If, like me, you consider your coffee drinking as not just a way to get caffeine into your body, but as a hobby, you’ll be well aware that you end up accumulating a lot of different pieces of equipment. Pod coffee machines with special nests to store your pods, filter coffee machines with airtight storage for your grounds, grinders (hand-held or electric), portable coffee makers, espresso machines, milk frothers – not to mention all the different cups and mugs. It goes on and on and on.
There’s always something else though, isn’t there? Something you haven’t got, that no desperate relative hasn’t come across while searching for a Christmas present (let’s be honest, they never get it quite right do they, as lovely as their intentions are).
Well I have good news, for them and you, because a knock box is the type of thing that you might not have, but also something that you definitely should! There are plenty available though, so we have compiled this guide to help you decide which one is the best knock box for you.
What Is A Knock Box And Do I need One?
Before we get on to which specific knock box you need in your life, I suppose we should spend a minute or two establishing exactly why you need any knock box.
If you don’t have an espresso machine, one that uses coffee grounds rather than pods, then you don’t need to read on – a knock box is not something you need at this moment in time. However, if you do have an espresso machine, a knockbox will save you so much time and hassle that you are really missing a trick if you don’t get one.
We’ve all been there (I’m assuming the non-espresso machine folk have left us to it by now) – you’re just about to empty the coffee puck, full of moist, used coffee grounds and you realise you now have to traipse through the kitchen, dripping coffee as you go. Not only that, but you also end up whacking the portafilter on the side of the bin to get as much out as possible – I mean, who knows what sort of germs you are coming into contact with there.
That’s no way to do things – you need a knockbox. A dedicated container that you can keep right next to your espresso machine, ready to receive your used coffee grounds. Not only that, but keeping all of your grounds separate from the rest of your waste means that you are able to distribute them all over your garden – coffee grounds are wonderful for many different types of plants.
Our Top 8 Coffee Knock Boxes
A knockbox is undoubtedly something that you should have if you have an espresso machine -it will benefit the planet and your kitchen! So now that we have that settled, let us walk you through some of the best coffee knock boxes on the market so that you can pick the right one for you.
Sage Knock Box Mini Coffee Grind Bin
Let’s kick things off with an offering from one of the most revered kitchen appliance brands around, Sage – part of the Breville Group who have been making high-quality kitchen appliances out of Australia for over 80 years.
This is a great place to start our list of the best knockboxes because it is just a classic example. First of all, it has a lovely clean stainless steel finish to it, which both looks stylish and is incredibly functional in that it can easily be wiped down and is incredibly durable.
It’s a nice size as well. Measuring 11.5×11.5×12 centimetres, it is big enough for domestic use, but without being so big as to prove a problem to fit on to your kitchen worktop. With its look and size, it won’t look out of place in almost any kitchen.
The knock bar, across the middle of the opening on the top of the box, is removable. This means cleaning is so easy, you just need to take it out, wipe it clean and then replace. Job done.
We have put this at the top of our list because it is a great base for you to begin your search – compare all the others to this one and you won’t go far wrong. As a lower-to-mid range in terms of price, this is an excellent option.
Check The Latest Price Of Sage Knock Box Bin
back to menu ↑CUCINO® Knock Box
The next product on our list is this neat little box from German kitchen utensil manufacturers, Cucino.
There is plenty to like about this. First of all, it’s certainly big enough to cope with pretty much any domestic use. You will not be needing to empty this every time you use it, that’s for sure. Measuring 17cmx17cmx17cm, but in an oval shape, it is larger than the Sage product that we looked at above, but certainly isn’t large enough to cause a problem on your kitchen work surface – it should fit in nicely around your other appliances.
What is clever about this, is that there is an inside section within the aluminium housing which you can take out to empty and clean. This means you don’t have to lug the entire box out with you every time you empty it, but also, the inner section is dishwasher safe, so when it comes to cleaning it, you can just pop it straight into the dishwasher and go about your business!
There is also a rubber grip on the bottom of the box, which is great for when you’re really whacking the portafilter to get all the grounds out – you don’t want the box to be slipping away from you. As you would expect, the knock bar also comes off for cleaning.
This is around the upper-mid price range, but with the increased size and ability to take apart, it could well be the right knockbox for you.
Check The Latest Price Of The Cucino Knock Box
back to menu ↑Grindenstein Knock Out Box
Our next selection is the Grindenstein – the flagship product for Australian kitchen appliance inventors Dreamfarm, who have been innovating and creating handy gadgets since 2003.
The entire company was born out of the Grindenstein. It really was one of the first commercially available knock boxes for domestic use, and nearly 20 years later, we can confirm that it has stood the test of time!
I really like the smooth, curved shape of the opening at the top, it’s like a huge smile! The shiny black finish is great too, it really looks like a nice piece of equipment that would look great next to any coffee machine.
Or, should I say, on any coffee machine. The Grindenstein has been specially designed to fit on an espresso machine’s drip tray, meaning that it won’t take up any extra room on your work surface. It measures just 10.2×10.2×10.2 centimetres, so won’t have any trouble fitting in – although obviously this does mean that you may end up emptying it quite often.
On emptying though, a nice little touch from Dreamfarm is that you get a little booklet which details how to use coffee grinds as a natural fertiliser – it’s nothing that you couldn’t find on the internet, but it’s handy to have there.
This is one of the cheapest products that we’re looking at today, and while it is small, it does everything that you could possibly want from a coffee knock box.
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back to menu ↑De’Longhi DLSC059 Coffee Knock Box
Now time to look at a knock box from one of the most prolific coffee equipment producers in the world, Italian giants De’Longhi.
I’ll be honest with you, the main selling point of this product is its aesthetics. It looks great. The circular shape and the stainless steel finish give it a sense of style and class, while the large knock bar gives a certain no-nonsense toughness, which is quite reassuring in a product that you’re going to be smashing with a heavy piece of metal!
While the focus is on the looks, we should also note that it does a great job. It’s a little bigger than many of the other products that we’ve looked at today, measuring 14.3×11.3×15.5 centimetres, so while it may not fit onto the drip tray of your espresso machine, you will find that it won’t fill up too quickly.
My guess, though, is that if you like the look of the De’Longhi DLSC059 Coffee Knock Box, you’re going to buy it. With a name like De’Longhi, you can be pretty sure that it’s going to do a good job, so it really just comes down to how it looks. Personally, I think that this passes the test with flying colours.
Check The Latest Price Of De'Longhi Knock Box
back to menu ↑Coffee Knock Box Non-Slip Coffee Grounds Container
I usually introduce each product with a line about the company that has made it, but this non-slip knockbox is completely unbranded – so I guess we should just get straight into the product itself…
It looks very simple, which I don’t see as a bad thing. While you may want to make a feature of some of the other products on our list, this one will do nothing more for your kitchen than just blend into the background. And for a lot of people, that’s all they’ll want from a knockbox.
It basically can do everything that you could possibly want it to do. It’s made of ‘ABS material’ which is claimed to be “environmentally friendly, non-toxic, durable”. It’s dishwasher safe, so you don’t need to spend time cleaning it. The non-slip rubber bottom is a handy addition as it means you can have full confidence that it’s not going to move when you’re hammering the portafilter against it.
In short, this is a really useful item to have in your kitchen. It is also, as you have probably guessed, one of the cheapest items that we’re looking at, so if you’re just after something to do the job, this could be the one for you.
Check The Latest Price Of The Coffee Knock Box
back to menu ↑Oranlife Espresso Knock Box
Over to China now, as we look at another budget option from Oranlife.
To be perfectly honest with you, there is very little to separate this knockbox from the previous one on our list, but we feel duty bound to offer you as many different options as possible, for as many different budgets.
The design is very similar, a nice, plain black oval that would look at home in any kitchen. Again, it is dishwasher safe which makes your life easier, and it is non-slip, which is reassuring.
Measuring 13.4×13.4x13cm it is a decent size – big enough so that you don’t spend a lot of time emptying, but without imposing itself on your kitchen counter. A happy medium.
Some may see the plastic body as a disadvantage, when compared to the stainless steel that some of the others are made out of, but it does have the benefit of not being as noisy when you are emptying the portafilter.
As another one of the cheaper options, I think this is perfect if you are unsure whether you need a knock box – give this a try, I’m pretty sure you won’t regret it.
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back to menu ↑Motta Stainless Steel 7750 Knock Box
Something a little different now as we look at a knock box from one of Italy’s premiere steel manufacturers, Motta.
As you would expect, we’re looking at a quality stainless steel unit here, which just glistens and oozes with class. It’s a lovely thing to have in your kitchen, and wouldn’t look out of place in the trendiest of coffee shops.
It does the job perfectly as well. It’s well built with a shock-absorbing, non-slip rubber ring around the base. There is nothing welded together, so not a lot can go wrong with it. With dimensions of 14.5×10.5×10.5 centimetres, this is big enough so that you’ll only need to empty it once or twice a week, depending on how many espressos you get through.
This is another knockbox that I would describe as ‘a feature’ for your kitchen – something that you would have out in view rather than hidden away under your espresso machine. If that is something you are looking for in your knockbox this could be the one for you, even with the slightly higher price tag.
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back to menu ↑Cafemasy Espresso Coffee Knock Box
We finish our list of best knock boxes with another budget option from Chinese company Cafemasy.
By now, you’ve probably got a little mental checklist of the features that you are looking for, so let me quickly run through what this can offer you:
As it measures 13.59×13.59×12.8 centimetres it is a decent size that won’t require too much emptying, but won’t impose on your kitchen space. The knock bar is removable and is coated with rubber, which is both shock and noise absorbing. There is a removable rubber ring on the base of the unit that prevents movement when you are using it and also helps with shock absorbing. It’s dishwasher safe and therefore easy to clean.
All in all, this does what you need a knockbox to do. It won’t let you down, and as another option at the cheaper end of the scale, it is a perfect entry-level selection for you. If you want a knockbox to just be a knockbox then I am not sure how this could be improved.
