Bottomless Portafilter Issues
I've been using a bottomless portafilter in my cafe for about a year now. There is one thing I can't seem to figure out. The stream of the coffee more often than not is tilted to one side of the portafilter. It tends to lean towards the back. We've checked the machine and it's level, we've been very careful about our tamp being level for uniformity of extraction, and still haven't been able to figure it out. It tastes great, so I've haven't been too worried, but still think it's a little odd. Any suggestions?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Banks Thomas on
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I sounds to me that your tamp is not level, or you are tamping with less pressure on one side somehow.
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Permalink Reply by Jason Haeger on
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I've seen this before on a machine that was showing some strange issues.
The flow from the group head was strongly favoring one side over the other, and the extraction was affected as a result.
It wasn't clear that this was a problem at first, until noticing that it constantly favored one side. Attempts to fix the problem proved this side-favoring water flow to be the cause.
The fix requires some disassembly and thorough cleaning/descaling. This is something I didn't have time to look into further at the time, but I did notice that it caused symptoms consistent with what you're describing.
Of course, this assumes that the distribution and tamp are consistently spot-on. I am assuming that you have done a lot of work in those areas trying to work this issue out, so I'll also assume that your tamp and dose are in check.
I tried dosing heavier to one side. I tried tamping at a deliberate angle. It took a little of both to get an "even" flow, which was the giveaway. And it was always to the same side, so if that's the case, I'd be willing to bet you're seeing something similar with your machine.
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Permalink Reply by Rich Abker on
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I have come accross this issue in the field occassionally. Sometimes I was able to correct it, but a few times not.
The symptom: The espresso pour from a double portafilter has a tendancy to flow more from one side of the pour spouts.
Some possible causes and cures are:
1) The espresso machine is unbalanced. **Adjust one or more of the legs on the espresso machine until pour is balanced.
2) The serving counter is unbalanced. **Again, adjust the espresso machine legs, as above.
3) The portafilter spout is unbalanced. **Tighten and balance the pour spouts.
4) The group head or water dispersion screen may be unblanced. **Contact your espresso machine service company.
If the problem is negatively affecting the exctraction, service is needed immediately. If it is only a matter of imbalance in either the counter or spouts, you can live with it until you have a chance to correct it.
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Permalink Reply by Rachel Lehman on
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We've checked and rechecked that.....we've checked our dosing to make sure we've have even coverage.....
Banks Thomas said:I sounds to me that your tamp is not level, or you are tamping with less pressure on one side somehow.
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Permalink Reply by Brian Davey on
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Try this....pull the spring out of the basket so you can go through your procedure as usual. Then prior to putting the PF into the machine rotate the basket 180 degrees. If it is the machine then nothing will change. If it is something you are doing during dosing, tamping, etc then the stream will be exactly opposite as you are used to. I say pull the spring as it will be easier to rotate. Just be careful if you polish as you may spin the whole basket. Put a light finger on it and that should fix it. Give that a shot and at least you will have some idea of where to start. In the end the taste is what matters so it is good to hear you are not too worried about it.
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On second thought, picture or video evidence is priceless in a case like this.
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Sorry, in my eagerness to offer advice to help, I over looked bottomless >:-/
It is my time to listen :-)
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So, this is interesting. My machine is completely level from side to side and front to back, but at the group....it is slightly tilted by 3 degrees. It leans towards the back. It's a 1 year old La Marzocco GB-5. Anywho.....
Jason Haeger said:I've seen this before on a machine that was showing some strange issues.
The flow from the group head was strongly favoring one side over the other, and the extraction was affected as a result.
It wasn't clear that this was a problem at first, until noticing that it constantly favored one side. Attempts to fix the problem proved this side-favoring water flow to be the cause.
The fix requires some disassembly and thorough cleaning/descaling. This is something I didn't have time to look into further at the time, but I did notice that it caused symptoms consistent with what you're describing.
Of course, this assumes that the distribution and tamp are consistently spot-on. I am assuming that you have done a lot of work in those areas trying to work this issue out, so I'll also assume that your tamp and dose are in check.
I tried dosing heavier to one side. I tried tamping at a deliberate angle. It took a little of both to get an "even" flow, which was the giveaway. And it was always to the same side, so if that's the case, I'd be willing to bet you're seeing something similar with your machine.
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Permalink Reply by Stephen Curtis on
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Have you changed your gaskets and screens recently? I came across this inadvertently when I was having similar issues, changed my screens and gaskets for regular maintenance, and that solved it.
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Yes, I changed the gaskets 2 weeks ago, and I change my basket every 3 months or so.
Stephen said:Have you changed your gaskets and screens recently? I came across this inadvertently when I was having similar issues, changed my screens and gaskets for regular maintenance, and that solved it.
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So are you closer to the 3 month mark for your screens? It would not be the gasket that would have that effect; it would be the screen. If it were me I'd change the screen - at least if it doesn't change anything you'll know that's not it!
Rachel Lehman said:Yes, I changed the gaskets 2 weeks ago, and I change my basket every 3 months or so.
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I would really doubt that something removable from the head would affect the angle of the head, which is off by 3*, as stated.
Has the machine been touched by any technicians?
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