Pentair Moment:
Roger fuels up on coffee crafted with Claris technology

Why great coffee needs great water, wherever it is made

“Driving over 40,000 kms per year requires a lot of fuel. That’s for the car … and me! My pit stops are dictated by the coffee machine, and I know where to find the best. I’m only there for five minutes, but the coffee still needs to be good; strong, smooth and not bitter. And that’s what I get consistently from my preferred fuel stations, wherever they are.”

Roger Miller, National Sales Manager

Roger may not be a coffee connoisseur, but he knows what he likes and he can taste the difference. His expectations are high, yet realistic, about vending machine coffee. While it may not have the barista’s magic touch it still needs to be the real deal. After all, it boils down to just a grind of fresh beans and of course 98% water.

The chances are that the average vending machine, whether in a fuel station, convenience store or supermarket, will be fed straight from the building’s water tap. No pre-filtration, no pre-conditioning, no quality control. So how can Roger be sure to get great tasting coffee, every time, wherever he pulls up?

What’s in the water?

There is no way round it, great tasting coffee needs great quality water. Thankfully most European water is potable, so adequate, but that’s about the sum of it. There is no guarantee against unpleasant tastes or smells. And certainly no reliability about the optimal balance of chemical and physical properties best suited to extract the right body, balance and flavour from coffee beans. The water piped to a vending machine may have a low pH which is not ideal for brewing coffee. Or, as is likely in large parts of Europe, it could be hard water, containing high hardness-causing minerals such as calcium, magnesium, carbonates and sulphates. These are bad news for the boiler in the vending machine and can causing scale build-up and slow down the heating and vending process. At worst, the water source could contain excessive chlorides, sulphates or chlorine which, over time, can corrode the internal pipework – and no one wants to find rust in their cup of coffee!

Understandably all Roger wants in his cup is the best quality coffee and the best quality water. And that’s why more and more vending manufacturers are recommending pre-treating the water that feeds the machine.

Cartridge filtration for vending machine water treatment

For most drinks vending applications, an inline cartridge filter system is the simplest and most cost-effective way to ensure optimal quality water, time after time, wherever the machine is sited.

For ease and convenience, most professional systems use a replaceable bottle-style cartridge. Available in a range of sizes and capacities, these cartridges push-fit onto a universal head that is plumbed into the inlet pipe before the water enters the vending machine. Depending on the cartridge type, they can ‘fine-tune’ the water quality or tackle more demanding contamination problems. At the heart of each cartridge is a series of filters and an ion exchanger which can remove particles or change the chemical composition of the water through a chemical ion exchange process.

Typically, they also feature an active carbon-block to remove odours and off-tastes. By reducing the minerals and contaminates present in hard water, some can also protect the vending machine from the corrosive effects of scale.

Please wait, your drink is being prepared…

So, how is your coffee? Next time you are waiting for your machine-dispensed espresso, have a quick look around the back. Is there a cartridge filter? Maybe there should be? Or, if you are commissioning a hot drink vending machine it might be worth testing the water supply before it is fitted. Have a conversation with your supplier and ask for their advice. Should you consider water pre-filtration or does the vending machine have one already fitted?

Like Roger, we are all visiting vending machines more often. It’s a huge and growing market. Even though it’s an automated process, we expect and deserve the coffee dispensed to be as good as it can be. Whether you are a consumer or manufacturer, remember the best coffee needs the best water, it is the vital ingredient in the daily cuppa!

If you have a moment …

Pentair Everpure Claris N

Pentair Everpure Claris is one of the most trusted brands in water filtration systems and the most recognised brand when it comes to water filtration in coffee preparation. Specially designed for the coffee machine market, Claris cartridges offer advanced filtration and treatment where dissolved particle levels are high or acidic water poses the risk of corrosion. The full Claris cartridge family comprises Claris, Claris Prime, Claris N and Claris Ultra, all of which feature prefiltration, carbonate hardness adjustment, fine filtration, carbon and solid membrane filtration.

For vending applications, the new Claris N (where N stands for neutral pH-value) is a great all-rounder combining the multi-stage filtration with a focus on removing total hardness by stabilising the pH of the water. Like all Claris cartridges, Claris N comes in a range of capacities, and a quick fit universal head makes for easy replacement without turning off the water supply.

Discover Pentair Everpure Claris N for coffee vending applications