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Started By
Message
Espresso machine channeling
Posted on 6/11/24 at 6:45 pm
Posted on 6/11/24 at 6:45 pm
My Breville Bambino only recently started to channel really bad. My technique before and now seems fine so I’m confused as to why this is happening. I have cleaned the grinder and bought a fresh batch of beans and the issue is still happening.
Would descaling the machine help? Can channeling happen due to a lack of internal cleaning?
The grind size I’m currently set on also seems to come out quicker when before it was just right.
Thoughts, advice, suggestions?
Would descaling the machine help? Can channeling happen due to a lack of internal cleaning?
The grind size I’m currently set on also seems to come out quicker when before it was just right.
Thoughts, advice, suggestions?
Posted on 6/11/24 at 6:48 pm to Donka Doo Balls
Have you never descaled it? I’m sure that’s the issue.
Posted on 6/11/24 at 7:21 pm to AbitaFan08
Never,bought it off of eBay used for a great price and never thought to clean the internal components.
This post was edited on 6/11/24 at 7:22 pm
Posted on 6/11/24 at 8:00 pm to Donka Doo Balls
YouTube how to descale. Should be done at least twice a year.
Posted on 6/11/24 at 8:06 pm to Donka Doo Balls
Post a pic of your tamped puck
Posted on 6/11/24 at 8:27 pm to Donka Doo Balls
Also worth asking: have you used different beans? Or are you getting mass produced beans?
I'm not ashamed to say I use Costco beans. I make cappuccinos every day so it's already drowning in milk and I'd rather just get my cup ready to go for work. I have noticed several times that some of the brands I used from Costco got inconsistent. Small batch single origin beans are truly the way to go. Ideally I'd get a separate grinder for those.
I'm not ashamed to say I use Costco beans. I make cappuccinos every day so it's already drowning in milk and I'd rather just get my cup ready to go for work. I have noticed several times that some of the brands I used from Costco got inconsistent. Small batch single origin beans are truly the way to go. Ideally I'd get a separate grinder for those.
Posted on 6/11/24 at 9:11 pm to BilbeauTBaggins
No I’ve used only the same brand and type. French truck Lecoq Grand Rouge.
Posted on 6/11/24 at 9:27 pm to Donka Doo Balls
It’s more than likely your puck prep, not the scaling imo
Posted on 6/12/24 at 6:38 am to Donka Doo Balls
How did you diagnose that it’s channeling? I assume you are using a bottomless portafilter?
Posted on 6/12/24 at 8:21 am to Lester Earl
quote:
It’s more than likely your puck prep, not the scaling imo
Second this.
Consistent dosing down to .1G, fresh beans (roasted within the past 2 weeks for reliable CO2), consistent grinding, WDT Tool, and proper tamping should prevent channeling.
Cleaning the burrs of your grinder is far more important than descaling.
Posted on 6/12/24 at 10:44 am to Donka Doo Balls
Agree with the others that it's likely not a scaling issue. It's more likely a result of grind inconsistency or improper distribution in the basket. Crema Products has some good tools that can help with this.
Posted on 6/12/24 at 10:56 am to Donka Doo Balls
A puck screen will probably help as well
Posted on 6/12/24 at 6:56 pm to jordan21210
Yes bottomless portafilter. Output began spraying everywhere and notice brew time was much shorter than before
Posted on 6/12/24 at 6:56 pm to BigPerm30
Have one already that I use
Posted on 6/12/24 at 7:01 pm to Donka Doo Balls
Here is a picture of the puck in the portafilter after the shot for anyone who cares to review.


This post was edited on 6/12/24 at 7:10 pm
Posted on 6/12/24 at 7:09 pm to Donka Doo Balls
Also here is a video of my puck prep.
Grinder was cleaned 2 weeks ago. I WDT and use a puck screen. Like I said before never had an issue before pulling a good shot and now I haven’t been able to pull a good one in over a month.
Machine was purchased on eBay 6 months ago and I have never descaled the machine and not sure if the previous owner did either which is why I think that may be the reason.
Grinder was cleaned 2 weeks ago. I WDT and use a puck screen. Like I said before never had an issue before pulling a good shot and now I haven’t been able to pull a good one in over a month.
Machine was purchased on eBay 6 months ago and I have never descaled the machine and not sure if the previous owner did either which is why I think that may be the reason.
Posted on 6/12/24 at 7:14 pm to Donka Doo Balls
quote:
Like I said before never had an issue before pulling a good shot and now I haven’t been able to pull a good one in over a month.
Same beans and same grind size throughout?
Posted on 6/12/24 at 7:37 pm to GynoSandberg
Yep. French truck lecoq grand rouge setting 17 on the Baratza encore esp.
This post was edited on 6/12/24 at 7:37 pm
Posted on 6/12/24 at 8:09 pm to Donka Doo Balls
Have you introduced any of these new tools since you were pulling good shots, ?
Have you ever tried to manually preinfuse?
Have you ever tried to manually preinfuse?
Posted on 6/12/24 at 8:35 pm to Donka Doo Balls
I don’t know that descaling will fix it, but also can’t rule it out.
Descale it and try some shots. If that doesn’t work, I’d just mess with the grind settings a bit. You mentioned you recently cleaned the grinder. That could be causing the grind on the beans to be different than before
Descale it and try some shots. If that doesn’t work, I’d just mess with the grind settings a bit. You mentioned you recently cleaned the grinder. That could be causing the grind on the beans to be different than before
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