20
Warning: My espresso machine's water filter made a huge difference in 2 weeks
I switched to a Brita filter for my Gaggia Classic at home in Portland, and after 14 days the scale buildup on my boiler looks like night and day compared to before. Used to descale every month, and now the vinegar bath barely catches anything. Has anyone else seen this big of a change just from filtering tap water?
3 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In3 Comments
hannahs452mo ago
Did you actually compare the pH or mineral content of your Portland tap water before and after the Brita filter? I'm curious if it's removing enough calcium to explain that big a drop in scale, or if maybe your water is just unusually hard to begin with and the filter is only taking the edge off. I'd want to test it myself with a cheap TDS meter to see the exact numbers.
2
the_ryan1mo ago
A TDS meter is a solid idea, I used one on my own setup and the numbers were pretty telling. My Portland tap came in around 180 ppm before the filter, and after the Brita it dropped to about 120 ppm. That's a decent chunk of mineral removal, but it's not stripping the water completely. So the calcium drop is real enough to reduce scale buildup, but the water is still hard enough that you'd want to descale occasionally. If someone's getting huge scale problems, they probably need a dedicated water softener, not just a pitcher filter.
1