If you’re a regular coffee drinker, the process of coffee seems obvious: add hot water to ground coffee beans, and boom, you’re done. A coffeemaker is responsible for this magic, but most people take it for granted. Well, haven’t you ever wondered how does a coffee maker work?
Let’s take a quick look at what a coffee maker is all about!
The Components of a Coffeemaker
Modern technology is wonderful, isn’t it? With a few simple tasks, our coffee comes out in no time, tasty and ready to help us power through the day. But how does a coffee maker work, taking regular water and convert it into an pep-giving beverage?
Well, I hate to break it to you, but a coffeemaker’s inner-working don’t really have much a smartphone or a new Tesla. Essentially, a typical coffeemaker contains:
- A power switch (sometimes linked with programmable circuitry to automatically brew your coffee)
- A heating element to bring the water to the correct temperature to put the coffee in solution with water
- A warming plate keep your pot brewed coffee at the right temperature,
- A refillable reservoir for holding water
- A rubber tube for transferring heated water to be dripped through the grounds
- A glass carafe (or pot) to catch the final product
Well, those are the components that help us gain some insight, but it still doesn’t answer the question: “How does a coffee maker work? Well… how does it work?
The Process
When making a pot of coffee, the first thing any person does is fill the chamber with water. If you take a look inside, you’ll notice a piece of rubber tubing that stretches from the bottom of the chamber to the top. Some designs have this hidden, but the idea is the same: a tube sucks up water. At the bottom of the chamber, you’ll also see a hole.
When the coffeemaker is switched on, water is drawn by capillary action into the hole at the bottom. Simultaneously, electricity is drawn from your wall socket to the heating element, the warming plate, and the electronics (if included) of the coffeemaker. This water travels from the hole through a one-way valve into an aluminum tube that’s wrapped around the base of the warming plate. The aluminum tube simultaneously warms the water and keeps the coffee pot warm, tempering the glass and keeping the coffee warm later on.
After making its way around the heating element through the aluminum tube, the water is “sucked” up by the rubber hose (hot things rise, after all). The water then passes through the coffee grounds, which are held in place by a coffee filter. Finally, the coffee-water mixture falls into the pot/carafe. Do you smell that? Coffee’s ready!
Of course as a safety measure, the internal electronics or an analog reed switch shut off the power if the heating element draws too much current and starts to overheat.
That basically covers how does a coffee maker work. Everything else on a coffeemaker is engineering and frills, but all coffeemakers are built from this simple premise.
It’s That Simple, Huh?[easyazon_image align=”right” height=”350″ identifier=”B0008JIW8U” locale=”US” src=”http://coffeemakersparadise.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/41dOd8gI5L.jpg” tag=”cafe049-20″ width=”220″]
So, how does a coffee maker work? That basically answer our question, right? Well, not all coffeemakers are created equal. Some can be ridiculously expensive, laying feature after feature when all we want is a simple cup of coffee.
If you’re looking for uncomplicated java, try out the [easyazon_link identifier=”B0008JIW8U” locale=”US” tag=”cafe049-20″]Mr. Coffee Coffeemaker[/easyazon_link]. Even its name is uncomplicated and to the point—we’ve got things to do after all!
[easyazon_image align=”left” height=”250″ identifier=”B00005MF9C” locale=”US” src=”http://coffeemakersparadise.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/41I2BaKy2kxL.jpg” tag=”cafe049-20″ width=”250″]If you’re looking for one feature that fits your on-the-go life, then we recommend a coffeemaker with a built-in carafe that you can take with you once your coffee is ready. The [easyazon_link identifier=”B00005MF9C” locale=”US” tag=”cafe049-20″]Black & Decker Brew ‘n Go Coffeemaker[/easyazon_link] is an excellent choice for this option.Isn’t that a wonderful and efficient feature that could fit in all of our lives? Who needs more cups for the dishwasher, anyways?
Conclusion
Now, when someone asks you, “how does a coffee maker work?” you’ll not only know, but be a hit with your family over breakfast. And what better way to explain the inner working of a coffeemaker than over a piping cup of joe?
