How to Turn On the Coffee Machine

 

1. Check that the power switch (A) is switched to the "0" position.
2. Check that the water supply tap is turned on.
   Look for the silver tap in the corner cupboard under the bench; it is labelled on the left door frame.
   NOTE: it is no longer necessary to turn on/off the water supply as the leak has been fixed but it may be necessary to check that the tap has not been turned off accidentally. (August 2023)
3. Switch the power switch (A) to the "1" position.
   You may hear the noise of the pump running and the water level light (B) may blink.
4. When the water level light (B) is continuously lit (i.e. not blinking), switch the power switch (A) to the "2" position.
5. Check that the top panel lights (C) are lit.
   If the lights are blinking, switch the power switch (A) to the "0" position and restart the sequence from Step 1.
6. Wait for the boilers to heat up.
   This will take about 20 minutes after a cold start.
   The machine is ready to use when the milk steaming wand are producing good steam pressure.
   When ready, the pressure gauges (D) should show 8-10 kPa on the bottom gauge and more than 1 kPa on the top gauge.

How to Switch Off the Coffee Machine

To turn off the machine, simply turn the power switch to the "0" position.

It is no longer necessary to turn off the water supply tap overnight. The leak in the machine has been fixed (August 2023)

How to Tamp "Correctly"

Differences in how we tamp is the largest factor in variations in our coffee brews - it can be the difference between a watery, tasteless brew and a full-bodied, rich and sweet one.

Here is a tutorial that is consistent with our set-up:

 

Milk Steaming Tutorial

Steaming is a difficult to demonstrate because so much happens in a small pitcher so quickly. However, there are video tutorials that explain the process really well with cut-away diagrams and close-up shots.

Here is one of them: