Bunn Coffee Maker

[Ascholten]

We started talking about the Bunn Coffee Makers in another thread that got kind of jacked (gee imagine that) and what a capable machine it really is.

I decided to start this thread so we could discuss it further.   If anyone has one that they use regularly for their good coffee, please share your experiences, methods etc etc.

My concern was holding brew temp through the cycle and one of our members was able to provide data that it appears to hold it's temp pretty solid, which is good.

Aaron

[mp]

Hey Aaron,

Checking the Bunn site I found this:

https://homecatalog.bunn.com/product/Home-Catalog-US/BREWERS/10-cup-Velocity-Brew-GR-Black-High-Alt-When-you-want-coffee-NOW-with-the-Pour-O-Matic-carafe-38300-0065

You can pick one up at Amazon brand new for $88.00 shipped. Great price for a brewer that brews at 200 degrees.

https://www.amazon.com/Velocity-10-Cup-Coffee-Brewer-Black/dp/B000FFRZ26

My step son had one out west when we went out. The brewer brews fast and it is hot. I didn't measure it with a thermocouple or thermometer but it did a great job at brewing the specialty coffee I had brought with me.

IMHO this is a very under rated coffee brewer. You can even buy a permanent filter for the unit. 50 ounces of coffee brewed in under 3 minutes. That's quick!

My 2 cents.

 

[sea330]

I like this one, If you use filters buy only Bunn filters. I have a permanent gold filter but I prefer paper.
 https://www.amazon.com/Velocity-10-Cup-Thermal-Carafe-Coffee/dp/B000FFRYYK/ref=sr_1_3?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1470207560&sr=1-3&keywords=bunn+coffee+maker

[bbqbeans]

I have and use a Bunn A10 daily.  This coffee maker is rock-solid, good and hot, and super easy to keep clean.  Since the reservoir is always hot, I put a timer on the plug to turn on at 4am and off mid-day to save a little energy.  It brews a full pot in 3 minutes and then I transfer to a stainless steel carafe after pouring my first cup.  Unlike most home brewers, the ease of cleaning, stainless reservoir and solid construction definitely give this machine a brawny commercial look and feel.  I'd definitely buy one again if this one ever gives out!

[Ascholten]

How do  you clean it BBQ.
I have heard some say you are told NOT to use vinegar, others say you really should not use the commercial pot cleaners either, aka sodium carbonate.  Others have said they have a special cleaning stuff you are only supposed to use, which I don't believe to be honest.

How do you clean yours?

From what I have seen in the Navy these things take horrible abuse and keep on ticking.  I think the only problem I have ever seen to be honest was the occasional thermostat gone bad, and this one probably did 2o pots a day.

Aaron

[bbqbeans]

Aaron, I didn't mean descaling.  I've had this machine for 5 years and have niot had any issues with scale.  I do use filtered tap water.  I just meant daily cleaning after use.  So many consumer machines have plastic lids, swing open parts, and carafes that are difficult to get your hand int to clean so you have to use a bottle brush etc.  Right after a pot is brewed, I slide out the filter basket, dump the the grinds, rinse and replace so the the wet coffee doesn't sit there in the basket for hours.  Then I pour my cup, transfer the rest to a thermal carafe, rinse the pot and wipe it dry.  That's it!  The machine itself is mostly stainless steel and there are no inside drawers or things to fiddle with and open to get access for cleaning.  A clean coffee machine makes better coffee!  Sorry if long winded, I just wanted to be clear.  This is the best coffee maker I've ever used and am enthusiastic about sharing.

[Badam]

I had one of these in rotation at work for 5 years. 6-cups seemed to be the sweet spot on all levels. I would fill the reservoir and hold down the lever for a few seconds while turning the filter holder back and forth, let that breathe for 30s-1min and then plop the lid down and let it goto town.

To descale use a citric acid solution, I can't remember the ratio off-hand, but if someone can't find it online, I'm happy to find it in my notes somewhere. If you hold the brewer horizontal with the Bunn symbol down after taking off the spray head, you can drain the machine with little mess. Fill it with the citric acid and let it heat for a little while, longer depending on condition. Then either run water through or dump it like before. It definitely does get bad, my parent's brewer was so bad, CHUNKS of scale came off when I did it. Obviously this depends on your water.

I've had the thermal fuse go bad twice, the first time I replaced it for ~$10 and the second time I just switched to a new(used) brewer. Towards the end of its life, it was not keeping up with temperature. Frankly I don't know that it ever did because I only started measuring during the later days.

Easy way to tell if the thermal fuse is bad: If it is plugged in and the switch on the front doesn't light up when it is flipped to on, you likely have to replace that fuse, but fortunately it is easy to do.

[Ascholten]

You know, I bet one of these would be easy as hell to PID, well maybe not have to go to that extreme but a Watlow or something to control the temperature on it and you can dial it in exactly where you want it at.  From what I can remember of them, depending on the model, you get one with hot plate on top I bet there is plenty of room underneath that plate that you could flush mount the temp controller without having to have a box hanging off the side of the thing.  Hmm, now im thinking.

Aaron

[mp]

Well, thanks to this thread I got thinking about this Bunn brewer again. I started scouring Kijiji.ca (Craigslist equivalent but more popular in Canada) and I started hunting down Bunn Brewers. Then I had a thought. Why not see if I can hunt down a Tim Horton Coffee Brewer. It is a rebadged Bunn.

https://www.amazon.com/Tim-Hortons-Coffee-Maker-Bunn%C2%AE/dp/B003Z2VA7C/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8

http://kitchen.manualsonline.com/manuals/mfg/bunn/coffeemaker_1.html?p=15

Luck would have it I got a lady who was just placing her ad in Kijiji. I asked the usual questions of how old it was and if anything was wrong with it; why was she selling it. She answered back that she had won it in a draw last year and it was sitting in her cupboard for about a year brand new in box. I asked her to send me a couple of pictures of it and it looked like the Bunn Velocity Brewers that brew a pot in 3 minutes. I quickly asked her if she would sell me her machine and if I could pick it up in the morning. This was yesterday morning. Oh yeah, purchase price was $35 cdn. Less than a quarter of the price that I would have paid from Tim Hortons.

I ordered a Crucial Vacuum Gold Tone permanent filter especially made for Bunn Velocity brewers which should be here in 9-16 days from now. Walmart had universal permanent filter for around $10 but it turned out to have a plastic bottom instead of a mesh bottom so I didn't go for it. I may check out CanadianTire.ca offerings tomorrow as it looks like the bottom is mesh.

Set up the machine today and brewed the first cups of coffee for my granddaughter, wife and myself. I used Joe's Bagersh Harrar from last year at a Full City roast on the Gene. 3 12 ounce cups were brewed in about 3 minutes. The taste ... OH MY GOD ... it was like I never tasted this coffee before. The fruit notes in the coffee were insane. I never tasted these in the Cuisinart brewer. Wife agreed that the coffee was fantastic. My granddaughter agreed too, but since she insists on putting cream and sugar in it I have to discount her opinion (after all, we coffee snobs go to great lengths to put a fantastic cup of coffee on the table that never needs milk or sugar).

I am hook, lined and sunk! I absolutely love the coffee extraction of the Tim Horton/Bunn (Bunn model NHBX-B). I think this will increase my consumption of coffee another notch now. For anyone sitting on the fence ... buy one ... you won't regret it!

 

[Ascholten]

I am glad to hear that mp, which begs me to ask.  The bunn has been around for AGES, why has it not gotten the notoriety it probably deserves in our little snobatorium circles?  Maybe because someone seen 'commercial' and pooh pooh'd it?   Who knows.

Aaron

[Smksignals]

I have a Bunn Velocity and decided to switch out for a different brewer for 2 reasons. 1) your water is stored in a hot tank. 2) The sprayed head is a PITA. One little speck of calcium busts loose from the tank and it will clog one of the holes in the spray head, leaving un-soaked grounds in one side of the brew basket. I maintained my brewer constantly but for whatever reason, a little deposit would work it's way through at some point and clog a spray hole leaving dry grounds in the basket.

[mp]

Hmm .... that is interesting to know

I'll keep an eye on that.

 

[Ascholten]

We clean ours at work, the spray nozzle comes off and you run a little pipe cleaner thingie through it, but yes a hunk of calcium / or any deposit would clog pretty much any spray nozzle.   Might want to descale it a bit more often maybe?  If it is in use constantly, you will want to totally dump the water and flush once every month or so to help keep the accumulation out of it.  Just like a hot water heater, the act of sitting there with water in it, it will create deposits over time.

Aaron

[joshtilton]

I picked up a Bunn velocity brewer for $50 at a hardware store. I think they were just clearing stock. I have absolutely loved it! I can't recommend it enough!

[sea330]

I grind a little finer then normal on a Bunn, brew process is very fast. Also beware, really fresh roasted coffee will overflow a little, other then that it will do as well as a TV for 1/3 the cost.