S1 Newbie

Post by **bionic** » Tue Oct 16, 2007 7:31 pm

Okay, I'm a newbie with my S1. My office recently acquired an S1 and and I've been trying to "learn" on it but I've had some issue lately.

1. When I recieved the machine, the temp was set at 95C. However, in the process of using it, the temp ramped up 120C. It ran this way for about 2 months until I recently found out how to change the setting. I've read a couple posts about differing temps and personal preference. Is 120 too high for espresso? Could this have a bad affect on the machine itself?

2. I am also having trouble pulling a shot. I have a sneaking suspicion it's the grind, but the past few days i'm having a hard time getting much flow out of the PF. Now, there is still water moving through the brew head and the PF, it just seems to be a much lower pressure, even when there is no PF attached and I run water through it. Could the increased temp (120C) burned the pump? Is there a way to increase the pressure if it is too low?

Again, I'm a newbie at this. I love a good espresso and thought I had this thing running well, but I'm finding out maybe not! Any help would be much appreciated. Thank you.

Post by **Niko** » Tue Oct 16, 2007 7:36 pm

Welcome to the S1 Cafe!

The temp is waaaaaaaaay too high for any kind of drink known to man.
This may be affecting the pressure since the water would be beyond boiling at that point (248F!).

Post by **bionic** » Tue Oct 16, 2007 7:53 pm

Niko,
Thank you for the fast reply.
When I pull the PF out, there is standing water on the grinds. Could it be too fine of a grind?

Post by **Niko** » Tue Oct 16, 2007 8:03 pm

No, that's pretty normal for the S1.

Post by **bionic** » Tue Oct 16, 2007 9:31 pm

The espesso is just barely dripping out of the portafilter when I'm pulling a shot.

Post by **Niko** » Tue Oct 16, 2007 9:57 pm

You're choking the machine...
back off the grind a little.
Also make sure you're not tamping too hard.

Post by **bionic** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 7:29 am

OK, I'll give that a shot. I've noticed that a couple people who I work with (who will go nameless) have packed the portafilter pretty full and then not cleaned the brew head afterwards. When i pulled the 2 screens off, the inner screen was caked. Even after swapping out the screens, I'm having some issues, but again, that is possibly due to the grind being too fine.
Thanks, Niko. i appreciate all the help. I also have an S5 Compact at work, but it isn't hooked up. i hesitate to hook it up b/c it's way too much machine for the number of people in my office. Although looking at it just sit is killing me too.

Post by **bionic** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 8:25 am

It's running better, almost a bit fast and with little crema. But, the grind is much coarser. I think i might ahve to spend the jing for a better grinder!

Post by **Niko** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 11:09 am

The grinder is key, I'm sure you heard this before but the grinder is more important than the espresso machine.
Also, you may want to invest in a $13 digital gram scale on eBay, one which measures in 0.1 gram accuracy.
And another thing. smack those knuckleheads you work if they overdose the machine with coffee...SMACK!!

Post by **bionic** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 11:55 am

I'm almost to the point of moving it out of the kitchen and into my office.....that can be locked when I leave! I actually work in a lab, so I have a couple scales available to use. I've used it to check my tamping pressure (on the larger scale). What kind of weight are we looking at for a double shot....~17g?

The water line for the S1 is hooked into a Flojet pump on a 5 gallon water cooler bottle. A contact at La Spaziale told me that I didn't need to use an auxillary pump for the S5, that I could just let the pump in the unit pull out of the 5 gallon bottle. Do you know if that would burn the pump out from working too hard or if it would affect the outlet pressure at the portafilter? i know this is a bit outside the S1 forum topics, but don't know who else to ask. thanks.

Post by **Niko** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 1:22 pm

17g is a bit much for the Spaz, try 14-15 to leave a little more clearance between the shower screens.
As for the S5, not sure what they mean by that...the machine's pump might be an external one but it still needs help with the water flow via FloJet I imagine.

Post by **bionic** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 2:14 pm

Great, I'll try the 14-15g wt and see how it comes out. As for the S5, that's kind of what I thought too, that it needed the extra pressure from either the Flojet or a water line.
I appreciate all your advice and help, thank you!

chas · Post by **chas** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 4:59 pm

The S1 pump adds pressure to the water line pressure. If your supplier sets the pressure to 9bar and his water pressure is 45psi (3 bar) and then you hook it up to a water main with 30psi, then the S1 will be delivering 8 bar.

In your case if it was set to 9 bar and you are pulling directly from a bottle that is at 0bar so you're pressure will be at 6 bar. You would need to adjust the pressure up to compensate.

This means that the motor will have to work harder and it's life will probably be reduced. However, I'm not sure what the typical life is. If it normally lasts 8 years and the life is reduced to 6 years, perhaps who cares!