Can anyone assist with this Chromex CH308 conventional looking espresso machine please? I cant find any reference to this Italian company for a service manual. There may be a forum (SAV?) but it is in French.

When I press the espresso button to brew the coffee, the pump works for about a second and then appears strangulated and stops, thereafter dribbling tiny amounts of coffee out of the portafilter.

Do these pumps go weak or do they just fail please?

I immediately suspected a failed pump but when I open the steam valve, the full pump sound comes on and seems to work fine??

So I unscrewed the metal filter above the portafiler which doesn't look particularly dirty. When I took it off, the pump worked fine and spewed out normal amounts of water from the bare head: I figured that the metal filter is blocked, since not much seems to be blocked above it and I cleaned it. But when I put it back, and put the portafiler back in place (empty), the unit appears strangulated again and no water comes through.

I dont suppose there are two pumps, with one governing the coffee brew and the other governing the steam wand. Does all this just mean that my pump is gone?

On Thu, 20 Nov 2014 02:12:31 -0800 (PST), Amanda Riphnykhazova
wrote:

Can anyone assist with this Chromex CH308 conventional looking espresso machine please? I cant find any reference to this Italian company for a service manual. There may be a forum (SAV?) but it is in French.

When I press the espresso button to brew the coffee, the pump works for about a second and then appears strangulated and stops, thereafter dribbling tiny amounts of coffee out of the portafilter.

Do these pumps go weak or do they just fail please?

I immediately suspected a failed pump but when I open the steam valve, the full pump sound comes on and seems to work fine??

So I unscrewed the metal filter above the portafiler which doesn't look particularly dirty. When I took it off, the pump worked fine and spewed out normal amounts of water from the bare head: I figured that the metal filter is blocked, since not much seems to be blocked above it and I cleaned it. But when I put it back, and put the portafiler back in place (empty), the unit appears strangulated again and no water comes through.

I dont suppose there are two pumps, with one governing the coffee brew and the other governing the steam wand. Does all this just mean that my pump is gone?
Greetings Amanda,
I don't know about your particular machine but I did repair an
expensive espresso machine several years ago that the service company
could not fix because they could not find the fault. It behaved in a
similar fasion to the symptoms you describe. The problem was that
several very small passages in a manifold were plugged. They were
quite small, about 1mm as I recall. I used a tiny drill bit, which I
held in my fingers and twisted, to clean out the passages. That was
all it took. I hope this helps.
Eric

On Thursday, November 20, 2014 8:42:37 PM UTC+10:30, Amanda Riphnykhazova wrote:
Can anyone assist with this Chromex CH308 conventional looking espresso machine please? I cant find any reference to this Italian company for a service manual. There may be a forum (SAV?) but it is in French.

When I press the espresso button to brew the coffee, the pump works for about a second and then appears strangulated and stops, thereafter dribbling tiny amounts of coffee out of the portafilter.

Do these pumps go weak or do they just fail please?

I immediately suspected a failed pump but when I open the steam valve, the full pump sound comes on and seems to work fine??

So I unscrewed the metal filter above the portafiler which doesn't look particularly dirty. When I took it off, the pump worked fine and spewed out normal amounts of water from the bare head: I figured that the metal filter is blocked, since not much seems to be blocked above it and I cleaned it. But when I put it back, and put the portafiler back in place (empty), the unit appears strangulated again and no water comes through.

I dont suppose there are two pumps, with one governing the coffee brew and the other governing the steam wand. Does all this just mean that my pump is gone?

Hi,
I have had similar problems with my DeLonghi machine as well. The filter in the portafiler was blocked with very fine coffee grounds. You could not see this and the basket seemed clean. I took a fine sewing needle and started poking each hole through. Made a huge difference. Another thing to check is if the machine needs descaling. I try to do mine every couple of months as we live in a very hard water area. Hope this helps.
Con

"Amanda Riphnykhazova" wrote in message
...
Can anyone assist with this Chromex CH308 conventional looking espresso
machine please? I cant find any reference to this Italian company for a
service manual. There may be a forum (SAV?) but it is in French.

When I press the espresso button to brew the coffee, the pump works for
about a second and then appears strangulated and stops, thereafter
dribbling tiny amounts of coffee out of the portafilter.

Do these pumps go weak or do they just fail please?

I immediately suspected a failed pump but when I open the steam valve, the
full pump sound comes on and seems to work fine??

So I unscrewed the metal filter above the portafiler which doesn't look
particularly dirty. When I took it off, the pump worked fine and spewed
out normal amounts of water from the bare head: I figured that the metal
filter is blocked, since not much seems to be blocked above it and I
cleaned it. But when I put it back, and put the portafiler back in place
(empty), the unit appears strangulated again and no water comes through.

I dont suppose there are two pumps, with one governing the coffee brew and
the other governing the steam wand. Does all this just mean that my pump
is gone?


On pro machines, there is a proper cleaning regime required. Most important
amongst the actions, is back-washing the group head and feed. This is
normally done by putting a blanking insert into the portafilter basket,
along with a cleaning tablet. The filter water is then run a number of
times, each time pressure building against the pump. When you let go, the
water flies backwards, with dissolved cleaning tablet material in it, and
'exhausts' to the drip tray via the back pressure relief valve.

see

http://pollards.com/how-to-clean-coffee-machine/

Arfa

Thanks guys, I also have a Gaggia Baby which heeds all that advice and suffers all those ills but when the Gaggia is blocked, the pump carries on and the water comes out slowly

Wit this one, lots of water comes out.

I have tried to put vinegar in to see if it loosens anything over a period of time

I have always doubted vinegar as a bit of an old wives tale but after a few hours, it seems to have done something. I put the portafiler on it and turned on and it strangulated, wheezed, suddenly spat and then started pouring slightly dirty looking water out of (one side of the portafilter at) the bottom.

Either it works now or I may have to try citric acid a few times to clear whatever else is in there? It is being used in an ultra-hard water area and it has never been cleaned since I got it second hand in rural France

"Amanda Riphnykhazova" wrote in message
...

It is being used in an ultra-hard water area and it has never
been cleaned since I got it second hand in rural France.

There are products (such as CLR) which are designed to remove hard-water
deposits.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/CLR-28-oz...CL12/100670289

Whether they will clean your espesso machine without damaging metal parts, I
don't know. Some reviewers state that CLR leaves a residual taste on metal
objects that will not come off.

Yes, I had heard that you can irretrievably adulterate a coffee machine such that it can never be used for coffee any more if you put CLR in it. (But it definitely burns off all the limescale in minutes)

No one seems to have come across a CLR alternative (of which there are MANY) which doesn't do this.