While you can easily find cheap four cup coffee makers, you sometimes need to make a little sacrifice both in the quality of the coffee machine and the taste of the coffee it makes. So if you don?t want to end up disappointed of your purchase, better go for more expensive yet high quality larger brewers.
Here are some of the common problems you?ll encounter with cheaper, substandard alternatives:
1. Pillage
This is among the most common problems people encounter with their coffee machines. Sometimes, the spout is poorly designed in such a way that the coffee spills all over the bench or on the table when you are trying to pour a cup. With small spouts, like the ones in most 4 cup coffee makers, the only thing you can do to avoid spillage is to simply pour more slowly and carefully. If you think you can?t avoid spills, then pour a cup in your sink.
2. Moisture
There are also instances when the coffee basket retains so much moisture which results in moisture dripping on the hot plate after the carafe is removed. While this is not much of a problem, it can be annoying on your part since this means extra cleaning.
3. Delay brew feature
Some low-quality four cup coffee makers have delay brew feature that you can set up hours before your drinking time. Others may have defective timer, so you better be careful in choosing the unit you?ll buy.
4. Durability issues
Since they are cheaper, substandard coffee makers are just not ready for serious everyday use. So if you think you will be using the brewer more than once a day, you really need to invest in a larger and better model. You can also opt to add smaller amount of water, which helps solve your problems with the quality of the coffee.
5. Quantity of brewed coffee
You must also be aware that the cup sizes stated by the manufacturers are sometimes smaller than the average cup of coffee. So don?t expect that a 4-cup coffee maker will really make the amount its name implies.
Aside from being compact, 4-cup coffee makers also come stylish. They are ideal for students staying in dormitories, as well as for families with three to four members. Depending on the design you choose, this type of coffee maker may look good on small kitchen countertops or even on small bench tops. However, if you?re really serious about how your coffee tastes, then cheaper models are a big NO. Why? Simply because the coffee brewed from such second-rate machines usually tastes like plastic or a little metallic.
While it can be difficult on your part to find out if the unit is durable or not or if the extra features will really work the way they should or as the manufacturer claims, you can still do something to avoid purchasing inferior units. It pays a lot to do a little research first on the brand and types of coffee makers that will fit your needs and your budget. In buying coffee makers, you get what you pay for. So if you want quality unit, you must be willing to spend a good amount of money for it.