coffee maker planned obsolescence

[hubops]

Our ~ 5 year old drip coffee maker < Krups brand > suddenly started behaving as if it was partly clogged. Steaming & gurgling & slow. I ran kettle cleaner through it - no change. I ran vinegar through it - no change. I took it apart and the tubes look very clean - no buildup. Other people have said that theirs did exactly the same thing < different brands eg Hamilton Beach >

I'm convinced it's a planned obsolescence scenario .. We bought a Braun this time but it's workings look very similar to the rest. John T.

[Terry Coombs]

  My $15 Farberware 5 cup from Walmart is chuggin' along just fine , going on 10 years or so . Been long enough that I really don't remember . I just change the charcoal filter occasionally and run some cleaner thru it when it gets a little slow .

[Wade Garrett]

Yup, similar experience for my same-priced Mr. Coffee from Walmart...

[Fred McKenzie]

John-

When my Mr. Coffee started acting up, I found that something gummy had gotten into its internal "ball valve". The purpose of this valve is to only let water flow one way out of its reservoir into the heater.

By taking this valve apart and cleaning it, the coffee maker is as good as new. Perhaps your clog is not affected by either kettle cleaner or vinegar.

Fred

[hubops]

Thanks Fred. What I see as a ball valve is a tiny white plastic piece that seems to be moulded right into the bottom section of the reservoir - it's free to wobble about - doesn't look fouled in any way - and looks impossible to get at or get out for closer examination ... perhaps I'll try a long skinny brush to scour it .. The other makes I looked into at the stores seemed the same. It would seem to explain the symptoms though - water flowing too slowly into the heat-element causing the steaming & gurgling .. I'm open to any other ideas or advice. I really hate throwing an otherwise good coffee maker in the trash .. John T.

[hubops]

That's my experience with previous coffee makers - failure after many more years of use & abuse. This premature failure - combined with a few stories of identical failures - really has me wondering ... John T.

[hubops]

I took the coffee maker apart, a second time ; looked closer and scoured around the tiny ball valve with a small brush and removed some debris - likely coffee grounds from an accidental overflow .. I think I have it repaired. A couple photos :

John T.

[Fred McKenzie]

John T.-

Your coffee maker is a LOT more sophisticated than my Mr. Coffee!

After repairing mine, I made a pot of water with no coffee to test the repair.

Fred

[Jaspar Towing Service]

I just buy coffee at starbucks.

[Mickey-Bob]

Michael Moore Wants You to Boycott Starbucks

[gfretwell]

Finally, I have a reason to go to a Starbucks.

[trader_4]

They do have excellent coffee that's very consistent wherever you buy it around the world. You don't have to go there to get it. Costco carries the French roast beans at good prices. They also carry Pete's which is excellent, in the same class. Either of those is 10x better than the common brands at the supermarket.

[invalid unparseable]

I boycotted them when the started. They used to call them Fourbucks but now it might be higher. At their rates I drink over $3,000 worth of coffee every year.

[Travis Bickle]

Pity you care so little about your reputation that you admit it publicly.....

[Alexandria Oprah-Kotex]

Don't forget to wear your MAGA hat.

[Juan Valdez]

A home roaster can duplicate the Charbucks flavor by over-roasting just about any cheap bean.

[trader_4]

A coffee grande size at Starbucks in NJ is just $2.75. More fake Trump news. It's more than Wawa, but its 10 times better and worth the extra buck.

[hubops]

I axed our local small-tyme coffee roaster dude -

- about home drip coffee ... using the same beans & roast -

- he said it was usually water temperature and/or water minerals < mainly iron in our area >

.. but but I tried bottled water ! .. and my home brew is still inferior ... dunno. I'm convinced they put a little-something-extrra in theirs .. As for the big American franchise - we pronounce it Char-Buck$. Many many years ago - Tim Hortons was consistantly delicious - - now it's hit & miss ... mostly miss. John T.

[rbowman]

Schultz is the reason I boycott $tarbucks and I've been doing that way before Fat Mikey opened his mouth. I did go once -- my brother shuffled through his stack of gift cards and used the Starbucks one to buy breakfast. I survived.

[rbowman]

I have trader_4 in the bozo bin so I only see people replying to him. I scrolled up to see who thought they had excellent coffee but I should have known.