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I have upgraded my shower screen to to nano tech but find the coffee puck now often doesn’t remain in the portafilter on release from head. I.e. sticks to the shower screen!
Using anything from 15 g to 18 g coffee in a 18 g basket. Any ideas?
Puck sticks to shower screen
Andreclan - machine?
Perhaps the new screen sits lower than the old one so will require a corresponding reduction in dose?
As MediumRoastSteam has said - you’d need to let us know what machine you’re using to get the most helpful feedback.
I know that before I adjusted the OPV on my gaggia to 9bar this was happening to me all the time but haven’t had this since (touch wood).
Different beans also fluff up more/less than others so will sit higher/lower in the basket.
The screen will have a finer mesh than your stock one and blocks up when the puck touches it as it expands when pressure is released at the end of the shot. You’ve already eliminated dose height as an issue so that’s nothing to think about.
It means nothing and is not a sign there is anything wrong or that you need to change anything. If your shots are good changing things to try and stop this from happening will only be detrimental. Just touch the puck with the portafilter/basket and it’ll release then clean the group as usual.
Some beans will absorb more water and expand when pressure is released more than others so you won’t always see this.
Probably is a problem with tamping & disc preparation. Occasionaly i had it with my old espresso machine.
I “upgraded” my stock Minima gasket and shower screen to a cafelat and IMS (not nanotech). Immediately had stuck pucks which I very rarely get with stock, even with the same bean. It is a relatively fine grind. I also noticed more water than usual on top of the spent puck.
Tried different beans and no issues so far. Will see how it goes - I have no issue returning to stock if need be. What @Rob1 said makes logical sense as to the cause.
Does anyone bother with a puck screen? I’d never considered one until I saw a Hoon video where he compares a Nomcore and Bravo tamper and it did pique my interest
There’s a thread already here: https://coffeetime.freeflarum.com/d/80-puck-screens
tl:dr - some people saw a big improvement in extraction and taste. Others didn’t but either way it keeps the shower screen clean which everyone considers a bonus.
Cool. Just taken a look. Personally bot sure I’d want one for anything other than keeping the group clean and a nice puck. Mine tend to be a little soggy.
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dutchy101 Personally bot sure I’d want one for anything other than keeping the group clean and a nice puck. Mine tend to be a little soggy.
Yeah I’m in the soggy puck brigade as well and let’s be honest, have a habit for buying accessories I can probably do without (£20-£40 is about the sweet spot for those kind of things!), so I’m sure I’ll end up with one at some point.
Man I’m a sucker for accessories - I won’t lie 🤣
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I’ve just pulled the trigger on this. See what I mean? 🤣
￡13.27 60%OFF | 58mm Espresso Distributor Coffee Tamper Portafilter Stand Support Base Rack Coffee Filter Holder Corner Barista Tools
https://a.aliexpress.com/_m07MEw4
In my defence, the new distributor and tamper I’ve just bought did not have silicone mats so I need something to put them on. I also wanted a portafilter holder for sitting it in when doing wdt and preparing the puck. This fits the bill nicely and cost £15 as opposed to £50 on Amazon. The price of 2 silicone tamper mats was about the same
@“Baldrick”#p6460th
Baldrick thanks. I’m using an ECM Mechanika Slim. Vibration pump so pressure set at 10 bar
Mark-drinks-coffee I never understand why a clean screen is such a bonus, don’t you just move the muck? A quick flush and brush down and it stays pretty clean, then drop it once a week for a soak to keep it spotless. Doesn’t the puck screen get filthy? I’ve certainly heard that they’re hard to clean.
Oh I have no idea, I don’t own one - was just summarising the other thread.
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hornbyben Mark-drinks-coffee I never understand why a clean screen is such a bonus, don’t you just move the muck? A quick flush and brush down and it stays pretty clean, then drop it once a week for a soak to keep it spotless. Doesn’t the puck screen get filthy? I’ve certainly heard that they’re hard to clean.
The puck screen (at least the mesh type one that I am using - it’s a cheapo from AliExpress) stops most of the coffee from touching the shower screen and from being sucked into the group (later being cleaned by a chemical backflush). I always wipe the shower screen with some tissue paper after a shot: without a puck screen I can visually see coffee on the paper, and with it I can’t.
When I do a chemical backflush after using the machine without the puck screen, the water comes out brown and dirty. After a few weeks with the puck screen, the water from a chemical backflush come out looking almost completely clean.
I am not saying nothing dirty goes through the puck screen, but visually it is clear that it’s far less.
I have not tested this thoroughly, but my common sense tells me that having less coffee residue from previous shots going into the current one is a good thing. A few times I didn’t pay attention and forgot to use the puck screen - the shot itself wasn’t impacted in a way that I could notice it, but it does annoy me because now I know I got my shower screen and group dirty, so whenever that happens I immediately drop the shower screen to clean it and add a water backflush for good measure (wiping cleans the bottom side, but what about the top side and the group?). I may be just obsessing here, maybe it doesn’t matter, but this is my personal experience.
And yes, the puck screen gets dirty. Most times it sticks to the puck and I need to fish it out of the knock box, but then it’s in my hand and I can wash it in the sink. I clean it after every shot with warm soapy water (as I do to the basket and portafilter), and it comes out clean (as far as I can see). I will then drop it in Cafiza when I clean the machine, but visually I can’t see anything coming out of it.
The analogy for me is similar to drinking from a dirty cup: I don’t want to wash my cup once a month/week/two days/every other shot. I want to always drink from a clean cup, and always make a shot as clean as I can, so I find the puck screen helps me with that. Am I an idiot? That’s very possible.
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Thinking of getting myself a screen. I can see Shades of Coffee do them for about £6 (200 micron mesh) but wonder if the ridge around the circumference would be an issue.
https://www.shadesofcoffee.co.uk/stainless-steel-puck-screen-or-contact-screen-585mm
They also do another option woithout the ridge and in 50 micron mesh for £15