Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Seven years ago, I bought my husband a $400 Cuisinart. Unbeknownst to me, it broke ....
What's wrong with it? If it's just making steam or no water flowing there is an easy fix. I know it must happen to a lot of them and since it's common I'll mention it.
They are probably all the same or similar, if it has a reservoir it will need a valve like this somewhere. If you take the bottom of it off there is going to be a tube going from the reservoir to the heating element. If you squeeze the tube you should find a hard part somewhere. That hard part is a little plastic check valve that prevents water from flowing back into the reservoir. Take the tube off and you can squeeze the valve out like toothpaste. Pay attention to which way the valve comes out because it has to go back together exactly the same, it's really small so be careful not to lose it. Clean the valve and reassemble.
I can't imagine how many coffee makers get thrown away because of that, that valve is small enough a large coffee ground could easily block it.
We have several coffee makers but the one the family uses most often is a spoon full of instant coffee in a cup of boiling water.
Once in a while if i want to up the game
i use a stove top espresso kettle.this one= http://az163874.vo.msecnd.net/800e43...800-235466.jpg
I've been looking for a small French Press for one cup, think I may end up just buying one at the camping store because none of the stores in my area have them.
Frieling makes stainless steel ones in a variety of sizes. Indestructible.
What's wrong with it? If it's just making steam or no water flowing there is an easy fix. I know it must happen to a lot of them and since it's common I'll mention it.
They are probably all the same or similar, if it has a reservoir it will need a valve like this somewhere. If you take the bottom of it off there is going to be a tube going from the reservoir to the heating element. If you squeeze the tube you should find a hard part somewhere. That hard part is a little plastic check valve that prevents water from flowing back into the reservoir. Take the tube off and you can squeeze the valve out like toothpaste. Pay attention to which way the valve comes out because it has to go back together exactly the same, it's really small so be careful not to lose it. Clean the valve and reassemble.
I can't imagine how many coffee makers get thrown away because of that, that valve is small enough a large coffee ground could easily block it.
I'm not sure. I learned about this as he was carrying to the trash on garbage day. He said it was shutting off. He seemed to feel it was an electronics issue. The thought went through my mind that we could fix it, but he had already bought the new one and I'm not the coffee drinker. I regret not grabbing it to see if it could be fixed.
Is he a coffee snob at ALL? The reason I ask is because there are a ton of very cheap, but top notch ways to make coffee for the snob (my wife is one). Probably the easiest is using a pour-over, like a Chemex, where you simply pour boiling water over grounds and it seeps through. Next to that is a french press, which makes a Slighly stronger (tasting) brew, but at the expense of maybe getting some grounds in the cup. Then there are things like espresso makers for the stove top (sorta similar to a percolator), and a ton of other $20~30 toys.
But when it comes to a Home machine, the best coffee I've had comes out of a Bunn and we bought my in-laws the A10 (top end residential, bottom end commercial machine). No need for a timer on these as it takes less than a minute to brew a pot since they keep the water hot. This machine is best for someone who drinks multiple pots (as my in-laws do), but it's amazing in that it can make even cheap bulk pre-ground coffee taste alright. The first one of these my in-laws owned lasted for ~17 years and the they went through a host of $50~150 units until we bought them a replacement in 2011.
We have two coffee makers - one for individual cups and one that makes ten cups. Both are by Bunn. WE LOVE THEM. Keep in mind that Bunn makes lots of commercial coffee makers and apparently there's a reason for that - they are well built, fast, and keep the coffee piping hot. They're not as sexy looking as some coffee makers out there, but believe me, they gitterdone.
What I LOVE about them is how FAST you will have delicious, piping hot coffee, even with the twelve cupper. Honestly, you will have a full pot of coffee, steaming hot and staying that way, in about 90 seconds. With the individual one, it's also much faster than the Keurigs, and not only that, you can use K cups, tea bags, your own refillable K cup, or pods in it. And it's nice looking. With that one, you get a cup of whatever you're making in under a minute, also piping hot.
We've had the larger one for over two years now and use it every day - it's been working great. This was after I had bought (and regretted buying) a beautiful, expensive Cuisineart that simply stopped working on me one morning with no warning. I had loved the coffee it made and so I thought, "Surely that was an aberration," and went and bought another one - only to have it die suddenly on me about a year later as well. DANG IT! So...unsexy but extremely dependable Bunns for me from now on! My husband has the same large Bunn at work and it's made multiple pots of coffee every day for several years now - he's the person who clued me on to Bunn.
Last edited by KathrynAragon; 04-13-2014 at 08:35 AM..
I'm open to a percolator. That's really a great idea I hadn't considered.
I'd try to avoid the percolator. They require the water to boil which really is too hot for coffee.
Quote:
Originally Posted by thecoalman
What's wrong with it? If it's just making steam or no water flowing there is an easy fix. I know it must happen to a lot of them and since it's common I'll mention it.
I too had a Cuisinart that died. I intended to take it apart but their construction is such that you can't.
We're just using our Mr. Coffee that we kept on the shelf for outings.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Still, it's programmable and works great!
