Industry Gastronomy

Diagnosis of fully automatic coffee machine

Part 1

Part 1 Fully automatic coffee machines in check

Everything restaurateurs need to know about technology, sources of error and perfect settings.

This blog series is dedicated to the fully automatic coffee machine. This technologically complex machine combines a variety of functions and components. Ideally, it produces excellent coffee at the touch of a button - time and time again. Product sales are high and the staff require no specialist knowledge. The advantages are obvious.

As with any technical device occasional problems such as blockages cannot be ruled out. A technician can quickly remedy this. More serious, however, are faults that are not even perceived as such, such as incorrect incorrect adjustment or basic settings. These prevent the fully automatic machine from making good coffee at all.

In this blog series, we will make you fit for the fully automatic machineWe explain how you can tell if your fully automatic machine is set incorrectly and which steps will help to extend the service life of your fully automatic machine. The text should also help you to choose the the right fully automatic coffee machine for your catering concept.

The first part of this series explains the basics: what is a fully automatic coffee machine, which components are installed and what function they have.
In the second part deals with the different types of faults that can occur, how they can be rectified and the immense influence that daily cleaning of the machine has on coffee quality and durability.
The third and final part explains how to configure the coffee machine correctly to produce the best coffee - time and time again.

Part 1: "The big misunderstanding" or: Sh*t In - Sh*t Out

What is a fully automatic coffee machine? For many consumers and restaurateurs, a fully automatic coffee machine is synonymous with simple operation and coffee preparation designed for convenience. Some would probably also say that a fully automatic coffee machine cannot prepare such high-quality coffees as a portafilter, for example. In fact, this is also possible with fully automatic coffee machines. And it's a shame that fully automatic coffee machines carry this stigma around with them.

A fully automatic coffee machine in cross-section.

However, there is a big misunderstanding about fully automatic coffee machines: Almost all users assume that a fully automatic coffee machine can make coffee automatically, in the sense of always making good coffee. And if the coffee in the cup is not good, then the coffee machine is not good - it must be the machine's fault. That is simply wrong.

The truth is: A fully automatic coffee machine can make very good coffee if it is configured correctly. The fully automatic system behind it merely refers to the repeatability of the preparation. Incorrect configurations repeatedly produce incorrect results - this is not only the case with fully automatic coffee machines. In other words, the fully automatic coffee machine may not require a barista, but it does require a person who regularly (re-)adjusts the fully automatic machine. If the adjustments made are good, the machine can repeat the required results fully automatically.

The structure of a fully automatic coffee machine

Technically speaking, a fully automatic coffee machine consists of four core components.

A fully automatic coffee machine consists of several central components that must be perfectly coordinated in order to deliver consistently good coffee. From the grinder to the boiler and the pump to the brewing unit - each component has a crucial function. Below we take a look at the most important elements and their tasks.

1. the mill:

A disk grinder is usually used here. The degree of grinding can be configured by adjusting the distance between the grinding disks. The smaller the grinding gap, the finer the grind. The beans fall between the grinding disks and are ground by centripetal force. Technically, the grinders installed in fully automatic coffee machines do not differ from the grinders used in coffee bars/coffee stores, for example.

2. the boiler:

This is where the water is heated for coffee preparation. Fully automatic coffee machines are now equipped with smaller boilers, which are often additionally insulated.
This means they consume less power. The water temperature is determined by a temperature sensor. This communicates directly with the heating element of the boiler. The heating element repeatedly emits small heating pulses to keep the water temperature at a constant level. The ideal temperature is 92 to 96°C. The water temperature is freely adjustable via the configuration menu.

3. the pump:

The rotary pump ensures that the water is pumped out of the boiler at the same constant brewing pressure through the ground coffee. The resulting brewing pressure of 9 bar is based on the pressure found in a standard espresso machine.

4. the brewing unit:

This is where what was produced in the first three components comes together. The ground coffee is transported into the brewing unit and then the water from the boiler with the uniform pressure pressed through the ground coffee. However, the brewing unit is not simply a chamber in which powder, water and pressure meet. The brewing unit uses a piston to press the ground coffee together and ensure it is compressed - similar to the way a professional barista does it by tamping the ground coffee in the portafilter. The brewing unit is the component in the fully automatic coffee machine that gives the appliance its name.