Having read Dave Corbey’s very useful Tips - What I do.. for the Elizabeth.
When I got back to UK I changed the steam boiler water but this time I did the “check”, drawing about 400mls, first and the steam boiler change, drawing about 650ml, second.  Which is the right order to do these?

Second, unrelated question.  I have two Elizabeth’s, one in France and one in UK which I bought in France in June and August 2022 so they should be identical.  They are both set to your recommended settings with the steam temperature at 135C.

The steam flow from the one in UK is much stronger than the French one.  I tried upping the temperature in France to 145C but it didn’t seem to affect the force of the steam.  Is there something I could adjust to improve the steam in France?

Any suggestions would be welcome.

Lelit Elizabeth (2) , Eureka Oro Mignon Single Dose, Mignon Mk2 (converted to single dose), Aerolatte Mini grinders(2), cafetières, Bodum K1218 Vacuum

    MBdoc

    Order: I would do the steam boiler first. Just because water mixes in the brew boiler. But not sure if it matters in the grand scheme of things.

    As for the difference in steam pressure… I have no idea, sorry.

    I would have suggested you swap the machines around next time, and check how they behave given the slight difference in voltage, but I’m not sure how easy this is these days as the UK is no longer in the EU. Not sure how relevant this is either, but can’t think of anything else.

    Thank you.

    I have swapped the machines as I brought the slightly newer one to UK earlier this year.  We spend about half the year in each place so they get about the same use.

    I don’t think it’s due to the mains voltage as the ‘weaker’ one was the same when it was in UK before I swapped them.

    Lelit Elizabeth (2) , Eureka Oro Mignon Single Dose, Mignon Mk2 (converted to single dose), Aerolatte Mini grinders(2), cafetières, Bodum K1218 Vacuum

    6 days later

    There are variances in heating element output, but they are small. If all the settings are the same, and the temperatures the same….perhaps it is the steam tip that is blocked/blocking, remove it and check inside carefully

    Thank you Dave. I will check the tip although as I blow this out every time I froth the milk and flush it by dipping in cold water and steaming and waiting for it to cool and draw some clean water back before repeating a few times I suspect it will be fine. Maybe the holes are slightly smaller than on the other one which is easily remedied.

    Lelit Elizabeth (2) , Eureka Oro Mignon Single Dose, Mignon Mk2 (converted to single dose), Aerolatte Mini grinders(2), cafetières, Bodum K1218 Vacuum

      MBdoc remove it and clean from behind, sometimes debris builds up and blocks the holes, it can move around and do this.

      Thanks Dave. Very useful advice.
      I had a look and, indeed, the holes were a bit dirty and hence restricted. I also noticed that the internal poly tube was very long and touching the bottom of the nozzle so I shortened it a little as well. I will see how it looks tomorrow morning.

      Lelit Elizabeth (2) , Eureka Oro Mignon Single Dose, Mignon Mk2 (converted to single dose), Aerolatte Mini grinders(2), cafetières, Bodum K1218 Vacuum

      I am in UK at the moment so ‘the wrong machine’ but it was a bit more vigorous after the cleanup so I have high hopes for the French one when we get back.

      Lelit Elizabeth (2) , Eureka Oro Mignon Single Dose, Mignon Mk2 (converted to single dose), Aerolatte Mini grinders(2), cafetières, Bodum K1218 Vacuum

      5 days later

      Question for Dave
      Does it matter which round you do the flushing of the steam boiler
      ?

      Lelit Elizabeth (2) , Eureka Oro Mignon Single Dose, Mignon Mk2 (converted to single dose), Aerolatte Mini grinders(2), cafetières, Bodum K1218 Vacuum

      I don’t think so, you simply open the tap as per the tips guide in the sway document. Once the water stops flowing the service boiler is likely to be mostly empty. Then just simply allow it to refill…..I cn’t remember if you have to turn it off then on, to reset the water draw pump timeout?

      Thanks Dave.
      I was a bit confused as in the Tips you start by describing the flushing of the steam boiler with the steam on but in the ‘Do this check’ part you advise that the initial flush should be done with steam off.

      Lelit Elizabeth (2) , Eureka Oro Mignon Single Dose, Mignon Mk2 (converted to single dose), Aerolatte Mini grinders(2), cafetières, Bodum K1218 Vacuum

        MBdoc ‘Do this check’ part you advise that the initial flush should be done with steam off.

        I don’t remember…but I suspect I am talking about the flushing before 1st use?

        This is how you wrote it:

        First part

        I tried this of course, it does work, I just like to be sure it does and that I understand exactly what it’s

        doing, so I can explain it to you.

        • Ensure steam boiler is on and up to temperature

        • Press the hot water button and allow the water to flow until it stops

        • When water flow stops, switch machine off

        When I followed the process I ended up with 630 ml of boiling water from a service boiler that only

        contains 400ml (at most 480ml), how can that be? Remember earlier I said that it premixes with cold

        water destined for the brew boiler water, doing this makes the most of Elizabeth’s ability to run really

        high steam temperatures! I call it Lelits Hot Water Maximiser system (HWM). It is how they make

        the very most of Elizabeths two boilers with clever programming and a cold water premix

        Then the check bit

        Techspeak warning - how the programming works

        You can skip this bit if you want, but read the next section because it has some important checks to do after

        An essential check you should make

        To avoid any slight risk of damaging the brew boiler element (I don’t like to take chances), the first

        thing you should do before draining the boilers is

        1. Switch preinfusion OFF for button 1 (you can turn it on again later)

        2. Drain System as in video & described earlier

        3. After switching Elizabeth back on, draw about 200ml water through the group using coffee

        button 1

        This final water draw refreshes the brew boiler water as well. After this your steam boiler has been

        refreshed and you can forget about it for a few months.

        I may be a bit thick but it seemed to me that the last bit, about the essential check, conflicts with the first part so I wonder if you really advise doing this first and then the bigger (600ml+) flush afterwards.

        Maybe it doesn’t matter!

        Lelit Elizabeth (2) , Eureka Oro Mignon Single Dose, Mignon Mk2 (converted to single dose), Aerolatte Mini grinders(2), cafetières, Bodum K1218 Vacuum

        Understood but I have just copied the advice from the tips so I don’t think you need the machine to explain which way round the two cycles should be done - or doesn’t it matter?

        Lelit Elizabeth (2) , Eureka Oro Mignon Single Dose, Mignon Mk2 (converted to single dose), Aerolatte Mini grinders(2), cafetières, Bodum K1218 Vacuum

        MBdoc ‘Do this check’ part you advise that the initial flush should be done with steam off.

        I checked the text. I can’t see where Dave says that this needs to be done with the steam boiler off. Could you point out?

        I have copied the section from the Tips document below so you can see the whole advice in detail.

        My confusion arises because it initially appears that DC advises doing the ‘big’ flush first and then the smaller check to fill the brew boiler (maybe not necessary if you have the newer Marax quiet pump) bit after reading the last section ‘a check you should do’ it might be that he meant the second part should be done first.

        Copied text from the Tips sheet below

        Refreshing the Water in the Steam (service) boiler

        The steam boiler is really called the service boiler in professional circles as it provides the steam and

        hot water service but not brew water. Although a lot of authorities have stopped coffee bars using

        water from the steam boiler for tea and Americano coffee (or tried to), the name service boiler is still

        commonly used.

        We might need to refresh the water from time to time (every month or two), especially if the water

        has a high total dissolved solids (TDS). e.g. softened water can have a high TDS even though it

        doesn’t scale. Even using Lelit inline filter cartridge, the TDS of the service boiler will gradually rise

        as a consequence of steaming….

        The service boiler is quite small as far as steam boilers go at 600ml and it’s probably running at 70%

        or even 80% fill, I won’t get too technical here as to the reasons why. This is great because it means you only have to get around 400 ml out to fully remove most of the water in the service boiler. I

        know this is a bit technical, but stick with me.

        When you draw hot water, with the steam boiler on, it actually premixes with cool water as it heads

        to the brew boiler as stated in my review. This is to give a smooth flow because all the water comes

        via the brew boiler which tempers the superheated nature of the water. It’s also important to

        understand what is going on later. Just remember this, because it’s clever (as usual with Lelit).

        2 - How to drain the Lelit Elizabeth service (steam) boiler

        I tried this of course, it does work, I just like to be sure it does and that I understand exactly what it’s

        doing, so I can explain it to you.

        • Ensure steam boiler is on and up to temperature

        • Press the hot water button and allow the water to flow until it stops

        • When water flow stops, switch machine off

        When I followed the process I ended up with 630 ml of boiling water from a service boiler that only

        contains 400ml (at most 480ml), how can that be? Remember earlier I said that it premixes with cold

        water destined for the brew boiler water, doing this makes the most of Elizabeth’s ability to run really

        high steam temperatures! I call it Lelits Hot Water Maximiser system (HWM). It is how they make

        the very most of Elizabeths two boilers with clever programming and a cold water premix

        It’s also the reason why I could get 630ml of boiling water out of a service boiler only containing about 450ml. It works like this:

        Techspeak warning - how the programming works

        You can skip this bit if you want, but read the next section because it has some important checks to

        do after.

        I tested it of course and did a few tests so I could work out what the programming code is doing to

        allow this to happen. It goes like this:

        • Hot water button pressed

        • Water comes out but heating element on

        • Water level goes below level probe in service boiler (heating element switched off)

        • Because water is drawn programming prevents autofill and steam boiler heating element

        remains off

        • residual pressure keeps pushing water out of the service boiler (remember that 2 minute

        steaming video)

        • Hot water system is on a timer so after a preset time the water flow is stopped (because they

        worked out the service boiler is most likely completely empty). In fact in the old Elizabeth

        you probably partially emptied the brew boiler as well. This is because the old pump had a

        higher flow rate than the quiet X-pump.

        I highlighted the last bit because it’s important and is the reason for a check I recommend you make.

        An essential check you should make

        I finished off the tech speak section with stating that the brew boiler might empty a bit if you have

        the old pump and probably not with the MaraX pump. It also might depend a bit on how close the service boiler was to autofilling.

        Brew boilers in most/all prosumer espresso machines do not contain level probes and have no way of

        knowing their water level. In fact the thermostat on the Elizabeth brew boiler does contain a level

        probe, because it’s a combined unit but it’s not used. That’s just the way all dual boiler machines are

        designed at the moment. (note to self: see if one day Lelit can link brew boiler combined probe to

        software, so heating elements can be shut off if water is low).

        To avoid any slight risk of damaging the brew boiler element (I don’t like to take chances), the first

        thing you should do before draining the boilers is

        1. Switch preinfusion OFF for button 1 (you can turn it on again later)

        2. Drain System as in video & described earlier

        3. After switching Elizabeth back on, draw about 200ml water through the group using coffee

        button 1

        This final water draw refreshes the brew boiler water as well. After this your steam boiler has been

        refreshed and you can forget about it for a few months.

        Lelit Elizabeth (2) , Eureka Oro Mignon Single Dose, Mignon Mk2 (converted to single dose), Aerolatte Mini grinders(2), cafetières, Bodum K1218 Vacuum

          Still can’t see where it says the steam boiler should be off. I just read the whole thing. Can you point out the phrase where you see this ?

          MBdoc

          Oops you’re right. I confused preinfusion with the steam (ie ‘e’ icon).

          Apologies!

          Lelit Elizabeth (2) , Eureka Oro Mignon Single Dose, Mignon Mk2 (converted to single dose), Aerolatte Mini grinders(2), cafetières, Bodum K1218 Vacuum