Buying Zojirushi EC-BD15 Fresh Brew Thermal Carafe Coffee Maker

We needed to replace our older, regular glass carafe drip coffee maker (a Krupps) after it seemed to be making the coffee weaker and weaker (even after cleaning). I looked around at various reviews and liked the idea of the "thermal carafe" so the coffee wouldn't continue to "cook" on the hot plate as it does with the glass carafe variety of coffee maker. The Zojirushi had some nice reviews and the price on Amazon seemed to be good. We looked at some of the Bunn models which were also nicely rated, but they were on the expensive side.

Packaging - comes well packed in a VERY LARGE box - Amazon box on the outside, Zojirushi box on the inside.

First Use - We washed it well and then ran through a regular water pot to get it well cleaned. The one problem we discovered was that the filters we had would not fit this (it uses #3 cone shaoed filters). No filters came with the machine... so we used (gasp) a paper towel filter! Amazingly enough, the coffee tasted fine. Nicely hot, well brewed, and on the medium-strong side - which we like.

Additional Uses - After obtaining the correct filters, we have continued to use the Zojirushi daily and have been very happy with it. Weekdays, we do about 3/4 of a pot and on weekends, a full pot. The carafe keeps the coffee hot for several hours (at hour #3 it starts to degrade quickly from a temp perspective) and it tastes as if it was just brewed. The timer feature works well (i.e., set it to start right before you wake up).

Desgin - larger, but not taller than our older cofee maker, it fits well under a typical kitchen cabinet. The "clock/timer" is on the side, so if you have Zojirushi facing forward, you will not see the clock. You can pull the carafe out during brewing and pour yourself a cup without spilling or bubbling over.

Any negatives? I guess I would say we need to get used to not seeing how much coffee is left in the carafe since it is stainless steel (as opposed to glass). This is a very small negative due to the other benefits I desribed above with the carafe. The other negative is that it only brews 1.5 liters (or around 10 cups). This is typical of the thermal makers - so you lose 2 cups from the "normal" 12 cup coffee maker we were used to. Again, a small negative, but if you count on 12 cups each time...

Amazon has this for a much lower price than some other brick and mortar retailers, so I would say it is a very good deal for the price.

Good luck!Get more detail about Zojirushi EC-BD15 Fresh Brew Thermal Carafe Coffee Maker.