# Stuck Puck



## shannigan (Jun 1, 2015)

I've recently purchased a refurbished Gaggia Classic (with thanks to @gaggiamanualservice.com) and we're getting on famously. I'm using what I assume is the standard double basket that came with it. It came with three baskets of differing size, and it's the middle one.

I'm pulling decent shots (reasonable weight/time and they taste good) but find the puck doesn't knock out of the basket after it has cooled down. I have to gouge it out with a teaspoon.

Am I:

a) Tamping too hard?

b) Using too much coffee?

c) Asking a daft question?

Thanks


----------



## jlarkin (Apr 26, 2015)

Don't know how much difference it makes (some I think) but why not knock the puck out whilst it's still hot?


----------



## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

Dont let it cool down, get it out the pf straight away.


----------



## shannigan (Jun 1, 2015)

Thanks for the responses. I don't have a knock out box or anything, just knock (or don't knock) straight into the bin across the kitchen. This usually results in coffee drips all over the place and a bit of ear ache 

So, that's why I've been leaving it to cool down. It generally means the drips are gone too. I'll try knocking out immediately after pulling the shot. I'll try not to make a mess too, but no promises


----------



## 4515 (Jan 30, 2013)

Sounds like a knock box is in order to maintain the household happiness and make puck removal less of a chore


----------



## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Grindenstein-Knock-Out-Box-Black/dp/B0016J7YQM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1450369653&sr=8-2&keywords=knock+box

Simple solution.


----------



## hubrad (May 6, 2013)

Deffo knock out while it's hot. As it cools it also dries a bit, and if I forget and let it cool I have just the same difficulty.

You can improvise a knock box with a tin can and a thick screwdriver - kept me going for ages when I started! Even better if you wrap the screwdriver shaft thickly with gaffa tape or rubber tubing - less metal to metal damage potential.


----------



## 4515 (Jan 30, 2013)

froggystyle said:


> http://www.amazon.co.uk/Grindenstein-Knock-Out-Box-Black/dp/B0016J7YQM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1450369653&sr=8-2&keywords=knock+box
> 
> Simple solution.


Thats what I use - cheap and does the job well


----------



## shannigan (Jun 1, 2015)

froggystyle said:


> http://www.amazon.co.uk/Grindenstein-Knock-Out-Box-Black/dp/B0016J7YQM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1450369653&sr=8-2&keywords=knock+box
> 
> Simple solution.


Thanks for the suggestion. Don't have the worktop space for a box, which is why I don't have one. It would certainly solve a problem, though.


----------



## jlarkin (Apr 26, 2015)

shannigan said:


> Thanks for the suggestion. Don't have the worktop space for a box, which is why I don't have one. It would certainly solve a problem, though.


Ok you need to move house immediately...

Obviously kidding but I'll add this just in case


----------



## Dylan (Dec 5, 2011)

My guess is that if you are knocking it out on a bin the knock isn't sharp/hard enough.

Just as an experiment, take a rolling pin over to the bin with you and smack it against that to see if it pops out.

I bash mine against the plughole and wash it away, no blocked drains yet. (If it doesn't come out, I just run the hot water tap into the PF which washes it away no problem.)


----------



## StuartS (Jan 2, 2015)

+1 for a small knock box. I used to use the bin but wasn't popular leaving coffee drips on the floor.

the grindenstein one is only 6 inches diameter and can fit under the group head for storage.


----------



## shannigan (Jun 1, 2015)

StuartS said:


> +1 for a small knock box. I used to use the bin but wasn't popular leaving coffee drips on the floor.
> 
> the grindenstein one is only 6 inches diameter and can fit under the group head for storage.


OK, hadn't noticed it was so small. I'll fling some coffee about the place for a while longer then put it forward as a solution 

Cheers!


----------



## hubrad (May 6, 2013)

Last minute Xmas present. . ;-)


----------



## Andy_C (Feb 4, 2015)

I use silicon Matt with kitchen towel on top. One tap, wrap puck up and take to bin. No mess and uses stuff already to hand in kitchen.

Andy


----------



## seeq (Jul 9, 2011)

All this throwing pucks away! They make excellent compost!


----------



## Rhys (Dec 21, 2014)

seeq said:


> All this throwing pucks away! They make excellent compost!


..makes the bin smell nice, especially when you have cats


----------



## nufc1 (May 11, 2015)

Quick question, is the basket pressurised (does it have a single hole im it when you hold it up to the light) as i briefly used these and it's very hard to knock out the pucks!


----------



## Vieux Clou (Oct 22, 2014)

Hitting the bin from all the way across the kitchen must take a bit of skill. Kudos.


----------



## hubrad (May 6, 2013)

seeq said:


> All this throwing pucks away! They make excellent compost!


This is true.. puck >> knock tin >> compost bin for me.


----------



## MarkT (Nov 21, 2015)

Or temporary fix could be kitchen roll folded under the pf whilst you travel to the bin?

I dont have a espresso glasses yet, therefore I'm using a glass ramekin as an espresso glass. So once coffee is extracted I poured into the cup carry the pf with remakin underneath which holds the drops in. Clean floor.


----------



## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

Just throw it over your right shoulder, its good luck!


----------



## hotmetal (Oct 31, 2013)

I chuck all my pucks on the flower bed under the kitchen window. Have done for a couple of years. It looks like I live in a desert and sometimes the whiff of coffee is quite noticeable! Plants haven't complained but.


----------



## shannigan (Jun 1, 2015)

nufc1 said:


> Quick question, is the basket pressurised (does it have a single hole im it when you hold it up to the light) as i briefly used these and it's very hard to knock out the pucks!


No it's an unpressurised basket. I knocked it out immediately this morning and it dropped out no problem.


----------



## shannigan (Jun 1, 2015)

Vieux Clou said:


> Hitting the bin from all the way across the kitchen must take a bit of skill. Kudos.


It's a lot of fun, too


----------

