Kitchen Reno

[BobL]

This was the original kitchen
https://www.woodworkforums.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=528024&d=1688421480
https://www.woodworkforums.com/f326/kitchen-revamp-255969#post2313180
https://www.woodworkforums.com/f326/kitchen-revamp-255969#post2313180
Don't be fooled by the apparent good looks. The low down cupboard doors were all water damaged ie cracked and swollen, as were the cupboards under the sink and the coffee machine which had spilled its guts many times over the last 20 odd years. The oregon bench top was also cracked and damaged in places - I had resanded and recoated it 4 times in 28 years and every time I cursed getting such a soft timber for a bench top. I'm keeping the top and will select bits of the least damaged sections to make cutting boards out of.

Demo details here https://www.woodworkforums.com/f326/kitchen-revamp-255969#post2313132

This is where it got to mid week - if it looks identical well that's exactly how it was meant to turn out..
All done except for the cupboard above the cooktop and range hood, plumbing reconnections and some trim and drawer/door handle fits.
A cupboard above the cooktop was installed but turned out to be the wrong size and is being remade - this is the only stuff up for the whole project - just as well as I paid top $ to get this done..
Holdup is the specialised painting requirements for the cupboard doors.
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Yesterday the plumber finished his bit and the builder said I could start using everything except the drawers.

First and most important thing to install was the new coffee machine.
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It's fully a plumbable machine and I will connect up the drain today as the drip tray barely holds 2 cups of water but the high purity infeed water needs to be checked out in more detail as the machine has very low chloride requirements.

Apart from the cupboard over the cooktop stuff up, once the plan was set in place everything has pretty well gone to the plan. The builder (Fender Cabinets) and tradies all turned up when they said they would, were very polite and obliging, kept me informed and they all did a great job. Given the lack of tradies here in WA I was dreading this renovation but I am relieved it has all worked out.

[Ironwood]

Looking good Bob .
Yeah I reckon the old Oregon bench tops might have been a bit too soft.
Can you give us some details of the new coffee machine. I can’t recognise what it is.

[delbs]

Renovations looking good Bob, what sort of coffee machine is that? I’m picking up a few tamper kits from carbatec for my machine as well your collection looks extensive.

Cheers
Nathan

[BobL]

Coffee machine is one of these
Victoria Arduino Eagle One Prima Coffee Machine (https://alternativebrewing.com.au/products/victoria-arduino-eagle-one-prima-coffee-machine?variant=39435075354823)

Make sure you are sitting down when you see the price.

My previous coffee machine (La Cimbali Junior M21) is 19 years old and cost about half the price of the Eagle-One but the La Cimbali now has a bunch of issues. The internal painted steel frame has been de-rusted twice and is now rusting again, the very cracked drip tray needs replacing, as do the touch switches. and the hot water tap. While these parts are still available I figured instead of throwing money at such an old machine I would get something that willl keep me entertained for a long time to come. It's the only major appliance I'm replacing in the new kitchen as all the other appliances are good quality, <7 years old and still in good shape.

The coffee tamper handles are
The one under the knock box - that's spalted Pear wood

On the top of the machine from left to right
- a Purchased Pullman handle with a jarrah handle
- Laminated Pine
- Sandal wood
- Grass tree root
- Al, that one came with the new machine
I have a few more less exotic ones somewhere that I should dig out.

My ally welding BIL and I made the knock box to match the new machine.
details here Used Coffee Puck knock box. (https://metalworkforums.com/f65/t209374-coffee-puck-knock-box#post2008478)

[Mr Brush]

Gulp - I saw the price :oo:. What else does it do apart from make coffee? Built-in toaster and microwave???? :D

[delbs]

Awesome coffee machine looks like a solid investment for a kitchen I say

What are the features you like about it? Decent pressure? It looks commercial so I’m curious as to what makes a solid pouring machine

I currently have a little espresso machine, the pour is alright for smaller shots but I’m keen to understand what other machines improve on to get more crema stronger shot etc

Cheers
Nathan

[BobL]

I got my (then very expensive) 19 year old La Cimbali machine mainly because I wanted it to last especially after seeing so many budget end machines fail after just 2-3 years of use and no spare parts available. The fella I bought the Cimbali from said I should get 20 years out of it and I'd say 19 years is close enough. It still makes a very decent espresso and parts are still available, but I figure it had done its time and I was going to find it hard putting it back into that more "moderne" looking kitchen.

The Vitoria Arduino Eagle One Prima (abbreviated to E1) has a heap of features that I was attracted by, and I will list the ones I can can remember or have played with

It's very heavily built (at 32kg I thought the Cimbali was heavy) but the E1 comes in at 37 kg, and very solidly built so hopefully it should last a long time.
There lots of stainless steel and some Al and not a piece of painted metal and very little plastic in it.

It has a reasonably sophisticated microcontroller accessed via an App, and while I will mess with the App, I don't want to be using an App in the early morning to make coffee and with the E1 you can forget about the App if you want to as all the basic functions can be undertaken using the 3 buttons on top of the group head. I will use it that way 99% of the time.

It has 2 stainless steel boilers - a 1.5L boiler for steam and hot water, and a 140 mL boiler for espresso. Don't fear the small espresso boiler, it uses a very powerfull heating element that heats incoming water very fast - as fast as it takes to grind/setup the coffee for the nest shot.

The machine is heavily insulated so it loses far less heat into its surroundings and uses less power than comparable machines. It claims 30% less power but I will get the WattHr meter onto it and see what it says.

The steam and hot water controllers are not taps but "paddle actuated solenoids' with dual positions
- LHS paddle is for steam - down paddle action is continuous steam, up is single shot of steam to clear the staam wand which is double sleeved so no scalding hands on the wand itself.
- RHS paddle is for hot water - up paddle os for continuous hot water, down is for a mic of hot and cold water stove make long blacks, the ratio of hot to cold is set in the App.
This feature is really ice

Auto flushes the group head 3 seconds after the portafilter is removed. Make sure you don't dawdle removing the portafilter. :0

A few parameters (eg temp) can be easily set using the buttons on the front of the group head. stuff like setting auto start up im the mornings is done thong the App.

It's fully plumbable and comes with all the necessary connections ad hoses. I fully plumbed in my Cimbali but it was a hell of a lot of mucking about, the drain continually got blocked and it leaked several times making a mess of the cupboards underneath the machine. The supplied connections for the E1 look like good quality with proper seals and connections etc so hopefully this wont happen.

I have looked at the App and as usual it looks a tad bewildering - I have an excellent local coffee guru who will help me step my way though its essentials. As usual there will be App upgrades that supposedly do more than it is currently capable of.

It does make really nice coffee but, can I tell the difference between it and the Cimbali? - not really , there are so many factors that go into coffee making - the machine being at most about 30% of the inputs. I reckon my brothers $2000 VBM makes just as good a coffee as the E1 - the rest is "fruit" and longevity.

Happy to answer more questions

[Optimark]

Bob, I'm sure you'll love your coffee machine, I have a Lelit Mara X, which also has a double walled steam delivery wand. It doesn't get hot; mostly.

The catch for me was one day when I was making a few coffees for friends and individually heating milk. As time went on, the double walled tube eventually gets quite hot, so much so that I had a reflex action when I went back to the machine about a minute or so after the third milk heating session. I didn't burn myself, the reflex action fixed that, but it was more than uncomfortably hot; if you get my drift. Other than that, the double walled steam delivery wand is cool.

I don't think the price is excessive, especially for what you are getting. Compared to some of the high priced automatic coffee machines, which have their place; but not in my place, it is reasonably good value.

Mick.

[r3nov8or]

...
Holdup is the specialised painting requirements for the cupboard doors....

What is the plan here? Mine are getting desperate for paint, but really can't decide how to tackle it for longevity...

[BobL]

What is the plan here? Mine are getting desperate for paint, but really can't decide how to tackle it for longevity...

The carcases are regular water resistant white melamine but the doors are CNC machined dead flat and then spray painted with multiple coats of a special hard very low sheen - almost flat paint producing a super smooth finish that is easy to clean. The knobs are ceramic featuring images from the original Alice in Wonderland book.
My wife was a huge Alice in Wonderland fan.
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[BobL]

Bob, I'm sure you'll love your coffee machine, I have a Lelit Mara X, which also has a double walled steam delivery wand. It doesn't get hot; mostly.

Apart from the steam wand, the Lelit looks very much like my Brothers VBM that he loaned me while I was renovating the kitchen. I had to disconnect my La Cimbali and was able to use the VBM fo until I got the E1 machine last week.'
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[r3nov8or]

The carcases are regular water resistant white melamine but the doors are CNC machined dead flat and then spray painted with multiple coats of a special hard very low sheen - almost flat paint producing a super smooth finish that is easy to clean. The knobs are ceramic featuring images from the original Alice in Wonderland book.
My wife was a huge Alice in Wonderland fan.
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529361

Thanks. Do you have the name of the product? And is it DIY or sent away as a pro job?

[yvan]

Gulp - I saw the price :oo:. What else does it do apart from make coffee? Built-in toaster and microwave???? :D

I am sure it comes standard with a servant to deliver one's piccolo ristretto while sitting in bed :D

[BobL]

I am sure it comes standard with a servant to deliver one's piccolo ristretto while sitting in bed :D

That would be no fun - I like making the coffee myself. :D


Thanks. Do you have the name of the product? And is it DIY or sent away as a pro job?

Sorry don't know the name of the paint product. I can ask but I suspect teh cabinet makers dont know either as thee painted panels are sent out to a specialist paint shop.
The aint is super hard and smooth - much more than any other painted surface I've seen.
It is very easy to clean and sticky staining stuff just wipes off with a damp cloth.

[BobL]

Some small progress but the Kitchen renovators are still waiting on the pro paint shop for the last couple of doors.
Meanwhile I have moved in and can now use all appliances and most cupboards/drawers.

529560

More than 40, 50L plastic tubs of stuff have been removed from the kitchen in the last 6 months
Initially some 4 tubs of stuff went to Op shops.
2 tubs of Baking goods and stuff went to my DIL
2 tubs of usable food went to drug rehab and prisoner release accomodation facilities than my brother manages.
2 tubs of stuff went into the bin.

As I put the stuff back I have been fairly ruthless in what I put back.
Another tub has gone to the Opshop.
Another 2 tubs (mainly out of date food etc) have gone into the bin.
Another tub of Bake ware to a SIL.
The cupboards don't look quite as chocka as before and cannot believe how much stuff was in there in the first place.
I still have to sort through about 10 more tubs - mainly plastic storage items that will mainly go into the bin.

[auscab]

Have you kept your CO2 bottle and soda stream Bob ?
I remember reading in a thread here somewhere how you installed a large bottle, outside possibly, and plumbed it to your soda stream . Not long after that we were given a soda stream and started going through the small bottles that came from the supermarket. I kept thinking of your larger bottle and ended up getting one . Before your mention of it I never knew people did that. Were hooked now. A 13.8 kg bottle should last 2 or 3 years maybe.
Edit . 13.8 is the Tare weight. Its 9.1 LT

Rob

[BobL]

Finally all done.
Work commenced July 3 so ~8 weeks all up
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[mature one]

worth the wait I'm guessing?

[ian]

Coffee machine is one of these
Victoria Arduino Eagle One Prima Coffee Machine (https://alternativebrewing.com.au/products/victoria-arduino-eagle-one-prima-coffee-machine?variant=39435075354823)

Make sure you are sitting down when you see the price.why did I need to be sitting down ??
many years ago I realised that the cost of a decent coffee machine was of that magnitude.

For a long time I was limited to ONE coffee per day (I'm now allowed two), so even at AUD $5 per cup, I figure that buying that one coffee was a better option. (You get very picky where you go when you are only allowed one coffee per day.)

Besides, the beans used by profession baristas are gone through so quickly, that they never go stale -- unlike the ground beans I'd be forced to buy.

[BobL]

why did I need to be sitting down ??
many years ago I realised that the cost of a decent coffee machine was of that magnitude.
Not many people are as educated or informed as you are Ian :)

My previous machine (La Cimbali) cost about half the price of the E1 although that was 19 years ago and the price today of the La Cimbali is around 3/4 of the E1 so its not that big an upgrade in terms of price. But the price of a machine


For a long time I was limited to ONE coffee per day (I'm now allowed two), so even at AUD $5 per cup, I figure that buying that one coffee was a better option. (You get very picky where you go when you are only allowed one coffee per day.)

I typically have 4 or 5 a day. Not all of these are at home because I get invited out for coffee 2-3 times a week. I typically have family/friends over regularly so I end up making 3-4 coffees when they come over, and I thus go through about 1kg of coffee every two weeks. When Amanda was around she drank mainly decaf and our bean supplier was able to supply a real quality decaf. This would bring our coffee use up to ~3kg a month for 18 years = 684 kg then another 20 odd kg in the last 10 months brings it to over 700kg at ~$50/kg = :oo::oo: :oo::oo: :oo::oo:
$5/day for 19 years is about the same - except I get 4-5+ coffees per day :)

Now I should add for most of that time I did not drink alcohol so it sort of compensates for it a bit


Besides, the beans used by profession baristas are gone through so quickly, that they never go stale -- unlike the ground beans I'd be forced to buy.

Grinding your own freshly (as in between 48 hours and a couple of weeks) roasted coffee is in many ways more important than the coffee machine as is the way the beans are ground, hence the need for a quality grinder. My current gender is a Mazzer Mini that is 19 years old and had the burrs replaced after about 500kgs of coffee so it is still in good shape. However to go all out "coffee nerd" and to match the E1 machine I have ordered an "Option-O Lagom" single dose grinder as these days I mainly make single coffees.


Have you kept your CO2 bottle and soda stream Bob ?
I remember reading in a thread here somewhere how you installed a large bottle, outside possibly, and plumbed it to your soda stream . Not long after that we were given a soda stream and started going through the small bottles that came from the supermarket. I kept thinking of your larger bottle and ended up getting one . Before your mention of it I never knew people did that. hooked now. A 13.8 kg bottle should last 2 or 3 years maybe.

Yes I do, We use a 6kg cylinder ($52 exchange) as it fits under the kitchen floor, standing upright with room to spare getting it and the floor joists etc, The Soda Stream unit is in the middle of the window in the photo below. The cylinder is under the house and the 2m long connecting hose come up through the floor/cupboard and bench top.
When Amanda was around and not drinking alcohol either were only getting about 6 months out of a full cylinder - I'm sort of addicted to bubbly water and drink it most of the time in place of water especially when others are drinking alcohol. Still way cheaper than the soda stream cylinders.

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[BobL]

A thorough inspection revealed a couple of small gaps that needed to be filled and these were complete on Wednesday and this morning the final appliance, an Option-O Lagom P64 single dose coffee grinder arrived so I finally pronounce the kitchen finished.
This grinder is vert\y quiet and very easy to use.

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[havabeer69]

was it you or amanda that got convinced to buy the thermo mix?

[BobL]

was it you or amanda that got convinced to buy the thermo mix?

Amanda bought her first Thermomix in the early 2000's and was an avid user.
We even used to take it along in the caravan!
One time I remember on the way down south we bought a heap of apricots for $2/kg and she spent days making jam in the caravan park with it.
I used it mainly to process dog food.

Just before she died in 2022 she upgraded to the latest model with internet connectivity and an LCD screen but she never really gt the chance to use it much as at that stage I doing most of teh cooking.
I still use it to process dog food but have also started using it to make meals for myself, including soups which it does really well.

[havabeer69]

Yeah, my wife had good intentions of using it lots. I think its main duties now are cooking rice and making pizza dough.

The new ones are meant to be able to sous vide a steak though

[Bernmc]

How have you found the change to single dose grinding, Bob? And can you taste any difference?

Is the Lagom something you'd buy again if you needed to?