View entire thread: The Aerobie????
Posted by mrgnomer on 2006-06-09 22:12:43 Post Subject:
Is the hopper the container that receives the grinds? Is that the doser? Anyway....the part that holds the beans - I can't figure out how to take this off to clean and to get to the burrs.
When the beans are empty I'll try again to clean the hopper?
So, white rice is a good cleaning method? I want to keep up with cleaning because I do not want to contaminate that fresh bean taste!
-Rich
It depends on what kind of grinder you've got. The commercial grade espresso grinders mostly have large, flat burrs driven by a commercial quality motor and are designed not only to grind fine and precisely but also not heat up the grinds or statically charge them. That kind of quality costs more but it's worth it when excellent espresso is your goal.
The top that holds the bins is called the hopper. Grinders can be either doserless or doser. Doserless grinders are good if you're going to use your grinder for more than just espresso. The grinds exit doserless grinders down a chute under which you can place anything from a coffee filter basket to a portafilter.
With a doser grinder the grinds empty into a compartment that has a propeller type wheel thingy that divides the grinds into 'doses' as you spin the vanes of the propeller thingy by pulling a lever. The grinds are diverted to an exit by the action of the rotating vanes to empty into a portafilter basket you place there. I like it for espresso since the vanes break up the grind a bit and the dose falls into the basket pretty good.
It sounds like you've got a burr grinder but not one designed more specifically for espresso. White rice is a trick to keep the burrs clean without having to take the grinder apart. There's also a product, I beleive its called something like Grindz, that's designed to clean the burrs when it's ground as well.
Commercial grade espresso grinders are pretty easy take apart to get to the burrs since replacing burrs when they dull is part of the grinder's regular maintenence. I don't think that home burr grinders designed more for drip coffee grinding expect owners would want to replace dull burrs so burrs on those grinders might not be accessible.
It's not a bad idea to clean the hopper after a while since the bean's oils sticking to the walls might go rancid given time. Some guys vacuum out their hoppers and other's use click clack lids or air tight lids that force air through the burrs when you push them down to blow grinds out of the burrs and chute. The hoppers on the higher end espresso grinders are round with fairly large diameters.
Keeping things clean is a good idea. I'm a neat freak too but with espresso I think it's a virtue to be a bit obsessive about cleanliness.
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Posted by mrgnomer on 2006-06-09 22:12:43 Post Subject:
Is the hopper the container that receives the grinds? Is that the doser? Anyway....the part that holds the beans - I can't figure out how to take this off to clean and to get to the burrs.
When the beans are empty I'll try again to clean the hopper?
So, white rice is a good cleaning method? I want to keep up with cleaning because I do not want to contaminate that fresh bean taste!
-Rich
It depends on what kind of grinder you've got. The commercial grade espresso grinders mostly have large, flat burrs driven by a commercial quality motor and are designed not only to grind fine and precisely but also not heat up the grinds or statically charge them. That kind of quality costs more but it's worth it when excellent espresso is your goal.
The top that holds the bins is called the hopper. Grinders can be either doserless or doser. Doserless grinders are good if you're going to use your grinder for more than just espresso. The grinds exit doserless grinders down a chute under which you can place anything from a coffee filter basket to a portafilter.
With a doser grinder the grinds empty into a compartment that has a propeller type wheel thingy that divides the grinds into 'doses' as you spin the vanes of the propeller thingy by pulling a lever. The grinds are diverted to an exit by the action of the rotating vanes to empty into a portafilter basket you place there. I like it for espresso since the vanes break up the grind a bit and the dose falls into the basket pretty good.
It sounds like you've got a burr grinder but not one designed more specifically for espresso. White rice is a trick to keep the burrs clean without having to take the grinder apart. There's also a product, I beleive its called something like Grindz, that's designed to clean the burrs when it's ground as well.
Commercial grade espresso grinders are pretty easy take apart to get to the burrs since replacing burrs when they dull is part of the grinder's regular maintenence. I don't think that home burr grinders designed more for drip coffee grinding expect owners would want to replace dull burrs so burrs on those grinders might not be accessible.
It's not a bad idea to clean the hopper after a while since the bean's oils sticking to the walls might go rancid given time. Some guys vacuum out their hoppers and other's use click clack lids or air tight lids that force air through the burrs when you push them down to blow grinds out of the burrs and chute. The hoppers on the higher end espresso grinders are round with fairly large diameters.
Keeping things clean is a good idea. I'm a neat freak too but with espresso I think it's a virtue to be a bit obsessive about cleanliness.
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