# Upgrades for Mara X



## TomX (Jan 4, 2021)

Greetings Lelit fans. I'm a new member to the forum and have had my Mara X w/ Eureka Specialita for a month now and absolutely love the results from these two machines.

I would like to add a bottomless portafilter and maybe a VST basket to help optimize my pulls (plus I love being able to see the extraction happening).

I'm looking at the ECM bottomless portafilter: https://www.ecm.de/en/products/details/product/Product/Details/gran-crema-filtertraeger/. Would those in the know be able to tell me if this would be a good match for the Mara X? The Lelit branded one would be fine too but I prefer the look of the ECM.

I am also considering a ridgeless 18gram VST basket.

Thanks for your input!

Tom


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## MediumRoastSteam (Jul 7, 2015)

TomX said:


> Greetings Lelit fans. I'm a new member to the forum and have had my Mara X w/ Eureka Specialita for a month now and absolutely love the results from these two machines.
> 
> I would like to add a bottomless portafilter and maybe a VST basket to help optimize my pulls (plus I love being able to see the extraction happening).
> 
> ...


 Hi Tom. Both will fit and will work just fine.


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## ChrisKon (Nov 18, 2020)

@TomX I got the exact same setup at more or less the same time as you, great set up innit!!! Let me know how you get on with your VST basket as i've been considering it however I just splashed on a Osmio Zero water system. Highly recommend looking into the water you feed Lelita...


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## TomX (Jan 4, 2021)

@ChrisKon Nice! I looked up the Osmio, and it looks like a very nice product. I'm just using tap water and the Lelit resin filter for now. Do you think it would be a big difference to use RO water?

After further research, the ECM portafilter I was looking at seems to have some negative reviews about how it feels in the hand (manufacturing tolerances for the seam between the black plastic and the stainless steel don't seem to be very smooth) so I may actually just go for the Lelit one after all. If I can get ahold of the wooden kit, I could get the wooden bottomless portafilter to complete the look. TBD...


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## DavecUK (Aug 6, 2013)

@TomX



TomX said:


> @ChrisKon Nice! I looked up the Osmio, and it looks like a very nice product. I'm just using tap water and the Lelit resin filter for now. Do you think it would be a big difference to use RO water?
> 
> After further research, the ECM portafilter I was looking at seems to have some negative reviews about how it feels in the hand (manufacturing tolerances for the seam between the black plastic and the stainless steel don't seem to be very smooth) so I may actually just go for the Lelit one after all. If I can get ahold of the wooden kit, I could get the wooden bottomless portafilter to complete the look. TBD...


 Huge difference in the long term...and very convenient. If you do go for one, make sure you get the special forum offer!

https://www.coffeeforums.co.uk/topic/55732-osmio-zero-333-offer/?tab=comments&do=embed&comment=789713&embedComment=789713&embedDo=findComment#comment-789713


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## ChrisKon (Nov 18, 2020)

TomX said:


> Do you think it would be a big difference to use RO water?


 Definitely. Most issues that arise with coffee machines come from the scale build up from water being used, and it can cause big problems.

Go on Thames website, type in your postcode and check the hardness of your tap water. Lelits water filters will soften the tap water but defintely not enough to avoid scale build up

I figured, i spent so much money on my setup, makes sense to look after my investment.



TomX said:


> so I may actually just go for the Lelit one after all


 I have lelits one and definitely does the job, no complaints here.


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## ChrisKon (Nov 18, 2020)

DavecUK said:


> @TomX
> 
> Huge difference in the long term...and very convenient. If you do go for one, make sure you get the special forum offer!
> 
> https://www.coffeeforums.co.uk/topic/55732-osmio-zero-333-offer/?tab=comments&do=embed&comment=789713&embedComment=789713&embedDo=findComment#comment-789713


 @TomX I utilised this offer, runs out at end of month


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## MediumRoastSteam (Jul 7, 2015)

@DavecUK - question for prospective owners: Should we run the Osmio with the remineralisation cartridge, or without it and add Sodium Bicarbonate ourselves or just without anything?


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## TomX (Jan 4, 2021)

@ChrisKon I'm actually in Canada and it looks like the Osmio is only available in the UK and Europe, But you got me wondering about the hardness of my water here in Toronto... Is there a standard measure for water hardness? And at what point does the in-built Lelit filter not work well anymore?


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## MediumRoastSteam (Jul 7, 2015)

TomX said:


> @ChrisKon I'm actually in Canada and it looks like the Osmio is only available in the UK and Europe, But you got me wondering about the hardness of my water here in Toronto... Is there a standard measure for water hardness? And at what point does the in-built Lelit filter not work well anymore?


 If you happen to have access to your tap water report from your local water authority, you can try and use Rob's calculator:

https://www.coffeeforums.co.uk/topic/53491-non-scaling-water-calculator/?tab=comments&do=embed&comment=761742&embedComment=761742&embedDo=findComment#comment-761742

ps: When reading or trying to understand water science, scaling, precipitation of solids, general hardness, alkalinity, etc, make sure that:

- You take a day off work;
- You are mildly caffeinated;
- You have no interruptions;
- You had a good night of sleep;
- You devote full attention.

😂

It's complex.


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## Doram (Oct 12, 2012)

MediumRoastSteam said:


> It's complex.


 You can say that again.


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## DavecUK (Aug 6, 2013)

MediumRoastSteam said:


> @DavecUK - question for prospective owners: Should we run the Osmio with the remineralisation cartridge, or without it and add Sodium Bicarbonate ourselves or just without anything?


 With it and decide whether you want to add bicarb or not.


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## TomX (Jan 4, 2021)

@MediumRoastSteam Thanks for that! I inputted my local details and got the following. Think I'll be okay with the Lelit filter or do I need something more?



pHs =

6.176649365

pHeq from Alkalinity =

7.39585636

LI =

1.219206994

New Langelier Index:

1.199135621


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## MediumRoastSteam (Jul 7, 2015)

TomX said:


> @MediumRoastSteam Thanks for that! I inputted my local details and got the following. Think I'll be okay with the Lelit filter or do I need something more?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 To be honest, I have no idea just based on those. There's another page on the spreadsheet for the hardness based on alkalinity values. There's also a link to Jim Schuman on the bottom of the first tab which is worth a read so you can draw your conclusions and explains the theory behind Rob's work. @Rob1 may know the answer.

ps: I told you it's complex. 😂


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## Rob1 (Apr 9, 2015)

MediumRoastSteam said:


> To be honest, I have no idea just based on those. There's another page on the spreadsheet for the hardness based on alkalinity values. There's also a link to Jim Schuman on the bottom of the first tab which is worth a read so you can draw your conclusions and explains the theory behind Rob's work. @Rob1 may know the answer.
> 
> ps: I told you it's complex. 😂


 On the very same page that bit was pulled from the "maximum non scaling hardness" is defined based on the alkalinity and whatever the temperature input is (e.g in my case 125c for the service boiler). There are explanations next to each result and next to each cell you can edit aside from the ones I didn't think needed explaining.

The LI numbers quoted above indicate scaling potential. It's not possible to tell if a filter will be enough without testing the water that has been put through the filter.


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