Capresso FrothXpress Automatic Milk Frother, Black

I have had the FrothXpress for over a year and use it almost every day. It is an excellent way to produce good milk froth so long as a few simple rules are followed.Use cold milk that is preferably fat free or low fat as that produces the best froth. I use one of the fortified skim milks because they taste like real milk. No need to suffer using plain skim milk if you do not like the taste. A useful suggestion is that you can vary the temperature of the milk froth by turning the froth knob/handle from the horizontal (straight pass through) position, which allows maximum milk flow, to off-horizontal, which proportionally mixes more steam to milk and therefore increases the temperature of the end product. The exact amount of adjustment will vary with personal taste, but as maximum milk flow also produces the coolest froth--which cools down your cappuccino--it is a good technique to learn.It is important to clean the machine within 30-60 minutes of use. Otherwise you will get milk deposits inside the frother assembly that will interfere with the operation of the frother and result in poor foam.The easiest way I have found to clean the frother is to run a cup of lukewarm water through the device. Many times you do not even have to take the various pieces of the frother assembly apart if you perform this water cleaning regularly and soon after use. It is not complicated to remove the frother assembly, break it into its constituent parts and let them soak in soapy water for a little while before running clean water through each part to remove any traces of soap. I do not recommend using overly hot water as it will tend to set the milk solids and make them more difficult to remove. The frother is sensitive to foreign material in its plumbing and if not cleaned properly after each use, the accumulated milk solids will seriously degrade the performance of the unit. If you ever get just hot milk but no froth, the cause will be either, (1) dirty frother parts or, (2) improper mating of the frother assembly where the machine cannot create enough vacuum to pull the milk through the tubing properly.Every 4-6 months, I take apart the frother assembly, including the main steam outlet piece, (using the included plastic tool), and let them sit overnight in a 1:1 water/white vinegar mixture to descale and clean them. I clean the internals at the same time by following the recommendations in the User Manual and using the same vinegar mixture in the steam water holder to descale the heating block as well. This restores the machine to full power. Nevertheless, other than letting the pieces sit in the descaling mixture overnight, the whole process takes 30 minutes or less and is straightforward.All in all, this machine does what it claims and does it well with a minimum of hassle. I would buy this same model again as I have yet to find anything better on the market and it is a lot less money than the cappuccino auto-frother included on the higher-end Capresso automatics and the froth produced is every bit as good.

I had high hopes for this one. At first it produced one good cup of frothy milk. Next time just hot milk and a mess. no matter what type of milk we tried or how we adjusted the nozzle, we just got hot watery milk.I was just outside the amazon return period so contacted Capresso. Excellent support, so this review is not based on that, simply the product itself. They sent me a new base unit. same result so they sent me a new nozzle, same result. The thing just doesnt work. Poor design, time to go back to the drawing board!!!Capresso won't refund me because I purchased it form Amazon. Amazon however after hearing the whole story refunded me despite the 2 moth time gsp...Amazon you ROCK!!

I have had nothing but trouble with all the expreso machine frothers....I bought this and just as quick as now you get real froth...unreal....and easy to keep clean....the milk container may apear cheap, but is easy to store in fridge....I am still trying out the ajustment to get max. froth...I make froth no less then 20 imes a day, so I hope this continues to marvel me, this machine just saved me from buying another high dollar machine...I only use my high dollar machine for the shots and this for froth...its the best so far..sometimes I get more milk then froth, may be just small ajustment needed 9 out 10 are perfect.

First, I have had this machine for about 6 months, so I have had time to fully assess its performance. I love, love, love this machine. I make Chai Tea Lattes every morning, and this machine makes perfect steamed and/or frothed milk in seconds.I had some confusion when I first got the machine, so I called the company ([...]), and they are super friendly and helpful, and got me going using the machine correctly, and I've been happy with it ever since.I will say that the machine has a few quirks that you want to know about so you can properly use the machine. If your machine isn't working correctly, here are some tips and tricks I've learned along the way:1) If you push down on the button and nothing happens, make sure the nozzle is screwed all the way in and pushed all the way up. They have a safety mechanism that makes sure that little kids don't inadvertently press the button and burn themselves with the steam. You may need to push the nozzle up after EVERY time you press the button. If pushing the silver nozzle upwards doesn't seem to do the trick, then pull off the silver nozzle, and make sure the black nozzle underneath is screwed in tightly.2) If you push down on the button and there is a deep noise but nothing is happening, make sure you have water in the canister on the side. You need water to make steam! :-)3) If you push down on the button and there is a normal noise, but little or no milk is coming through, make sure your connections to the source milk container are all tight. I do not use the supplied milk container and instead use the tubes that pull milk out of a single cup. Everything needs to be connected tightly to enable the suction. Also make sure the "knob" is parallel with the joint. If it's turned even slightly, it will make more froth, and if it's turned too much, there won't be enough air to create the suction.4) Put a paper towel or napkin over the cup receiving the milk. If your steamed/frothed milk is going to come close to the top of the receiving cup, you may want to put a napkin or paper towel around the top of the cup before you start. This prevents the splattering that happens during the last 6-8 seconds after you release the button.5) Clean the milk each time. I pull off the silver nozzle and assembly and rinse it with warm water after every session of use. Calcified milk is not easy to clean. 20 seconds to rinse everything that milk runs through is simple and easy. Also, I soak everything in vinegar every now and then to make sure everything's really clean.I hope these tips help make your experience using this wonderful machine even better!