I also have a II that I converted to PID and rotary with the WLL kit about three years ago (I've had the machine for 6 or 7 I think). I've not had any issues with heat and electronics so far; my machine is on every day from about 4AM to about 3PM on a timer. I did have trouble with the vibe pump early on, but it was because of two things that were missed in construction of my machine--the low water cutoff switch wasn't there, and there was no weight on the water intake line so the water softener bit woud float. Both caused the pump to run dry for extended periods before I figured out what was going on.
As an aside--even in an apartment, you can easily plumb your machine with no permanent changes to the residence, so long as you don't mind exposed water/drain lines. A simple T off the cold water side is a couple bucks at Home Depot. Or, some run a 5-gallon water bottle under the counter and draw from that. In my home, I do have the water line coming through my granite, but my drain line just runs behind the machine and into the sink. Barely notice it's there. I do really enjoy the rotary pump. The PID is nice, but more of an incremental upgrade for me. You might also take a look at the Alex Duetto on Chris Coffee. I have no experience with it personally, but on the surface it seems like a good machine and has the option to be plumbed or not, so you can go back and forth as needed over the period of your ownership. Best, bmc Sent from my apple IIe On Jan 19, 2014, at 8:59, Craig Stout <[email protected]> wrote: > Hi Alex - have to say that I agree with Bill - once you get into the high end > machines and get the better performance etc that you want, it comes with > trade-offs, and the trade-offs are that you have to educate yourself with > respect to the machines operation, and some more intense maintenance. Design > flaws etc are to be expected with any machine, and a highly motivated group > of people like the brewtus group will inevitably find ways to improved the > performance and design of the machine. Too bad you can't plumb it, because > that really takes a lot of the work out of it. Anyways, good luck,......... > > > On Sat, Jan 18, 2014 at 6:33 PM, Alex Chan <[email protected]> wrote: >> Thanks for the honest opinion. >> >> Actually I don't plan on plumping in the Brewtus as I stay in a rented >> apartment that doesn't allow me to do such stuff. >> Is the vibratory pump okay? >> >> >> >> On Friday, January 17, 2014 10:08:20 PM UTC+8, wsmckenz wrote: >>> >>> I will point out that having the electronics close to the heat has proven a >>> problem for me. It cooked my original temp controller and I had to replace >>> with the gicar PID, after about 4 years of service. I've also replaced the >>> pump, the water feed from steam to the brew boiler (i put in copper, so I >>> wouldn't have to do it again) and one OPV. I have a II, not a IV and they >>> may have improved some of these things. My daughter got a BIV about 6 >>> months ago and she's had no problems, but that is not a very long time >>> frame. >>> >>> I've been pretty happy with mine from a coffee-making perspective, but I >>> would say that if you get any of the 3 you are looking at, you will >>> probably be doing more maintenance and repairs that your did with your >>> Silvia. It's just a fact of life with these high end machines. I had a >>> Rancillio Miss Nancy for 15 years and never touched anything but the group >>> head gasket; My Brewtus repairs have been well over a $1000 in parts over >>> about 5 years. >>> >>> I'm not at all sure that if you bought one of the more expensive machines >>> you wouldn't have the same things to contend with. I don't have any >>> experience with the Rocket 58, but I do have a friend who had an old ECM >>> Giotto and he had much the same experience with maintenance. >>> >>> ~Bill >>> >>> >>> On Fri, Jan 17, 2014 at 7:50 AM, Alex Chan <[email protected]> wrote: >>>> Thanks everyone, >>>> >>>> Any more pointers? >>>> >>>> >>>> On Friday, January 17, 2014 5:20:34 PM UTC+8, Enders13 wrote: >>>>> >>>>> Don't need to defend it, he's just a sad man trying to bring otherwise >>>>> happy people down. Ignore his sad ass >>>>> >>>>> On 17 Jan 2014 08:14, "Graeme Burton" <[email protected]> wrote: >>>>>> Indeed expobar didn’t waste a lot of money on the aesthetics. But if it >>>>>> looks OK to you then who cares? >>>>>> The electronics are inside the box like many other machines out there. >>>>>> The frame is made from iron (plus other elements) like many other >>>>>> machines out there. >>>>>> >>>>>> Graeme >>>>>> >>>>>> On 16 Jan 2014, at 10:52 pm, Dave B <[email protected]> wrote: >>>>>> >>>>>>> There is a REASON it is cheaper.It is poorly constructed, the >>>>>>> electronics are mounted in the heat, and it has an IRON fram. >>>>>>> I could go on. >>>>>>> >>>>>>> >>>>>>> On Wed, Jan 15, 2014 at 9:18 PM, Alex Chan <[email protected]> wrote: >>>>>>>> Hi everyone, >>>>>>>> >>>>>>>> Im a newcomer to this forum and would like to know the opinions of >>>>>>>> brewtus users. >>>>>>>> I'm upgrading from a PID rancilio silvia. Using a barbara vario >>>>>>>> grinder now. >>>>>>>> >>>>>>>> Have the opportunity now to upgrade and choosing between: >>>>>>>> brewtus, DB Junior, and rocket 58. >>>>>>>> >>>>>>>> I would like a PID, as well as a double boiler. >>>>>>>> >>>>>>>> I did read that the brewtus is close or on par in performance to these >>>>>>>> 2 machines, but it's considerably cheaper. >>>>>>>> So that's a plus point. >>>>>>>> >>>>>>>> Looking forward to any helpful suggestions. >>>>>>>> >>>>>>>> Thanks in advance :) >>>>>>>> >>>>>>>> -- >>>>>>>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google >>>>>>>> Groups "Brewtus" group. >>>>>>>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send >>>>>>>> an email to [email protected]. >>>>>>>> To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. >>>>>>>> Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/brewtus. >>>>>>>> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. >>>>>>> >>>>>>> >>>>>>> -- >>>>>>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google >>>>>>> Groups "Brewtus" group. >>>>>>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send >>>>>>> an email to [email protected]. >>>>>>> To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. >>>>>>> Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/brewtus. >>>>>>> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. >>>>>> >>>>>> -- >>>>>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google >>>>>> Groups "Brewtus" group. >>>>>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send >>>>>> an email to [email protected]. >>>>>> To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. >>>>>> Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/brewtus. >>>>>> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. >>>> >>>> -- >>>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >>>> "Brewtus" group. >>>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >>>> email to [email protected]. >>>> To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. >>>> Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/brewtus. >>>> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. >> >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "Brewtus" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to [email protected]. >> To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. >> Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/brewtus. >> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Brewtus" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/brewtus. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Brewtus" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/brewtus. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
