imsolidstate

Bryon says:

My Keurig only brews half of what it is suppose to. I can also here water flowing back into the reservoir when it is brewing. I have de-scaled it twice and still doesn’t work properly. What is next?

June Collins says:

Bryon, did you try brewing without the K cup in it? If so, did it put out the appropriate amount of water? If it did, then the problem is probably the bottom puncturing pin not piercing the k cup properly. I fixed mine when I found that filter material was wrapped around the pin that is supposed to puncture the bottom. (I guess the K cups have filter liners maybe?)I pushed the K cup holder up out of the machine so that I could more easily put my fingers down around the pin and carefully cleaned it off. Mine is now brewing perfectly.

Ronald Bowman says:

People having extreme trouble with clogging (less-than-full-cups or no flow) probably live at well above sea-level elevations — much of the U.S., that is. While such things as fineness of grind are involved, the main issue is “simply” pressurized K-cups, which are VERY likely at altitudes well above sea level. My experience and testing prove this beyond reasonable doubt. Here is my saga, first posted elsewhere:

All these reports of unclogging Keurig K-cup brewers by slapping them are amusing – but also a bit creepy. Do you enjoy beating up your non-functional brewers? I can understand that – it is highly irritating to have the expensive machines fail; often just when you need a jolt to start your day. But, surely, it is better to prevent these clogs than to have to frequently resort to violent maneuvers to unclog the machine’s plumbing.

I’ve written several posts that clearly reveal how most clogs occur. And, it is easy to prevent them – most of them, at the very least. Rehash: I bought my Mr. Coffee version of the Keurig machine about 3 months ago – along with a variety of K-cups. It promptly failed – again and again, as I repeatedly and thoroughly cleaned the upper and lower needles. Typically, the machine would clog within no more than a few brews – incredible! I was going to return it and foist off my supply of K-cups on anyone who would take them. But, I was intrigued about why my experience was so extreme. Was it just my specific machine? Should I even try another one? Being a retired scientist, I take such questions as a challenge. There must be some reason/reasons for my outstandingly bad experience. And, there were two hints as to why I was having trouble: Keurig does not recommend use above 6000 ft elevations; and my K-cups all showed tightly-bulged lids! My cups were evidently all filled and sealed at low elevations (atmospheric pressure at sea level is roughly 15 pounds per square inch, psi) while I live at 7000 ft, where atmospheric pressure is about 12 psi – so, 3 PSI excess pressure is what I can expect inside my K-cups! (at least most of them – a few seem to have lost pressure, over time). And, much of the U.S. is above 2000 ft, meaning that most of us can expect very substantially pressurized K-cups. So what? You might ask. Well, pressures of 1 psi and above are NOT small. Three psi leads to about 5 pounds total outward force on the 1.5 square-inch lid! (A bowling ball weighs about 10 pounds.) For other comparisons, see
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orders_of_magnitude_(pressure)
This reference shows a maximum pressure from a normal person’s lungs is about 1.4 psi (a few people can manage twice that). This is the “stalled” (closed-lips) pressure – which is much more than the moving-air (pursed lips) pressures attainable. Do you doubt that you can strongly blow dry, ground coffee vigorously around with pursed lips? — or by an opened party-balloon neck? (Party balloons usually have less than 1 psi pressure, above atmospheric). You can definitely “blast” these particles around! – with substantially less pressure than K-cups often have inside them! And, for an instant (long enough!), that is what happens when you close the “clamshell” and pierce a typical K-cup – coffee is puffed out of the cup – into the piercing needle and/or immediate surrounds. (As pointed out by another person here, Rob, the lower needle does not pass through the filter inside the cup – it enters to the side, instead. Look at a spent cup – the lower needle hole is at the outer part of the cup — and taking some spent cups apart showed the filters had not been pierced! So it is the upper needle that is mainly the source of escaped coffee powder). To make matters worse, the Keurig machines withdraw excess hot liquid — and, pretty surely, some of the escaped particles — back into the machine as part of the final phase of the brewing cycle.

You might think the above is merely theory, but here is some experimental proof. And, BTW, Keurig actually suggests piercing the K-cups before using them! This is easily done by pushing (using your thumbs on opposing sides of the cup) down onto the lower needle before closing the “clamshell”. Since the lower needle passes outside of the filter, few if any coffee particles will escape in the “puff” of gas that de-pressurizes the cup. Then, when the upper needle is lowered to puncture the lid, not so many coffee particles will escape (there is a soft gasket that seals the upper needle to the K-cup lid as the needle finishes its penetration). Proof of technique: when I started using it, my very severe clogging problems CEASED immediately and have not returned during more than 200 brews (not even a half-dozen brews were possible before using the puncture-first technique – even 1 or 2 brews were sometimes enough to achieve a clog)!

Additional input: It makes sense that some K-cups will have courser particles than others – making clogging more likely. I opened a few K-cup brands and examined the coffee particles. I spread out the particles and looked at them with a magnifier – also felt them between pinched fingers – and also observed how much passed through a fine-screen mesh. Here is what I found: (1 is coursest grind, 3 is finest)

Kirkland (Costco) Pacific Extra Bold — 1
Green Mountain “Half-Caff – 1
Newman’s Own Bold – 2
Kroger’s 100% Columbian – 2
Simple Truth Organic Columbian (a premium Kroger brand) (medium roast) – 3

My initial, severe clogging problems were with the Kirkland and Green Mountain varieties, but now these also have not given me ANY problems with clogging, despite my 7000 ft elevation. In passing, I like the Simple Truth brand best! – not “bold” (actually means “burnt”!) just very fragrant and flavorful. I suspect the finer grind might allow better extraction of the flavorful oils, given the quick-brew design of the Keurig machines.

However, if you like to spank your Keurig, go right ahead and let it get clogged. I’m a liberal and would not like to deny you any kinky pleasure you desire. 

Carole A says:

My needle punch assembly has cracked and broken off on the top. Is there somewhere I can send my keurig to be repaired. I’m having trouble finding a parts manual an/or parts sales for my keurig. I would try to repair it myself if I could order the replacement part.

Helen says:

After reading some of the above postings, I’m beginning to believe that slow output is due to the K-Cup and not necessarily the Keurig. Despite regular cleaning our Keurig clearly lacks pressure. I have just spent nearly four hours pumping through reservoirs full. Pressure was great. Immediately I inserted a Timothy’s K-Cup and was disappointed to see that my efforts had not been rewarded – back to very, very slow. I tried pressing down the cup with thumbs on either side as one poster recommended, This improved the speed but only briefly. Is the manufacturer not looking into this apparent problem with the k-CUPS ?

Steve says:

Need lower check valve. Where can I find parts?

Bill Van says:

I am also in need of a lower 90 degree check valve . The plastic on mine has a crack that leaks when water hot . Is there any place where I can purchase one of these . I have seen straight through ones but plumbing is too confined so need one that has outlet 90 degrees to the supply. Can send pictures if needed .

Jim says:

The inlet screen on my Keurig was covered with some sort of clear lube, like o-ring grease. No amount of cleaning would clear it and there is no apparent way to remove the screen for cleaning. I stabbed a hole in the screen with a knife and it now fills the cup as it should.