PLEASE forgive me for chiming in where I do not belong, but don't know what else to do. I am unable to post, and really need help. I type in my question, and don't know where to do from there, but whatever I do - nothing works. H E L P !

Happy to help, but you are posting I see your post. I am going to flag your post so that a mod sees it and will get in touch with you and give you technical help. Good luck!

I think she means starting a post, Lucille. She said when she typed in her question. I would a answer her, but I haven't been able to either. I know I did it before, but don't remember how.

A stove perculator....that is one that sits on a burner, right?

To answer your question about tea. I wouldn't recommend using a percolator for making tea. The temperature for percolator is set differently which is not suitable for steeping tea. Besides, different tea requires different water temperature for steeping. Think of it this way, one is a bean and the other is a leaf. If you were to cook beans vs leaf veggies, would you cook them in the same temperature and length of time?

You can use your percolator to heat water for tea but you should not use it to make coffee and heat water for tea. The inside of the percolator will take on the taste of the coffee making the tea taste off. Tea is better if it is steeped in something other than metal.

While I have seen suggestions for making large amounts of tea in a percolator the perking part is removed and the pot is used only for tea. I used to go camping and only had one percolator and eventually I switched to heating water in another pot rather than heating water in the percolator where I made coffee as both had an off taste and flavor.

Percolated coffee can taste burned and boiled (which it is), it's why the use of these things has plummeted. If you want good tasting and stronger coffee, buy good coffee that's ground for your order (even if in a store) and make it using either a French Press or a pour over filter. Use good quality water and a stovetop or electric tea kettle that can bring water to a boil.

Regardless how coffee is made, water temperature and extraction are key to a good cup. A percolated coffee is most often too hot and over extracted, making it bitter.

It's going to be a challenge to make good tasting coffee with a stove top percolator. Good luck!

French Press is the best!

I started a new thread asking people how they actually made their coffee and why. I decided that would provide more and better information because I can listen to people's actual personal preferences.

@dandy Hi there! Please shoot us a note through help.houzz.com and include your browser information and version as well as operating system. (Or if you are using an app, your device, operating system and app version). Also, if you are not on the latest versions of any of those things, please update! That may resolve your issue.

Stove top or campfire percolated coffee is ok in a pinch, but not something I'd want to drink on a regular basis.

This is what we've used when the necessity arose.

A moka makes good strong coffee, but they're fiddly to use: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moka_pot

Moka's can make an excellent tasting cup but finding the right grind and bean does take a lot of fiddling. Unless you have one of the 6-12 cup sized pots forget about having a regular size cup of coffee unless you add milk and other stuff as the two person size barely makes two ounces of coffee after the moisture is absorbed in the grounds.

I have a Bialetti that I use occasionally. They're not intended to produce a "regular size cup of coffee" but rather a serving of "espresso". One such serving, or "cup", is typically a few fluid ounces. Mine is smaller but I'd guess a "6 cup" Bialetti produces 12 ounces or so, which would be espresso for 6.

These gizmos are and have always been intended to be a poor man's espresso machine. Cheap and operating at low pressure but usable on a stove-top. I wouldn't call what they produce to be espresso, neither regular coffee. Something in the middle, it's what you get when you make coffee with a slightly higher than normal ratio of coffee to water and with a little pressure. Strong but not bitter (if you use the right coffee).

Moka makers were never intended to make espresso but to make Italian style coffee which is a different type including the proper grind size. Not as strong as espresso but suitable for drinking with things like grappa. I used to use the big one to make a really strong large cup of coffee. Some people that have never used one and did not know any better have asked me if it made coffee extract when they saw how little it produced.

Anyone interesting in coffee and wanting to see some interesting coffee drinks might find the live feed from the US Coffee Championships in Denver this weekend of interest. One of the local people came in either third or fourth two years ago. I will admit some of the concoctions would not be to my taste. https://www.uscoffeechampionships.org/watch-online/

My experience in Italy is that the Bialetti things are used exclusively in homes without espresso makers. They're a cheaper approximation, not an alternative used some times and not others. These days, many homes (except the most modest ones) and certainly every bar, cafe and restaurant has an espresso machine used for making "coffee" with or without grappa.

I don’t drink coffee. DH prefers coffee in an electric percolator. A few years back he wanted to try one. I bought a few very cheaply at garage sales and he tried them all and ended up liking a Farberware the best because it was the hottest. I noticed after it’s brewed he pours it into a thermal carafe so it doesn’t burn. I recent,y gave my daughter a French press. She mentioned she was going to buy one and I told her I bought one after Christmas sometime at Target for $4 instead of $40. I had thought about fiddling with tea in it but never did. She loves the French press. I have an iced tea maker for iced tea. I make a pitcher 2-3 times a week.