The problem with the Weber device is the volume of liquid and lack of dwell time….a flawed concept IMO. My original post about this made Oct 3 2020
By the time it’s shipped and taxes paid over £300…
I tested many times the backflushing of E61 and non E61 espresso machines. The main issue is the dwell time after the backflush to allow the cleaner to do its work. Otherwise, it’s like dipping a dirty dish in detergent water to clean it rather than allowing it to soak. I cover it in detail in this video.
I watched the Weber video and a few thoughts spring to mind
The cleaning powder becomes very dilute (volume of the device is 250 ml) so much more would need to be used. Think about the water volume of a blind filter is 25ml max..and you use 0.5 to 1 teaspoon max. To get the same concentration of cleaner, you will need to use 5 or 10 teaspoons of powder!!!
There is no dwell time, apparently a single wash over of cleaner 5 to 10 times more dilute than normal (if you don’t use 10 times as much cleaner) is going to clean really well.
I should add that the backflush cleaner doesn’t dissolve all at once in a normal E61 blind filter, but even considering that the LW Spring Clean is still 2.5 to 5 times weaker and only done once whereas the first 2 backflushes using a blind filter contain easily the same concentration of the cleaner. The promo video showed a relatively normal amount of cleaner.
If people wanted to they could probably try a water hammer arrestor attached to the bottom of a portafilter….at least the volume of water wouldn’t be so high.
https://www.stevensonplumbing.co.uk/wat … estor.html
I think the LW device is looking to provide a solution for laziness, the problem is that the solution does not appear to do a better job than normal backflushing with cleaner (I believe it has to be worse) and is just one more piece of kit to have in the draw. The sad thing is people will buy it and having paid £300+ will swear it’s better, and they can taste the difference blah blah…many of them will probably be the people who rarely remove their shower screen and do all the other good things. In fact, it’s a positive sell on not needing to remove the shower screen because the LW device cleans like nothing else. It will then suck in others to purchase. I can’t wait to read the reviews on the various forums.
I know…I’m rubbishing it and I’ve never tried one…however if someone came out with square wheels for cars…I wouldn’t try them either…..Interested to see what traction this gets amongst the cognoscenti.
P.S. In fairness though…watching the promo video it looks to be a fantastic device and I almost want one. LW do a great job of marketing their stuff.
