So there's a lot of people buying Minimas on here at the moment and a few experienced users so I thought a thread dedicated to the Minima with questions / information on the machine would be useful to myself and the others who have recently purchased and are about to take the plunge (and to prevent myself from hijacking other people's threads). One question I have to kick us off is about the brew boiler and PID. For some reason my Minima does not seem to like bring set at 93 degrees. Despite me having it set at 93, the display shows it settling at 94. I'm not sure if this is indicative of an issue or standard behaviour. It occasionally will drop to 93 but then goes up to 94 again

Edit…I've just found the PID Values Explained section at the back of the manual where it explains this is normal.

Mine does the same and I confirmed with other Minima users when I bought the machine.

> @"dutchy101"#p6482 Edit…I’ve just found the PID Values Explained section atvthe back of the manual where it explains this is normal. Very good manual that one…, online version available as well. https://sway.office.com/xofz72xFBgYyiWqi?ref=Link

@"dutchy101"#56 @"HVL87"#57 How have you found the stock filter baskets? I'm already thinking of upgrading, but won't do unecessarily quickly - although that is also partly tamper dependent.

@"PortafilterProcrastinator"#p6679 they are fine. Easier to pull a nice looking bottomless shot - in my opinion that doesn’t mean much. I moved on to a 18g VST to optimise my shots as much as possible.

It's been a bit of a transition for me this week as I've changed from Sage 54mm baskets and didn't have a 58mm tamper until a few days after the machine arrived. I got a new distributor yesterday which has also helped so still finding my feet a bit with the stock baskets, but pretty happy with them so far

Thanks both, if they're a similar ID then I can get a tamper (thinking bravo ATM) first and upgrade the basket later when looking for refinement, rather than just trying to make something palatable!

Yeah - I've got a Nomcore 58.5mm tamper on order and coming this week so will get a better handle on things once that has arrived

@"dutchy101"#p6686 I'd be really interested and grateful to hear how you get on. How are you finding the Minima overall?

Absolutely loving it - so glad I went with it I'm really enjoying using it. How about you? Made my wife a tea using water from the service boiler to drain some water this morning and she commented how much better it looked and tasted (using the zero and remineralised water I've been making up).

The General ACS Minima Thread

PortafilterProcrastinator

simonc I got mine direct from ACS, as I bought my machine direct too.

PortafilterProcrastinator

@pete4eyes @simonc Just to confirm the kits from ACS are wood effect, not real wood. I think €60 when the offer wasn’t running.

I’ll take some close-ups later so you can see. This was ideal for me as I don’t have to think about looking after them. Once the kids have grown up I’ll treat myself.

simonc

Alexvs thanks.. yes, would love to know if / when you find that. I am tempted to move the knobs back to black for now.

PortafilterProcrastinator

simonc

PortafilterProcrastinator thanks. They look better than mine. Is the Lelit paddle real wood does anyone know?

DavecUK

I do actually love Bakelite…..be nice if there were good bakelite handles. Some of the vintage bakelite stuff was awesome. I never pretended to be anything else and was an early plastic I thought looked great

Waitforme

I’m pretty sure the Lelit knobs and paddle are real wood.

The HW knob on my machine split and I’m trying to get a replacement.

hornbyben

Looking at the pictures I suspect they use stabilised wood. This is where an epoxy resin is forced through the pores of the wood. Once it sets, it still looks like wood, but is now moisture resistant, more durable, and less prone to warping and cracking. For an espresso machine this seems like a good thing.

Some woods (such as walnut) have a much tighter grain and therefore don’t need to be stabilised.

DavecUK

hornbyben I am pretty sure the Lelit knobs are walnut. From removing them, I think they are simply coated with a type of Matt varnish.

simonc

Any one else have problems with the scale at the bottom of the water tank? Not sure if its the positioning of the pipes, but I don’t get the H20 warning. First thing I know that its out of water is when a shot slows right down and I spot that its only at 2 bar. The sensor is fine as when I wiggle the tank the warning comes on, but seems like a bad design if the pipes can apply enough pressure to the tank to not let it register its empty?

DavecUK

simonc Any one else have problems with the scale at the bottom of the water tank? Not sure if its the positioning of the pipes, but I don’t get the H20 warning. First thing I know that its out of water is when a shot slows right down and I spot that its only at 2 bar.

I think you have an early one with a sprung platform the tank rests on that operates a switch…later profuction models have a tube with a float sensor inside the tank.

Would I be correct? Tell me, then I can offer some suggestions…..

dutchy101

Hmm, I kind of have the opposite, I tend to get a H20 warning when I’ve still got about 500ml or more left in the tank.

simonc

DavecUK Yes.. must be. Same early one that doesn’t have a middle foot!

DavecUK

I’m going to make 2 assumptions, firstly the tube goes all the way to the bottom of the tank and the tank is pretty much empty before you get the low water warning. If that’s correct…

Remove case have a look at how it all fits and if you can adjust the microswitch in and out or the spring. Also take some photos as I can’t clearly remember the mechanism now, it was a long time ago.

simonc

DavecUK yes the tube goes to the bottom and it sits on what feels like a hinged flap in a micro switch. The problem is I don’t get the warning even when fully empty as I think the hoses trapped by the lid of the exert enough force to keep the switch depressed. I’ve tried adjusting them slightly so they can move freely otherwise I’m thinking I need to make the holes slightly bigger in the side of the tank. If I recall you did same to a prototype in a video?

DavecUK

simonc It could be the cause, I can’t exactly remember what the adjustment mechanism was, hence the request for photos.

simonc

DavecUK sorry it’s tucked under shelves that i I need to take down to get to the top and the worktop is too narrow to slide it and covid has finished me off for the day. I’ll take some tomorrow after some sleep and a double shot of red brick.

Java_avaJ

I have a Minima and grind with a Niche Zero and I make two morning cappuccini using exactly the same grind and the same weight of beans. I don’t tamp but use a wedge distribution tool, which I think gives better consistency once the depth is adjusted and locked. Normally with 18g in and 36g out, taking about 35 seconds - it’s a french roast bean and tastes great.

But, the question is, my first cup always runs more quickly than the second one and I clean the portafilter between shots so it’s not blocked and I always run some water through before the first shot. Might anyone have any explanations of why the shots have different times for the same output weight? By different times I mean 8 to 12 seconds difference, not much but significant.

DavecUK

Java_avaJ Change the routine slightly, don’t run water through the group for the first shot and see what happens.

Don’t clean the portafilter with anything but a dry brush, knock it out wait a few seconds then use a clean dry 1 or 1.5 inch paintbrush. This assumes you are doing second shot straight after the first.

Alexvs

Java_avaJ I do exactly this every morning, 2 cappuccinos which I make one after the other and if anything I actually find the 2nd is the faster from time to time.

I’ve tried distribution without tamping and could never get properly pressurised shots, always coming up very short. I grind, distribute, tamp, pull. For the second I do a quick wash of the PF, run a bit of water through the group head to get rid of leftover grounds and repeat the process for prep of shot 1.

Have you tried the 2 with tamping too?

Java_avaJ

DavecUK OK, I’ll give that a go. I was running water through the group because I thought it would make it similar to the second shot.

I had tried cleaning PF with a dry cloth but had thought rinsing it with hot water then drying it would ensure holes not blocked, but I’ll try the dry brush too - I can see the advantages of that.

Thanks Dave for the suggestions.

« Previous Page Next Page »