Is all-grain brewing hard to do? - Crafts & Hobbies

Hello! When the ground grains and filter lights on your Saeco Odea coffee machine are flashing alternatively, it usually indicates an issue with the brewing unit or the coffee grounds. Here are a few steps you can take to troubleshoot and resolve the problem:

1. Check the coffee grounds: Open the machine's front door and remove the brew group. Check the coffee grounds container to ensure it is not full or clogged. Clean out any excess coffee grounds and ensure that the container is properly inserted.
2. Clean the brew group: Thoroughly clean the brew group and its components according to the manufacturer's instructions. Pay special attention to the coffee chute, coffee funnel, and the area where the brew group attaches to the machine. Ensure there are no coffee grounds or debris obstructing the mechanisms.
3. Check the water reservoir: Ensure that the water reservoir is filled with enough water and properly inserted into the machine. Sometimes a low water level can trigger error signals.
4. Restart the machine: After cleaning and checking all the necessary components, close the front door securely and turn the machine off and then on again. This may reset the error condition.
5. Descale the machine: If the above steps do not resolve the issue, it may be necessary to descale the machine. Follow the manufacturer's instructions for descaling your specific model of Saeco Odea.

If the problem persists after performing these steps, it may be necessary to contact Saeco customer support or a qualified technician for further assistance. They will be able to provide more specific guidance based on the model and the nature of the issue you're experiencing.

Yes, the Home Brew Shop has a nice selection of organic grains and hops.

http://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk/acatalog/Organic_Grains.html

Good luck with your beer - I hope it turns out well.

You can try home brewing.com

http://www.homebrewing.com/all-grain-equipment.php

They have kits and individual pieces of equipment.

Or you could look at the Midwest supplies site:

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/all-grain-brewing/all-grain-equipment-kits.html

Brewing your own beer requires you to boil and make beer with a wort extract. Extract brewing is where you use reconstituted wort to make your own beer. This method is much quicker and requires a lot less equipment than all grain brewing, which involves creating your own wort from the beginning.

It's a great thing to make your own beer from scratch but it's a much more complicated and involved process than brewing your own from wort that you purchases.

Use a paper filter.
Place the filter under the coffee to be brewed. That will let the coffee through without the grinds.

Problem: Brew group is out of sync. Brew group insertion. Brew group alignment.

Answer: Common to all Saeco superautomatics. After removing and cleaning the brew group, it will get onto the supports but will not lock into place as the gear is not aligned. With the brew group on a clean, well lit table, use a pair of chopsticks and a friend to assist. There is a small lever arm on each side that is accessible from the outside of the brew group. As the carriage slides down towards the correct position, the arms are seen 1" above the drive gear and towards the handle side of the brew group. Gently push in the lever so it slides inside of the locking bar. Both sides need to get pushed in at the same time so it helps to have a friend hold the brew group and push in one side while you pull down on the carriage and push in the other lever. The chopsticks insert into the half-moon on each side above the locking mechanism.

Malfunction 8 is related to the brew unit typically. It is usually an indication of the brew unit motor having to work too hard to move the brew unit up and down. This is usually cured by disassembling, cleaning, replacing any o'rings that may be bad, and lubricating the unit, then reassembly.
I have had to do this twice on an an E75 and an E8. I finally broke down and bought seal kits and lubricant for doing this. One could by a new brew unit off of e-bay and change out the whole thing. But a simple rebuild will typically suffice.

Mike

It depends on the hardness of the water used in the brewer. Personally reverse osmosis water is the only good water to use in a brewer. If your brewer is a dcc-1200 the water that you pour in is used at the time of brewing and isn't stored and heated, waiting to be used like restaurant brewers. Vinegar is ok if you flush a couple of pots after you are done cleaning. It is more to get the residual taste of vinegar out of the first new brewed pot of coffee. If you have more than 10 grains of hardness you may consider frequent vinegar usage or a specialized acid for tank and element cleanup. Just be sure that when you are done that you have sufficiently flushed the brewer. On a 1200 series it will probably only take two or three pots of water to flush any residual taste or smell out of the brewer. Donot try this with a holding tank brewer like a Bunnomatic unless you have test strips or flush with water about thirty times. I did a test on a Bunn with test strips and it took about thirty pots to return the water to a normal level on an acid alkali test strip. A good heavy duty product is called limeaway. Just follow directions and flush completely. I am sending a pic of a brewer with a holding tank. If you look down inside you will see slabs of pure lime scale. Vinegar won't touch this. We use hydrochloric acid and a hammer to remove this. Have fun, Rick in Indy. 23 to 50 grains per gallon here.