how often to clean grinder...?

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how often to clean grinder...?

Postby jon » Sat Sep 16, 2006 4:44 pm

I've got a bodum grinder. I clean the container the grounds go into daily...but how often is it worth doing the burrs and the container the beans go into? Bearing in mind the less cleaning/effort the better, and these are a pain to do ;)

Thanks.
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Postby GeorgeW » Sat Sep 16, 2006 8:11 pm

For the day to day cleaning I use a small, hand-held, rechargable vac. This cleans the doser and outlet from the burrs ok but a strip down is still needed from time to time.
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Postby espressomattic » Sat Sep 16, 2006 8:58 pm

GeorgeW wrote:For the day to day cleaning I use a small, hand-held, rechargable vac....but a strip down is still needed from time to time.


I trust this reaches into all the nooks, crannies, crevicies and orrifacies George? ;)

Anyway I hoover mine out once a week and strip it once a month. It really is worth the effort as it prevents the build up of stale/old grounds. Nothing worse than having a light roast come out with two weeks old dark roast. Trust me it happens ;) Also worth cleaning/hoovering when you change bean.

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Postby jon » Sun Sep 17, 2006 2:26 pm

thanks - like the hoover idea. Often use 2 types of beans a day, so something quick would be handy :) Does a bog standard cheap handheld vac have enough power to suck the grinds out?
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Postby phil » Sun Sep 17, 2006 3:28 pm

Does a bog standard cheap handheld vac have enough power to suck the grinds out?


Worthy of some debate IMO. Depends on your grinder design, to some degree. My La Spaziale Lusso has a fairly long, horizontal chute which is not one of the better aspects of the design.

This is the point in such discussions at which I admit to cleaning out my grinder with an air-line (powered by an oil-free compressor). I clean out all of the free grinds using a brush and whatever, but then I remove the bean hopper (which I almost never use anyway) and blow around the burrs and then along the chute (with the burrs turning) using compressed air and a fine nozzle blow gun.

It's amazing how much cee-rap this process cleans out. With due care, you can avoid getting coffee everywhere.

At this point, everyone else recoils in horror, shake their heads and decide that the loony is best ignored, so they carry on yakking about vacuum cleaners as if I'd never spoken.

Usually. :P
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Postby bruceb » Sun Sep 17, 2006 5:47 pm

Nice one, Phil. I was not going to admit that I clean my grinders with compressed air about once a month. I just happen to have :roll: a big, 2 cyl compressor with an oil-filter downstairs and I pull the house out the window, drag the grinders outside and blast them out at 5-6 bar. A lot of gunk always flies out. It's the only way I've found to really get them clean aside from a complete tear down and solvent bath.

My neighbors know what is going on and when I'm finished they invariably ask if I have a new roast to try. :D :wink:
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Postby GeorgeW » Sun Sep 17, 2006 8:10 pm

Listening to you two makes me feel a lot better about the things I do. :wink:
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Postby espressomattic » Sun Sep 17, 2006 9:16 pm

GeorgeW wrote:Listening to you two makes me feel a lot better about the things I do. :wink:


George we really don't want to know about what you do with your 'vacuum'...How can you possibly feel better about THOSE THINGS :P

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Postby Paul L » Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:59 am

I guess that makes me certified then Phil.

I've mentioned before in one or two other threads that I keep a Dyson DC02 in the kitchen and run the Macap hopper-less. Using the wand nozzle without any attachments I hoover out the top, the doser, all around the Macap and then the kitchen surface after every single grind (or the last one if making drinks back to back).

I use a brush and run som rice through the grinder about once a month before running some beans through to 're-season' and strip and wash the whole lost about once a quarter.

Similarly the Hottop is hoovered out after cooling and end-cover removal for every single roast.

I don't really find it all a chore, more just habit forming to keep the kitchen from succumbing to grinds and chaff everywhere.
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Postby jon » Mon Sep 18, 2006 6:25 pm

thanks. Hm, have a dyson dc04 (use it for 'normal' hoovering) - maybe could just use one of the nozzles for my grinder.

Not sure I'll got so far as the compressed air ;) When I got the grinder I found that, um, blowing into it cleared out a fair bit of gunk - might be a basic alt to compressed air, anyway...
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Postby CakeBoy » Sat Sep 23, 2006 12:26 am

We are all barking mad ...................... :roll: :P




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Postby monkey66 » Sat Sep 23, 2006 5:18 pm

I know where Paul L is coming from.....I was thinking just the other day that a pulmed in vacuum in the kitchen woud be a great thing....I use my Miele and it does the job great.
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Postby blackice » Sat Sep 23, 2006 6:17 pm

Cleaning a Mazzer Jolly is not the easiest thing to do. I clean it a bit every day.

I do a thorough cleaning once per month (shame on me!)
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Postby Bertie_Doe » Sat Sep 23, 2006 6:27 pm

Paul L wrote
I use a brush and run some rice through the grinder about once a month before running some beans through to 're-season' and strip and wash the whole lost about once a quarter

This is also the method I use, although there is a school of thought which suggests this may cause undue wear on the burrs. After 12 months, I can see no visable signs of damage, but rather than invest in an electron microscope, I'll probably get new burrs from HappyDonkey in 12 months time.
Before pouring 10g of uncooked rice thru', I set the grinder 5 clicks courser.
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Postby jon » Tue Sep 26, 2006 2:38 pm

madness aside, the occasional strip down seems to keep it clean enough :)

What's the advantage of rice over coffee, in terms of cleaning?
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