The coffee machine has had its regular service, which means that the emergency pressure valve has been replaced, and a new water filter installed. The service engineer was very complimentary about how we are looking after the machine. It’s two years old and looks pretty much new. He said to pass onto you all his thanks for looking after it so well as it has made his job easier.
The new water filter (in the cupboard under the sink) is much larger than the last one and should last approximately 9 months, going on our average consumption rates. If you take a look in the cupboard under the sink, you will see a small LED reader which will blink a light and beep when the cartridge needs to be changed, so please keep an eye out for that. But obviously not for a few months.
I had asked him to attend to service the machine as it had flooded the counter recently when I was cleaning it. It turns out that the funnell under the drip tray was just inundated with too much water. So please take care you don’t make the same mistake as me and switch on both star buttons to clean the group heads at the same time. It’s too much, and will overflow. The water then sits on the counter top and will rot and or warp it, so please take care.
At the same time that the coffee machine was serviced, the coffee grinder was given a tweak to make the grounds slightly finer. This has led to a better crema on the coffee, and will make a better brew. It may need slightly tweaking again as the grinding blades dull over time, but it probably has a good few months left in it before we need to replace the blades which will cost about £60.
The service, which is usually 6 monthly, costs £580 with parts, but is a worthwhile investment for our hardworking coffee machine.
If I get time before we reopen i will also clean the grinder as I don’t think we’ve done that since we opened!