Steam Wand

crema_dillema

I use a San marino 3 Group Lisa and its steam wand is way too powerful. Do you guys have any suggestions as to how to slow this down so as to gain more control over the frothing. Its very annoying and doesnt allow the proper texturing and stretching of the milk.

roastman

block 2 of the holes on the outside of the steam arm with tooth picks , belive me it works ;D

G_Uru

suggest you call a service tech, who knows his/her stuff!!!!

tommy

im with roastman - block the holes! ever noticed how good the milk is on really dirty machines with steam wands caked in old yukky milk? its cos all the holes are blocked! :P

nzroaster

Before you start doing anything, what pressure is the machine running at?

askthecoffeeguy

I have a similar problem, we are running an Azkoyen Vienna 4 group, and the steam pressure is double that of my old La Chimbali.  I get around this by: 1.    Flushing a shot of water through the machine prior to each extraction to let off some pressure (also keeps the group heads clear of built up grind) 2.    Expell a jet of steam from the steam wand into a dry cloth prior to steaming milk (also keeps steam wand clean) 3.    Turn steam pressure on only a fraction to reduce pressure Also, you get used to it after a while, and extra steam pressure is a godsend when the rush is on! Hope this helps, ACG

tommy

i find that when you don't open the steam valve 100%, the steam becomes horrible and just kills the milk.

askthecoffeeguy

don't open the steam valve all the way, or let off some steam before you start

melbournecoffeeguy

1.

askthecoffeeguy

very true but all in all not a bad habit to incorporate into your regular coffee routine anyway, just for good measure... what I do find helps with my four group machine, however, is to run the steam wand straight to the side of the milk jug, and to begin with building a 'whirlpool' motion with the milk straight away, rather than the traditional 'stretch and roll' motion - thus using the pressure of the machine to your advantage, and dropping the jug down gradually, as the volume increases, then gradually reducing pressure just before the milk comes to the boil, so that you are not caught out by the sudden boiling point of the milk also, I find that milk jugs with a rounded base tend to gather and distribute the milk a lot more evenly, as do those with a more solid construction, which allow for a more even heat distribution... now there is food for thought! p

sketchy

then gradually reducing pressure just before the milk comes to the boil, so that you are not caught out by the sudden boiling point of the milk p

i always thought that milks boiling point was over 80 , so if your taking your milk temp to nearly boiling then wouldn't you be burning the natural sugars which burn at 70. LE

melbournecoffeeguy

Your machine being an Azkoyen can have several different steam tips. Machines are or were imported with standard tips which are drilled out for Australian use either in standard 4 hole large 4 hole or 6 hole my preference being the standard undrilled tips that reduce the steam velocity to what it was intended and designed my 2c anyway

askthecoffeeguy

i always thought that milks boiling point was over 80 , so if your taking your milk temp to nearly boiling then wouldn't you be burning the natural sugars which burn at 70. LE

At my work we heat the milk until it is just about too hot to hold, and you are quite right, we don't actually bring it to the boil, not even if the customer asks for their coffee hot! If I had to guess I would say that we heat the milk to around 63.5C, then allow the temp to drop back down a bit, while we extract the coffee. BTW - apparently those pesky Italians have now officially mandated through an act of parliament the 'correct' procedure for making a caffe latte, which includes NOT heating the milk OVER 55C!!!! Way to go Italians!

Unknown

Hi We use a Wega 3 Group and found the standard 5 hole tip too powerful as well.  Instead of using toothpicks, ask the technician when you next have your machine serviced if he can weld the holes closed for you.  That's what we did.  We now use the 4 hole tip 90% of the time when its busy and keep the 3 hole for when it's quieter or we're making coffees for ourselves.  The 3 hole textures the milk beautifully but can't keep up when it's busy. Rgds L2L