As a truly coffee lover, you are using your coffee machine to enjoy your cup of joe everyday.But most of the time, you can’t decide what coffee beans to use, because the coffee machine companies decide the options for us. Or the time you want to have coffee, it happens to be out of capsules, you probably have to drive miles just for a cup of coffee.
More and more people are using reusable coffee pods now, either for the intent of saving money, or to avoid the above unpleasant experience. If it’s your first time to hear about reusable coffee capsules, you must have lots questions about it. This article will help you get answers on some of those questions.
In this article:
- What is a reusable coffee pod?
- Different types of reusable coffee pods.
- If a coffee capsule is universal to all coffee machines
- How does reusable coffee pod work ?
- Tips when use a reusable coffee pod
- Lifespan of a reusable coffee capsule
- Coffee grinding size for reusable coffee pods
What is a reusable coffee pod?
Because of its special design, as the name says, a reusable coffee capsule is a coffee pod that you can clean and reuse it. Also means finally you can finally have rights to decide your own coffee if you are tired of Nespresso or Dolce & Gusto coffee capsules.
Different types of reusable coffee pods.
From the material of one coffee capsule made, basically there are two kinds of reusable coffee pods in the market, either made of plastic or stainless steel. Apparently the high temperature during the brewing will effect the capsule, and might be harmful for health if the plastic quality is not good enough. So make sure the material which made of the coffee capsule is food grade Polypropylene (PP) to minimum the toxic caused. Another material is stainless steel, that considered as golden standard and widely used in food processing. There are countless pros for stainless steel, it is easy to clean and maintain, high temperature and transform resistant, corrosion resistance as well. The most important point is stainless steel is neutral to food, it wont change the color or smell of the food and beverage. Plus it’s environment friendly and 100% recyclable. Despite the material, different designs are available as well. Some coffee pods are integrated by two parts, the aluminum lid and the cup, by using this type, you need to change the lid every time you use. While for the other type, the coffee pod is one whole unit, what you need to do is to clean and refill. In order to be compatible for the coffee machines, reusable coffee capsules can be divided by brands too. Capsules that are compatible for Nespresso, Keurig, Dolce & Gusto, Bosch and so on, we cant list all here.
If a coffee capsule is universal to all coffee machines
Different coffee machines have different working systems, thus, the compatible coffee capsules are different from the design to size. There is no one kind of coffee capsule can be used on all coffee machines. Simple, even the original Nespresso coffee capsule is not compatible with Dolce & Gusto coffee machines.
How does reusable coffee pod work ?(H2)
You may wonder how these capsules are not penetrated. Each coffee machine has its own working system, accordingly the coffee capsule is customized designed. When you observe the reusable coffee capsule, the hole is pre-punctured and the texture on the lid is pre-pressed.
Tips when use a reusable coffee pod
Amount of coffee grounds
Some of the questions that we are asked most often, why the coffee doesn’t come out, or only very less coffee compare to original ones. When you fill the coffee pod, do not overfill it or too empty, proper amount of coffee grounds is the priority of its working functionally as expected. Overfilling may also cause coffee grounds leaking out problem.
Pressure applied on coffee grounds
Almost same as above question, when press the coffee grounds after filling, press it lightly. If too much pressure applied, not much space for waterflow to come in and out, that lead to little coffee or water blocking issues.
Too much noise during the process
Basically the noise during brewing is from the water pump in the coffee machine. If you feel a reusable coffee pod leads more noise than the original ones, it might due to the different materials that are made of. As mentioned above, every capsule is patent designed to fit the machine, it wont damage the coffee maker.
Lifespan of a reusable coffee capsule
Generally you can use one reusable coffee capsule as long as it works properly, still some components of the coffee pod might fall off or disattch, then you have to replace them or buy new ones.
Coffee grinding size for reusable coffee pods
Be honestly there is no standards for which coffee grinding size should be used. But for capsule coffee machine, we recommend medium fine and fine grindings. If your coffee tasted too watery or acidic, probably because coffee beans are grounded too coarsely, try to grind it finer. Vise verse, if the coffee tasted bitter, you may need to grind it roughly.