilio wand. Most of the time I can produce great froth by following
> > the often recommended procedure of beginning the frothing before the
> > steam ready light lights up. Appr. 30 secs after hitting the steam
> > switch I start steaming, most of the times it works great. But
> > sometimes the machine/wand starts screaming and runs out of steam. I
> > can tell right away when it is going to happen, the temp. does rise
> > very slowly in the milk right from the beginning. So: what is happening
> > in these instances? I feel crippled cause I'm still not quite sure how
> > exactly a machine of this type works internally. If I did, I'm sure my
> > chances of avoiding this (HATE when it happens when a friend is here
> > waiting for a cappuccino) would increase.
> > TIA
> >
>
> Hi.
> I'm just learing to use my new Evolution, & had exactly that happen to me
> about 15 minutes ago.
> Home Gaggias have very small boilers. You've probably used much of the water
> in it to pour your shot, leaving not much for steam production; either that,
> or you're steaming a lot of milk.
>
> The boiler gets filled by the pump, which is switched on when you push the
> espresso button. The manual says to do this *before* loading your
> portafilter, to ensure the boiler is filled with water. I'd forgotten about
> that- I just remembered this afternoon, did it the proper way & made some
> great shots- then had the steam prob.
> If you're going to be steaming more than a little milk, you might like to
> fill your boiler first by running some water through (as though you were
> pouring a shot). Then push the steam button in so the boiler heats to steam
> temp, & start steaming whenever you like.
> If you run out of steam, just run a little water through again (you'll hear
> the change in the sound of the pump when the boiler is full), bring up to
> steam temp again & you're good to go.
>
> So- how's the new wand? Mocopan Melbourne is out of o-rings, so I have to
> wait til mid-Sept. for mine. I've made do by putting some Blu-tack around
> the gap in the Turbo-Frother (perfect for making huge volumes of *cold*
> froth) that lets the air in. I can now use it normally- it's not too bad,
> though I'm looking forward to a new Rancilio!
>
>
> --
> "I won't go into binary counting here. For further information you can
> search the Internet, or cut off all but one of your fingers."
> -Roger Nichols
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> As I understand it, when you pour your shot, the pump fills the boiler with
> water from the reservoir & heats it to espresso temp- ~92 deg C.,
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Date: 03 Sep 2006 18:43:59
From: Natalie Drest
Subject: Re: Gaggia Evolution sometimes running out of steam
|
"yoddeb" <yoddeb@gmail.com > wrote in message
news:1157270009.017077.230770@74g2000cwt.googlegroups.com...
>I have a Gaggia Evolution and I have replaced the steam wand with the
> Rancilio wand. Most of the time I can produce great froth by following
> the often recommended procedure of beginning the frothing before the
> steam ready light lights up. Appr. 30 secs after hitting the steam
> switch I start steaming, most of the times it works great. But
> sometimes the machine/wand starts screaming and runs out of steam. I
> can tell right away when it is going to happen, the temp. does rise
> very slowly in the milk right from the beginning. So: what is happening
> in these instances? I feel crippled cause I'm still not quite sure how
> exactly a machine of this type works internally. If I did, I'm sure my
> chances of avoiding this (HATE when it happens when a friend is here
> waiting for a cappuccino) would increase.
> TIA
>
Hi.
I'm just learing to use my new Evolution, & had exactly that happen to me
about 15 minutes ago.
Home Gaggias have very small boilers. You've probably used much of the water
in it to pour your shot, leaving not much for steam production; either that,
or you're steaming a lot of milk.
The boiler gets filled by the pump, which is switched on when you push the
espresso button. The manual says to do this *before* loading your
portafilter, to ensure the boiler is filled with water. I'd forgotten about
that- I just remembered this afternoon, did it the proper way & made some
great shots- then had the steam prob.
If you're going to be steaming more than a little milk, you might like to
fill your boiler first by running some water through (as though you were
pouring a shot). Then push the steam button in so the boiler heats to steam
temp, & start steaming whenever you like.
If you run out of steam, just run a little water through again (you'll hear
the change in the sound of the pump when the boiler is full), bring up to
steam temp again & you're good to go.
So- how's the new wand? Mocopan Melbourne is out of o-rings, so I have to
wait til mid-Sept. for mine. I've made do by putting some Blu-tack around
the gap in the Turbo-Frother (perfect for making huge volumes of *cold*
froth) that lets the air in. I can now use it normally- it's not too bad,
though I'm looking forward to a new Rancilio!
--
"I won't go into binary counting here. For further information you can
search the Internet, or cut off all but one of your fingers."
-Roger Nichols
As I understand it, when you pour your shot, the pump fills the boiler with
water from the reservoir & heats it to espresso temp- ~92 deg C.,
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Date: 03 Sep 2006 20:02:36
From: Flasherly
Subject: Re: Gaggia Evolution sometimes running out of steam
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Natalie Drest wrote:
> > * Run appr. 6 cl of water through group by pressing brew button and
> > clean at the same time (new)
>
> Clean? What's that? I don't have a clean button... just power, brew & steam.
Briefly looked at them and looks a sweet deal - wish I'd got yours
before I got mine (different manuf. model). Oh, well. I've taken to
using a toothbrush on my head group. After the shot is pulled and the
PF removed, I turn on the pump and let the water run out at the bare
showerhead. Also don't like drip pans, so what's not in a cup or bowl
beneath ends up on the kitchen counter (not much spillover for small
lightweight setup). I then brush the showerhead with running, hot
water, holding the toothbrush horizontally (to avoiding scalding water
down my arm while watching for spatter into my eyes). I started doing
that recently after cleaning out a retentive boiler, and seeing in
commercial useage, baristas pulling the showerhead regularly for a
scouring scrubdown - thoroughly both sides. Not a phamplet thing, but
the toothbrush is becoming adequately stained.
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