I’ve been using my coffee syphon for a year+ now. It became a ritual for me and it makes a good cup. The past month or so I’ve run into a problem that I can’t find any answers to, hoping someone here has seen this.
When I remove the syphon from the lamp, it will draw down about half way then stop. The rest of the coffee is sitting up top refusing to come down. The pressure doesn’t release as quickly as it used to, but I think something else is the problem.
- I’ve stirred to ensure the grinds aren’t blocking
- I’ve pried the two chambers apart - I can hear the pressure release, this itself doesn’t solve it either
- I’ve dumped the contents of the top to another container and cleaned out the grinds then added it back, it still sits up top
The only thing I can think of is the filter, but some of the coffee can go through.
Using the Hario NXA-5 and Yuchengtech lamp.
What you describe sounds exactly like a partially clogged filter. If you’re using a metal screen filter, try giving it a thorough scrub and wash with dish soap.
Note that stirring can actually make the “grinds blocking” effect worse rather than better in some setups.
Thanks for the tips. I’ve been using the cloth filter - any tips on cleaning that? I saw something about sticking it in the freezer, not sure I did that right. I’ll try switching to the metal filter for now - much less mileage, so shouldn’t be a problem.
You could try throwing the cloth filter in the washing machine. I suspect your stirring may actually be causing the cloth filter to clog, though.
Just getting around to updating. Clogged filter. The cloth looks clean enough but go figure. Swapped in the metal one and back to an immediate draw after removing from the heat. Thanks for the assist on this, could have sworn I did that ages ago.
That’s great news, I’m glad it worked out!