Careful 'n Selective
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Last year I invested in our first Keurig coffee maker, and I chose the K15 for individual servings. This worked out so well that a few months later, I bought another for my office and I loved my second Keurig as much as I loved the first one. Then last winter I decided to purchase another Keurig, only a different model that would accommodate several servings.
I bought the K55 model because it has various featured options. This includes offering the choice for different hot beverages without the extra step to refill the tank each time with water, and this is due to the larger 48 oz. water reservoir. In addition, this enables us to make a variety of hot beverages in rapid succession, within a few seconds instead of waiting for all the water to reheat. Furthermore, the Keurig K55 offers a personal ‘custom tailored’ brew by letting us determine the strength of our coffee, and we have a choice of three. The smallest amount for a 6 oz. provides the strongest brew and the other two servings are an 8 and 10 oz.
I like strong coffee, or sometimes I like to have flavored coffee, and my sister-in-law likes the same coffee that I do. My husband prefers a milder brew, and he never drinks flavored coffee. My son drinks tea, and likes to try different varieties and my grandson loves sampling different selections of hot chocolate.
The Keurig K55 has a fast set-up, with easy to follow and systematic directions from the manual. It offers us a variety ways to make coffee, tea or just to heat water and all without any major modifications, because it just goes from one task to another.
Below are some of the general features, and all are well designed and ‘user friendly’.
CONTROL PANEL:
All the controls are on the top right of the coffee maker and I like the flat slope surface that slightly slants down toward my eye level, and therefore, I don’t need to step on my tiptoes to read the buttons.
On the panel, there are 5 press buttons and each one has an LED light to reduce ‘user error’.
Power: Green LED
Auto Off: Green LED - (this is the automatic timer and when activated will automatically power off after 2 hours).
3 Brew Size Servings – corresponding size to the serving size and each with a Blue LED
a. Cup Size - yields 6 oz. – which will provide the strongest brew
b. Small Mug - produces 8 oz.
c. Large Mug – dispenses 10 oz.
Aside from the 5 press buttons to regulate the Keurig coffee maker, there are 3 other LED light indicators.
1. Add Water – a Blue LED will light up
If there is not enough water, the coffee maker will not work, therefore I consider this indicator as a safety feature, as well as a resolution to a possible ‘user error’.
2. Descale – will light up with a Red LED light
This is another handy feature, to indicate necessary cleaning maintenance.
3. Heating – while the water is heating, a red LED powers on, and then powers off when the water is hot and ready for a brew.
WATER RESERVOIR:
Included with the Keurig K55 is a Charcoal Water filter Cartridge Kit with 2 charcoal filters. This will eliminate the unwanted chemical taste that is in some water systems, and good tasting water is essential for a delicious cup of coffee. The recommended life span for each charcoal filter is approximately 2 months or 60 ‘full-tank’ refills. There are several selections for Replacement Charcoal Filter-Pods available on Amazon.com.
The water reservoir attached to the left side is easy to remove with a slight lift up and outward motion. It fits inside a base and the tank is easy to remove and replace without any struggle. Alternatively, remove the reservoir tank cover, and pour water in from a bottle or a container.
DRIP TRAY:
This is much more than ‘just a drip tray’, under the cover is a 1” deep receptacle that will accommodate 8 oz. of a liquid spillover. Therefore, if the user makes an error and pushes the wrong brew amount for a smaller cup, this will save the kitchen counters and the floor from a major flood.
In addition, this coffee maker will accommodate my 7 ¼” coffee thermos by sliding the drip tray out from bottom base, and I can have my thermos filled when placed on the bottom flat tray base.
THE KEURIG K55 ACCOMMODATES REUSABLE COFFEE FILTERS:
My favorite coffee is from fresh beans that I grind myself, and therefore it’s important to me that a coffee maker will accommodate a reusable filter. The K-Cup pod holder on the K55 is very easy to remove and it literally takes less than 10 seconds. Just tap the bottom of the pod holder with a finger and the K-Cup holder slides out with ease. The reusable K-cup filter then slides in place within the groove, and works with perfection for a delicious cup of fresh ground beans, or any ground coffee.
The reusable coffer pod filter that I use is the Keurig My K-Cup Reusable Coffee Filter (Single) – and this is compatible with the Keurig K55 model.
I purchased this from Amazon last spring, and in addition, I use this same filter with my Keurig K15.
https://www.amazon.com/Keurig-5048-Reusable-Coffee-Filter/dp/B000DLB2FI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1486296530&sr=8-1&keywords=Keurig+My+K-Cup+Reusable+Coffee+Filter+%28Single%29
In conclusion, the Keurig K55 is a well thought-out designed coffee maker, with user-friendly features. This machine comes with a ‘Charcoal Water Filter Cartridge Kit and 2 charcoal pod filters, which guarantees excellent coffee, even though we have ‘hard water’ (which tastes awful) in our water system. In addition, I love that Keurig does NOT use a breakable glass carafe, which was the thing that broke most often with our previous coffee makers.
Kristin B.
