You described, very well, a perfectly normal situation. Rest easy.

BTW, that's not a "small" appliance. It's pulling some pretty hefty
currents cyclically, from your descrip.

HTH
Pop`

Thanks...

I think you are right. I was thinking this should be normal, but
sometimes the more you read the easier it is to become overley
concerned about things you don't need to.

I appreciate the responses... I guess my espresso machine is a larger
appliance than I imagined it was, in an electrical sense at least. I'm
sure it takes a large heating element to get water to 200 degrees in
the 1 liter boiler in about 5 min... flipping the element on and off
every second just makes its power draw actually noticeable.

Thanks again...

Tony B.