Welcome to the CoffeeCrew forum for registered users. - feel free to make yourself at home. This forum is dedicated to coffee and espresso based issues.
Forum spammers, scam artists, confidence artists, crooks and obvious commercial shilling is discouraged. Violation of this one simple rule will result in you and your immediate geographical region being banned from the site so do not post ads here! Capiche?
The coffeecrew guestbook and forum has been alive for more than 10 years! Please consider it your one-stop resource for finding out about all things coffee, espresso, specialty coffee and all associated gear and equipment.
We welcome long posts - there is no word limit in fact. Keep in mind that you can only type for 15 to 20 minutes in the forum-post submit window (session timeout)- so consider composing your posts or responses in a text editor - then cut and paste! Thank you and enjoy the forums!
Recently on the web I encountered some sources that say that Cleancaf which is a descaler and cleaner is not safe to use on an espresso machine. I want to use it on my new month-old Rancilio Silvia. Even though I have just purchased the Cleancaf for $5.95 I don't know for sure now if it is safe to use on my Silvia and I would like to descale my machine as soon as possible but I can switch to something else. Someone recommended Soli Soli Pol to me ,which is a liquid but I cannot find anywhere on the web proper instructions for its use on an espresso machine. Anyhow I just want to know if it is safe for me to descale my Silvia with Cleancaf this evening.
| | Forum posting/replies are available to registered users.
colin
Admin Admin
Posts: 732
Karma: 19
Re:Cleancaf - 2008/01/30 15:21cappuccino1 wrote: Hi everyone,
Recently on the web I encountered some sources that say that Cleancaf which is a descaler and cleaner is not safe to use on an espresso machine.
Nonsense. Please cite your sources.
I suggested to you in e-mail that you use good old citric acid (dehydrated lemon juice) -- about 10$ a kilo from many pharmacies and health food stores... enough for the life of the machine...
1 teaspoon in a liter of water.
Why anyone would pay $10 for an ounce of powdered aluminum citrate (or whatever it is...) is beyond me.Colin is the Senior editor and creator of the CoffeeCrew.Com Website
| | Forum posting/replies are available to registered users.
Bobby
User Senior Barista
Posts: 26
Karma: 6
Re:Cleancaf - 2008/01/30 16:06Whole Latte Love has a good demonstration video on how to descale the Sivlia:
+1 Colin - CleanCaf is harmless. According, to Jim Schulman's Insanely Long Water FAQ it's just citric or tartaric acid. It's harmless though it may come out of the machine with a greenish tinge due to dissolved copper. In case you don't want to check out the whole FAQ here's the relevant bit:
Descaling Solution Generally, a flush through descaler uses about .5 to .75 fluid ounces (1 to 1.5 tablespoons, or 8 to 12 grams) of citric or tartaric (grape) acid powder dissolved in 1 liter of water. This is a 2.25% to 3.5% solution, equivalent to 33% to 50% dilute lemon juice. Cleancaf and other coffee manufacturers' descalers use this formula. Theoretically, these amounts will dissolve about 12 to 18 grams of scale per liter, but that would require leaving the solution in for several days; in practice, it is used for an hour or two to dissolve up to 5 grams of scale.
The formula is mild enough to be harmless to espresso machine components, but it will come out of brass or copper machines with a slight greenish tinge. This comes from milligram levels of dissolved copper and is no cause for alarm.
Five pound bags of citric or tartaric acid cost about $10 at home brewers' or soapmakers' supply stores. This is roughly a 20 year supply
Descaling Intervals Know the hardness of the water you're using, and how much you use the machine. Descale when accumulations are between 2.5 and 5 grams. More often is a waste of time, less often may result in scale build up. Check out section 1.7 for instructions on determining your set up's scaling rate.
Single Boiler Machines For single boiler machines, preventive descaling is no problem, just follow the instructions given by the manufacturer. In general, this involves filling the boiler, letting the solution work for about ten minutes, and replacing it by running it out of the steam wand under pump pressure. This procedure is repeated three to five times, until about a liter of descaler is used up. Then the machine is flushed with water until any taste is gone.
Manufacturer's recommendations differ on whether the brewhead should be flushed or not. This is not surprising. The water's temperature drops and LI rises as it moves from the boiler to the head, so scale won't form there. In scaled machines however, fragments can move from the boiler into the head, fouling the gicleur valve. My guess is that with regular descaling, flushing the head is unnecessary but harmless.
| | Forum posting/replies are available to registered users.
cappuccino1
Visitor
Re:Cleancaf - 2008/01/30 16:35I have already seen the video by wholelattelove on descaling the Silvia.
Thanks anyways guys.
cappuccino1
| | Forum posting/replies are available to registered users.
colin
Admin Admin
Posts: 732
Karma: 19
Re:Cleancaf - 2008/01/30 20:38I am going to pick on you cappuccino1:
Pay attention and read the words.
I will break you of the habit of e-mailing everyone with the same question, trust me.Colin is the Senior editor and creator of the CoffeeCrew.Com Website
| | Forum posting/replies are available to registered users.
Setting it straight
Visitor
Citric acid is not dehydrated lemon juice - 2008/02/25 05:03While I'm sure it's safe for your coffee machines, Citric acid is NOT dehydrated lemon juice. It is made from fermented forms of a safe type of bacteria, like the cultures in yogurt are made, as this is MUCH cheaper for manufacturers than actually powderizing and selling lemon juice in dehydrated form. When you buy citric acid powder, it isn't from lemons.
| | Forum posting/replies are available to registered users.
An FYI for anyone in the metro Vancouver area looking for Bodum or Bialetti products. Check out your local Winners/Homesense.
I was there on the weekend and there were a lot of Bodum coffee pres...
What are peoples opinions on Galileo Coffee, a small Roastery Cafe just south of Squamish in the little town of Britannia Beach on Highway 99? I've really enjoyed the Howes Blend that they use in thei...
The Breville was my first machine. It has been a good machine no complaints. When you are ready, move up but you did not make a mistake. I can make a Mocha that will bring tears to your eye's with min...
I'm pretty keen to try roasting for the first time. Getting pretty good at pulling espresso shots finally, and would love to figure out what it takes to roast great tasting beans :)...
Yea... it's been a headache, and that is understated, to say the least. Tonight, one of their reps came by to look at the machine and offer me some solutions. He was very nice. He actually said for th...
Saeco Incanto, in general, is garbage. We've had ongoing problems with ours (that you can see at the web link in my profile).
Have you had the machine serviced at all? Or just a call to ask if the...
Based on all the discussion and reviews, I am looking to buy either the 8 cup or the 12 cup model. Since the physical size of the units (other than the pot, of course) seems to be exactly the same, i...
Forum 
