Plumbing our ECM Synchronika Espresso Machine

[@ATR-42]

Just wanted to provide an update for buyers who are watching this video for planning. Synchronika has updated this hose slightly. In the hose at the adapter side, now incorporates a tiny check valve, the connection has been slightly changed to allow for this. There is no longer a compression fitting (ball / ferrule). It now requires an O-Ring where the converter coupler attaches to the hose end. This seal not included with the machine, or the conversion coupler. I was told by WLL that it's a readily available item locally or by a professional. Additionally, the BWT filter kit comes with extras if needed as well. Just wanted to put this out there, as I was scratching my head. Thank you for this video, it's incredibly helpful.

[@kevinb2014]

Thank you SO MUCH for creating and publishing this video. It's excellent! I'm about to do exactly what you did (buying an ECM Synchronika with Flow Control and a BWT filter system from Whole Latte Love), so I really appreciate the in-depth coverage of all the steps and issues. THANKS!

[@cakeman58]

5:50 Thank you for being one of the very few people I've heard speak on the subject who really know why you let some water bypass the filter and not use very pure water-- very low TDS water such as that coming from an RO filter is not copper/bronze friendly and will eventually deteriorate the material.

[@u2jewel]

Nicely done! Weird coincidence that I just finished the maintenance that I do every 6 months on my Synkronika, then went to bed and your video was the first recommendation lol. I can't do what you've done because i live in a rented apartment, and there isn't a drain source near the machine. So what I've done is use those 5 gallon water bottles to collect from my drip tray. I just got a regular garden hose and it works fine as long as the gradient is there. Good call on the clear tubing! My first garden hose was green and not transparent, and didn't realize the problem brewing ahead. It clogged with coffee gunk after 6 months, and made a real mess when it leaked. Now I've learnt to flush the hose every few months to keep it following nicely. In your set up, I fear that coffee gunk may collect in the u-bend, where it's non transparent white plastic. Since there is never a decent amount of fast flowing gushing water to push the gunk up and beyond the bend, it might be worth checking it out once in a while? Just my 2 cents for you to hopefully avoid a horrible mess :) My machine just celebrated it's 5th anniversary, and is still running like new. I hope you enjoy yours for years to come too.

[@postbeam8200]

Good to hear that your machine is 5 years old and running like new. So far I haven't had any clogs in the drain tube but it's still year 1. I will do an update in a few month sharing my experience. Thanks for your suggestions!

[@jonom3871]

Thanks for that. I was really keen to see the waste being plumbed. I'd never seen it in action

[@LivingTheLifeRetired]

Best video out there on the topic. One question, with the drain plumbed in can the drip tray still be removed to clean it?

[@christiandelahousse]

Thanks for this! It is a great overview!

[@djalil_YT]

I have a window opening right against the cabinet where my machine rests. I used the AR thing on the website and measured everything. But making a cardboard replica I must admit I didn’t think of. Kudos!

[@markdalton3834]

Thanks for putting your experience on YT for us all to pick your brain.

[@Stan77777able]

Great video, thanks for posting.

[@MrMusickey]

You’re funny and your videos are quite relaxing to watch. Will there be more?

[@robcombs7505]

Thanks, great video . A dishwasher discharge kit will work also, about $19 at ace hardware.

[@rickjoiner]

at 27:07, you show the valve underneath....what is that for, what does it connect to?

[@nghtrdr]

I know this is an older video but wanted to save someone potential flooding of their machine. This type of plumbing drain should never be direct to an appliance. There should always be an "air gap". What that means is the drain connection should be floating above the trap creating a gap between the main drain and the appliance. This is to prevent any potential for a drain to flood into the appliance creating a very dangerous situation of electrical shock and also to help vent the drain at the same time. This is also known as an indirect drain.

[@yousefr433]

4:35 i could not find that piece anywhere , can you help ? i don't even know how to look for it :D

[@M.E.G.A-coffee]

Thanks for showing how you did it

[@stephenbile3932]

That's a really great video that you did. I have a cousin to that machine profitec pro 700 and I also purchased it from the same place. I'm also looking to do a drain. I noticed that the tubing you used is not the reinforced stuff. Are you having any type of problem as far as hot water going down there tubing. I also noticed that you did a separate trap specifically for that drain. I'm in the process of refinishing my basement and I have everything open but I'm trying to figure out a way to run the gray water line well you don't see it through the walls.

[@400080vikkash]

I tapped off my fridge line and it was a 1/4 connector had to get creative with a to split and finding 2 1/4 and one 3/8 t. What grinder you got

[@s5blitzer]

Absolutely LOVE your videos and appreciate sharing the ECM Synchronika plumbing and drain setup!! Two questions for you. (1) What is the minimum height from countertop to the top of the side panel with feet completely screwed in? I am seeing 16.25" to 16.53" from 2 retailers. (2) Did you have to raise the feet to allow clearance for the drain hose and create a better flow pitch or do you think at the minimum height will be sufficient for drain flow? Many thanks!

[@postbeam8200]

1. I went and measured and the minimum is 16.25" that gives like ⅛" of wiggle room but I store cups and pitchers up there on the heated tray. 2. I did not adjust the the feet at all they are fully screwed in. I made another video on a better drain: kzbin.info/www/bejne/fGOZi4yeisuFn7s and the hose attaches onto a 90 degree elbow so it only has to bend into the hole in the counter top. Hope that helps! I am still very happy with my ECM.

[@briand2614]

Too funny. I was also thinking about building a cardboard mockup, I have a depth restriction. I have a coffee bar that only has 20” of counter depth. The Pro700/Synchronika are 18.7” deep. Tight. I already have filtration feeding a commercial Keurig, but hadn’t thought about needing to regulate the pressure down. Also hadn’t considered the plumbed drip tray. I have a sink next to where I would put the machine so maybe a trap extension with dishwasher drain adapter would work. The other issue is the power cord. I have a dedicated 20 amp outlet, but it would end up directly behind the machine. Once plugged in it would push the machine out at least a couple of inches. I will likely have to move the outlet. Uggg. Maybe I would just wire a new outlet connected to the original inside the cabinet below. Finally I have a 3M filter cartridge that I think might be filtering calcium. Might have to revisit that.

[@cachamp203]

Excellent videos of your plumbing set up! After plumbing in your machine, do you turn off the water valve on the bottom of the machine after each use? I plumbed mine in last night with the same BWT filter set up as yours, set at 2 bar. I left the machine valve open (bottom, back side of the machine) and got up 4 hours later to let my dogs outside, only to find a puddle of water on the floor in front of my machine and the drip tray overflowing. Water was steadily dripping out of the anti-vaccum valve at the bottom of the group head per the manual (Page 29, #7). The manual says to shut off the water valve after each use if your directly plumbed in (Pg. 27). I've had my machine for 4 years, and just now plumbed it in. That valve on the bottom of the machine is not easily accessible and does not turn easily. I'm hoping thats not the process ECM expects you to use after each use. Its not an easy process and if you turn on the machine and forget to turn on the water, I can only imagine the damage you would cause. Just wondering what your experience has been?

[@JasonAlexzander1q47]

So when do you turn on the machine? After you have let the water flow out of the group head? You turn the brew handle off and turn on the machine?

[@JonneytheKidd]

What made you chose this model versus, it’s counterpart the Profitec Pro 600 or 700 or even the Bazzera models. About to buy, but can’t decide or understand the difference. Thanks for making this video, cause i am buying one that i can plumb in.

[@rosswoodie]

Awesome video! Gonna plumb in my Synchronika.

[@postbeam8200]

It was easier than I thought it would be. Good luck let me know if you have any questions!

[@toddpower4674]

Very much worth it to plumb it in

[@seff5677]

I plumbed in my synchronika recently, i have the bwt regulator and filter i tapped into the fridge water line. Couple days in i am getting water hammering / shaking in the line coming from the basement. Im thinking i need a water hammer arrestor also installed somewhere along the line?

[@JaredCzaia]

Regarding your drain, 2 things seem off. 1 - You're using an S trap, which is typically not allowed as it can siphon unlike a P trap. If you ever smell funkiness from your drip tray that would be the likely culprit. 2 - You seem to be wet venting in which case I think you're supposed to tie into the side of the 2" drain pipe, not the top. However given the relatively small output of the fixture I imagine it would be pretty unlikely for you to encounter problems.

[@Syd7088]

hi, does the flow control an add-on or come with the machine? is this V3? thanks.

[@AllanYangUSA]

Is this really necessary to make great coffee or will not plumbing it going to be fine?

[@JaredCzaia]

If you have a machine that operates either way, you don't have to plumb it. Plumbing it will simply save you the chore of having to fill a reservoir and empty a drip tray. No difference to coffee quality.

[@chudak27]

Incorrect. Being plumbed in allows you to do line pressure pre-infusion, which you can’t do using the reservoir. Other than that yes, no difference

[@LivingTheLifeRetired]

@@chudak27no difference as long as you use filtered water to fill the reservoir vs just tap water.

[@chudak27]

@@LivingTheLifeRetired how can you do pre-infusion if it’s not plumbed in?

[@LivingTheLifeRetired]

@@chudak27 you can do preinfusion using flow control if you have. On my Profitec Drive I also have digital preinfusion that runs the pump a bit then cuts out, each for desired length of time, before resuming.

[@greghaynes1645]

I just ordered your setup with the ECM synchronika and BWT filter combo from WLL. I have a question with how you flushed the filter. I know you need to flush several gallons when first installing a new filter but I want to avoid sending filter junk to the ECM until I can flush. How did you do this when everything was hooked up? I plan to tee off my fridge line which uses 1/4”. Need to figure out to get 3/8” and keep 1/4” for my fridge.

[@postbeam8200]

On the BWT filter housing there is a flush valve downstream of the filter, I just flushed 5 gallons through that and it has worked fine. I am not too worried about particles in the filter media as it looks very well made. As far as connecting to an existing fridge water hookup there should be a T valve maybe even with a shutoff that can connect to your existing fridge ¼ hose. The ECM doesn't use much water so supply should be easy. But I really like having a supply shutoff somewhere before the filter to help in an emergency leak... Good luck!

[@johnsaxontube]

Great video, very helpful! Thank you. I'm about to plumb in a new Bezzera Duo. I was thinking I might just have the end of the drain hose poked down into the 1-1/2" PVC pipe with no airtight fitting on it, thus providing its own air vent. It will be in a crawlspace so an overflow wouldn't be a problem. I plan to run 3/8" PEX pipe from a shark bite tee fitting on my 1/2" copper water supply line. That 3/8 PEX will go up through a hole in the subfloor into my base cabinet below the espresso machine. Clive Coffee sells a filter system for about half of what that BWT filter costs, so I'm going to try that. I appreciate Todd Power's comment about not really needing a flow meter, I think he's right. The filter will age out before you will reach the limit on the number of liters.

[@postbeam8200]

Sounds like a good plan, I would recommend direct pluming the catch basin to the drain like so: kzbin.info/www/bejne/fGOZi4yeisuFn7s As far as the filter I plan on running it for more than a year based on testing the water after the filter. As far as filter systems I think the one from Clive sounds good. I kind liked the BWT quality but that is just perception and I am sure many filters would be up to the job. So far I have been happy with my setup and I wish you well with yours!

[@SpeedisSpeed]

Wouldn't RO water be superior?

[@JasonAlexzander1q47]

Hey.... My pressure regulator off my filtration system is reading past 60. I tried turning knob. Nothing. So what should it be?

[@postbeam8200]

I assume it is 60 psi? Thats a little more than 4 bar which is normal house water inlet pressure. I needed to pull out on the pressure regulator (it is locked when pushed in and can't be adjusted) and twisted the cap on my BWTregulator until the water stopped. Then I slowly twisted it back open until the boiler pressure gauge on my ECM was reading about 1.7 bar with the machine off and no water flowing. That means the feed line into the ECM is pressurized to 1.7 bar so when I pre-infuse my shot that's the pressure it gets (actually its a little lower like 1.5 bar due to loss in the group head). You may need to run some water through the machine to allow for the inlet pressure to stabilize. ECM recommends you keep the inlet water (direct feed water) pressure under 2 bar on page 28 of the instruction manual. This is so you don't damage the pump with too much inlet pressure. I think if you reduce the pressure to zero and then open it back up slowly to 1.5 - 2.0 bar you'll have better luck!

[@JasonAlexzander1q47]

@@postbeam8200 I figured it out. I had to run the machine to be able to adjust the regulator. Made myself feel stupid. Lol

[@pushingbus1]

Well done

[@nemanjastanimirov2684]

U uputstvu stoji da max pritisak vode ne sme biti veći od 2 bara. 1,5 do 2 bara je idealno.

[@postbeam8200]

Yes I use 1.7 bara (bar) into the ECM. 🙂👍 That gives enough pressure for very good pre-infusion, Thanks!

[@kenstudios]

How tall are your cabinets?

[@postbeam8200]

Sorry for the delay.... My upper cabinets are 20 inches above the countertop. You could get away with 19 inches but below that it would be hard to fit any coffee cups onto of the warming tray of the ECM. Hope that helps!

[@kenstudios]

@@postbeam8200 Thank you very much. My cabinets are also 20 inches so it work for me. I truly appreciate it

[@toddpower4674]

The water meter is a waste of money. You will never come close to using the amount of liters of water the filter can handle in one yr. I bought one and only used a few liters

[@postbeam8200]

I think you're right as far as using enough water in a year. However, I am going to experiment with using the filter over a year in that case I may start to reach the water filter use limits which I plan to monitor and record my observations. I have a decade of experience with keeping reef aquariums and have the HANNA lab grade testing equipment to precisely measure dKH, dGH, TDS, & pH in a water sample. I suspect that the annual replacement is based on the average usage in a commercial environment. I currently use a 5 stage Spectrapure system for my aquarium and I base cartridge replacement on performance not time, so this 1 stage system should be easy to monitor and I am planning on following the same principle. There is an old joke in reef aquariums that you not keeping fish or coral.... you're keeping water. And if you're not testing you're guessing.

[@toddpower4674]

@@postbeam8200 Your more into it than me. I just got the bestmax filter and used it over a yr and had 3-5 shots lots of days. Never used 10% of the yearly amount of water so in never replaced my filter yet. I will keep watching to see what you find over time. The synckronika is not most expensive machine out there but i think it has all you need for home. I love mine and can get some good shots. I upgraded my shower screen and basket but the best improvement is a 3 hole steam tip

[@postbeam8200]

@@toddpower4674 I LOVE my Synckronika also :) I was looking at upgrading the steam wand tip. They sell a 3-hole, 4-hole, and 5-hole tip but its good to hear you feel the 3-hole is a big improvement over the 2-hole it came with. I am also planning on getting a bottomless portafilter and adding the ECM V-Titan 64 grinder. Do you use either of those? As far as the BWT filters I am kinda geeked to try and apply some of my chemistry knowhow to my espresso water makeup. I may post a video of my findings.

[@toddpower4674]

@@postbeam8200 i got a titan 64 and a bottomless porta filter. I find a bottomless porta filter messy and dont use it very ofter. Spurts squirt over the machine or floor if you dont have everything perfect. I made my titan a single does grinder by getting a eureka blow up hopper(smallest one) and removing the static screen. The grinder is awesome. Before that i found little hard to dial it in because its so so fast, but its a good grinder. Also remove the porta filter holders and get a doseing cup. And a rdt bottle

[@postbeam8200]

@@toddpower4674 Awesome! That is exactly what I have been thinking about doing. I was wondering if Eureka hopper would fit and it sounds like it does. 😁👍Thank you for the recommendations! Here are two KZbin videos I found showing ECM (or similar) grinders dosing. I will post a video once I get mine setup. kzbin.info/www/bejne/j3yakKd6m8ySf7s kzbin.info/www/bejne/ml7XdaGOfZqAq5I

[@EatMeatStayHealthy]

Wait until this guy discovers a measuring tape exist instead of having to create cardboard mocks

[@manityjones7306]

If only your mother would have discovered birth control