Gamvend Posted January 15, 2014 Share Posted January 15, 2014 Hi Guys, So I have my first Coffee Vending Machines. An AP 213 Freeze dried and an AP223 fresh brewed. Can I use Folgers Freeze dried coffee from wholesale club? Can I use regular sugar? What kind of hot chocolate is the best? Coffeemate Coffee cream? Is the Expresso just a dark roast freeze dried? French Vanilla cappuccino from Vistar? What am I doing? Thanks, Justin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZVendor Posted January 15, 2014 Share Posted January 15, 2014 It sounds like your freeze dried 213 is a 213FDX which has three canisters for coffee. You can get all the products you need from Vistar and I would recommend that with the exception of the sugar. You want to use pure cane sugar as it dissolves quicker and your best price for 5 lb bags is a grocery store. The rest of what you need you should just get from Vistar as they will have product formulated for coffee vending machines and they will be in good size portion bags. You can choose from several lines of products. You don't need name brand products except perhaps for the coffee, depending on how discriminating your coffee drinkers will be. The FDX needs regular, decaf and dark roast coffees, then two or three flavored solubles like french vanilla (Superior brand used to be the best), sugar, creamer (Superior again), hot chocolate (Kayo brand is the best) and possibly sugar substitute (but I don't think the FDX has a canister for that). Get your cups from Vistar too and stick to one brand when choosing cups. If you're going to run two cup sizes, use 8.25 oz and 12 oz. You don't want to change cup manufacturers or item numbers because once your cup ring is set up you don't want to have to readjust it for another brand of cup. Follow the same guidelines for the fresh brew 213 except for using ground coffee in it. Good luck with the machines. I hope they will make you good money. The margins on coffee are very good so with some volume you should make money. Remember to always be on the lookout for signs of water leaks, especially under the tank. A leaking valve can short out the heaters and generally make a mess of the machine if overlooked. Keep the machine clean and uncluttered so it looks good when you open the door and so you can immediately spot water leaks. If you need any parts for these machines, I keep them in stock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gamvend Posted January 16, 2014 Author Share Posted January 16, 2014 Thank you for your help I appreciate it and always get a lot from reading your advice. I am having a heck of a time finding Mocha, Latte and dark roast freeze dried. Vistar has mocha and latte listed but only as a special order item. Maybe they stopped carrying them do to the reduction in popularity of these machines? Do I have to order this as a special order or is there somewhere else I can find these? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walta Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 You can buy sugar at the store. Get the rest from a vending supplier. One of my customers bought no name hot chocolate from Jones tasted terrible turns out coco is the 13th item in the ingredients list. Get Kayo brand Coco is number 3 item. Do not fill the hoppers to the top. As the product absorbs moisture from the air and will cake up in the hopper. Try to keep the hoppers at a 2 week supply. Walta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZVendor Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 Thank you for your help I appreciate it and always get a lot from reading your advice. I am having a heck of a time finding Mocha, Latte and dark roast freeze dried. Vistar has mocha and latte listed but only as a special order item. Maybe they stopped carrying them do to the reduction in popularity of these machines? Do I have to order this as a special order or is there somewhere else I can find these? Look through Vistar's entire list of Hot Beverage products and look at each brand name to see if they have what you need in a different brand. Are you looking for a mocha and latte mix similar to french vanilla to be used as a whipped selection? Are you aware that the mocha selection on your machine is a combination of 3/4 coffee and 1/4 hot chocolate and not a separate product? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrCorey Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 umm, Only use supplies made for a coffee machine. otherwise you will get jams and incomplete vends. they are made a certain way for the machines. finess of ground for weight. otherwise the product weights too much and don't drop in the time allotted. and/or don't mix well in the whipper. Find a AP 213 manual and READ it. also, the recipies might be off, did it come from your area? test vend each item and TRY it. I had a ap 213 that came from the Midwest, and no one liked the taste of the drinks, I had to learn to reprogram them all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mistah Mike Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 213's are a great machine as long as its kept clean. We have dozens of these in service and I think I have fixed almost every problem they can have over the years. Any questions just ask! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrCorey Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 http://www.automaticproducts.com/PDFS/213_Service_Manual.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gamvend Posted January 20, 2014 Author Share Posted January 20, 2014 Thanks for the help. I appreciate it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.