# Cleaning the Eureka Mignon



## old soul song (May 21, 2014)

As we have a new shiny forum especially for everything Eureka, I thought we could have a little thread about the cleaning processes you carry out on your Mignon. I'm a complete beginner and this is almost a direct question from me as much as it could prove to be a reference thread for other new Mignon owners. If we get a few knowledgeable answers I'm happy to edit this first post to compile a general consensus/wiki guide type post.

But to get the ball rolling... What exactly do you do and how often?


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## Dylan (Dec 5, 2011)

Pop the hoover on, get the hose out, and get some suction on both the chute and mouth of the grinder, I'll run the burrs momentarily during this (probably inadvisable).

Then a quick wipe every other day or so to keep her looking shiny.


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## shrink (Nov 12, 2012)

can't see any issue running the burrs while hoovering, its what I do on my mazzer. Cleans it out good as new!


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## urbanbumpkin (Jan 30, 2013)

Agree with the above. I tended to remove the hopper and slap the neck with an open palm after use anyway.

I also used to take of the top burr and clean both with a soft brush.


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## old soul song (May 21, 2014)

Thanks for the info everyone. What kind of frequency are we talking? Weekly hoover and monthly top burr removal and clean?


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## shrink (Nov 12, 2012)

i usually take out the top burr and clean it out between coffee changes.


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## urbanbumpkin (Jan 30, 2013)

I used to take off the top burr every 2-3 month or so. It's only 3 screws, weirdly one of them always seems to be tighter than the others when it came to undoing them.


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## Phil104 (Apr 15, 2014)

Just gave my Mignon a good Dyson over - surprisingly it seems to have altered the grind - so I have had to dial back in. Would anyone have expected this to have happened?


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## Charliej (Feb 25, 2012)

Phil104 said:


> Just gave my Mignon a good Dyson over - surprisingly it seems to have altered the grind - so I have had to dial back in. Would anyone have expected this to have happened?


 Not unless it was absolutely caked in crud , the Mignon is designed so that taking off the top burr doesn't alter the grind setting. Are you sure you didn't knock it by accident? or alter in any other way


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## Phil104 (Apr 15, 2014)

Charliej said:


> Not unless it was absolutely caked in crud , the Mignon is designed so that taking off the top burr doesn't alter the grind setting. Are you sure you didn't knock it by accident? or alter in any other way


 It wasn't caked in crud but I think you must be right and I must have altered the dial without noticing- it didn't seem logical that simply taking the top off (and stripping off a screw head into the bargain) would alter the grind but I'm still learning about the Mignon.


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## Phil104 (Apr 15, 2014)

Incidentally, I have noticed that after the grinder has rested a little while, and even though I clear the chute as I go, more grinds come out if I stick a wooden stirrer in (or, I have found better still a round electric tooth brush head. Presumably this is common to the Mignon and maybe other grinders. I assume it happens as the grinds settle but I'm still surprised at the amount that there seems (a few grms).


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

I stripped a screw first time I tried to clean my mignon too. At least that enforced the importance of using the correct type of screwdriver.

Agree on second point too - gave mine a very thorough clean, no more grinds coming out after shaking/poking about but when I got to cfo's house and lifted it on to the counter another couple of gs fell out. Very embarrassing.


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## Phil104 (Apr 15, 2014)

jeebsy said:


> At least that enforced the importance of using the correct type of screwdriver.
> 
> .


 Yes, I learnt that too!


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## Charliej (Feb 25, 2012)

Phil104 said:


> Yes, I learnt that too!


Back in the dark ages when I had an MC2 and single dosed I put a 90 degree bend in the end of a small flat metal skewer and rounded it's point off and used that to clear out as much coffee as I could from the throat and burr chamber, and then if I pulsed the grinder after doing this I would still get more coffee coming out.


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## Phil104 (Apr 15, 2014)

jeebsy said:


> I stripped a screw first time I tried to clean my mignon too. At least that enforced the importance of using the correct type of screwdriver.
> 
> .


 Should have asked. Did you replace the screw and was it easy enough to find a replacement?


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## Phil104 (Apr 15, 2014)

Charliej said:


> Back in the dark ages when I had an MC2 and single dosed I put a 90 degree bend in the end of a small flat metal skewer and rounded it's point off and used that to clear out as much coffee as I could from the throat and burr chamber, and then if I pulsed the grinder after doing this I would still get more coffee coming out.


 Will give this a go - also wondered if a wire coat hanger might do but I'll experiment.


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

I'm not DIY minded so didn't attempt to drill it out. Screwfix will have a suitable replacement though.


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## Phil104 (Apr 15, 2014)

jeebsy said:


> I'm not DIY minded so didn't attempt to drill it out. Screwfix will have a suitable replacement though.


 Okay - thank you - I'll check with them.


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## ajh101 (Dec 21, 2013)

D_Evans said:


> Pop the hoover on, get the hose out, and get some suction on both the chute and mouth of the grinder, I'll run the burrs momentarily during this (probably inadvisable).
> 
> Then a quick wipe every other day or so to keep her looking shiny.


+1 for the hoover once a week!


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## big dan (Apr 11, 2012)

hmm haven't tried the hoover method yet! Seeing as its past midnight now my Mignon will have to wait to meet Mr Dyson!

I also have a Baratza Encore that came with a wire brush that has a conical shape (like a small xmas tree!) and i have found this great to stick up the shoot every now and then to clear out any clumps.

I also let the machine run empty and run a paintbrush round the inside to get rid of all the bits.

From reading all the reviews about how clumpy and dirty the mignon could be i have been pleasantly surprised with it. No real issues so far. One caveat is that i tend to use light to medium roasts so i don't ever really use super oily beans so that must make it a little easier!


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## colinb4987 (Sep 6, 2012)

Hadn't even considered the hoover method - have been whipping the top off (and stripping one or two screws in the process :-s) and attacking the burrs with a soft brush (formerly used for cleaning grit out of camera bits).

Will try this new, hopefully much quicker, approach this weekend!


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

Don't feel too bad about stripping the screws on mine now after reading this!


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## Phil104 (Apr 15, 2014)

Group buy on screws?


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## Bigpikle (Oct 14, 2014)

Can I just check a point please....

Once the top burr plate is off for cleaning, if you rotate the lower burrs slightly while cleaning does it mean the grind adjustment has changed when you put it back together or does it not make any difference?

Thanks


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## urbanbumpkin (Jan 30, 2013)

I don't think it does. That was one of the selling points with it that you could take off the top burr without having to dial in.


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## Dylan (Dec 5, 2011)

Bigpikle said:


> Can I just check a point please....
> 
> Once the top burr plate is off for cleaning, if you rotate the lower burrs slightly while cleaning does it mean the grind adjustment has changed when you put it back together or does it not make any difference?
> 
> Thanks


It will make no difference, as you will just be rotating the motor shaft.


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## Bigpikle (Oct 14, 2014)

Dylan said:


> It will make no difference, as you will just be rotating the motor shaft.


thanks - thats what I intuitively thought but then worried that the relative positions of top vs bottom burrs might affect the adjustment. Good to see I'm OK.


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## big dan (Apr 11, 2012)

My mignon stopped working today and when i had a look i realised that even with the hoovering there is still a lot of build up around the bottom burr and the exit chute had got blocked. I wasn't able to get the bottom burr out and i was hesitant to try and lever it out with a scredriver in case i damaged anything. Any tips on how to easily remove the bottom burr?

I found it very difficult to get to the exit chute to clean it. What do you guys use? I was thinking about getting some pipe cleaners (the wires covered in fluffy stuff) so i could get to the entry to the exit chute. Couldn't find any in my local hardware shop so might have to order online or go to B&Q.

Was really surprised at how much coffee gets packed in there though. Was super easy to remove the top burr just need a simple way to clean the exit chute.


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## Phil104 (Apr 15, 2014)

big dan said:


> My mignon stopped working today and when i had a look i realised that even with the hoovering there is still a lot of build up around the bottom burr and the exit chute had got blocked. I wasn't able to get the bottom burr out and i was hesitant to try and lever it out with a scredriver in case i damaged anything. Any tips on how to easily remove the bottom burr?
> 
> I found it very difficult to get to the exit chute to clean it. What do you guys use? I was thinking about getting some pipe cleaners (the wires covered in fluffy stuff) so i could get to the entry to the exit chute. Couldn't find any in my local hardware shop so might have to order online or go to B&Q.
> 
> Was really surprised at how much coffee gets packed in there though. Was super easy to remove the top burr just need a simple way to clean the exit chute.


I haven't needed to remove the bottom burr so can't help you with that. It's worth getting in the habit of cleaning the chute out as you go - I variously use a wooden stirrer and round electric toothbrush heads (and stick them in the dishwasher for a deep clean), and then when I'm finished grinding leave the grinder for a while and then tip it forward on to some paper - more always comes out.


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## Bigpikle (Oct 14, 2014)

I found that tipping it sideways would actually release relatively huge amounts of grinds that would otherwise stay there despite all sorts of prodding, tapping etc. Now I have removed the hopper and have the mod with a lens hood, so that you can 'slap' it after each grind to blow through grounds. This pretty much eliminates retention and occasionally I get out more than I put in by 0.1 or 0.2g.


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## big dan (Apr 11, 2012)

Cool thanks. It seemed to be the grinds were all gunked up right at the start of the exit chute which is just below the bottom burr so very hard to get to. I do thwack and tip and stick various implements up the chute.

From looking at it i think grinds build up behind the bottom burr and then compact and these eventually block the chute completely, so i reckon at least once a month i should take the top burr off and run a pipe cleaner or sick around the gap of the bottom burr to loosen any grinds build up. That way the grinds never get a chance to build up too much to cause a problem.

Lesson learned. Cleanliness is the number one priority!


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