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Default Anyone fixed an espresso machine?


Ours got buggered 18 months ago, and needed a new gasket which I
got...but in the meantime something seems to have gone wrong elsewhere..
and I am a bit stumped.

What it consists of is a reservoir of water that goes to a pump, which
pumps at what must be pretty high pressure into a boiler thingie. The
boiler output goes to a steam valve that goes either to the coffee head
itself which has a pressure switch - seems to need about 2 bar or more
to let steam out - or the steamer pipe for frothing the milk.

The basic trouble is that nothing is coming out at all. I did get some
steam briefly.

I have checked all the easy to get at stuff - the valves and pipes from
the boiler to the valve etc..

The pump runs - well makes its buzzy noise - but seems to draw no water
from the reservoir, but that pipe is OK as I disconnected it and sucked
water up.

My guess is that something is scaled up in the pump or boiler area, but
without more than a trickle of flow..how to descale it?

What I also don't understand is why the pump seems to be configured to
run ONLY when making coffee - not when steaming or topping up with hot
water etc..is it that the high pressure an flow can only be provided by
a pump. whilst hot water and steam can be gravity fed?

Normally I wouldn't bother, but its the wife's BIRTHDAY...;-)
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Default Anyone fixed an espresso machine?

The Natural Philosopher wrote:

Ours got buggered 18 months ago, and needed a new gasket which I
got...but in the meantime something seems to have gone wrong elsewhere..
and I am a bit stumped.

What it consists of is a reservoir of water that goes to a pump, which
pumps at what must be pretty high pressure into a boiler thingie. The
boiler output goes to a steam valve that goes either to the coffee head
itself which has a pressure switch - seems to need about 2 bar or more
to let steam out - or the steamer pipe for frothing the milk.

The basic trouble is that nothing is coming out at all. I did get some
steam briefly.

I have checked all the easy to get at stuff - the valves and pipes from
the boiler to the valve etc..

The pump runs - well makes its buzzy noise - but seems to draw no water
from the reservoir, but that pipe is OK as I disconnected it and sucked
water up.

My guess is that something is scaled up in the pump or boiler area, but
without more than a trickle of flow..how to descale it?

What I also don't understand is why the pump seems to be configured to
run ONLY when making coffee - not when steaming or topping up with hot
water etc..is it that the high pressure an flow can only be provided by
a pump. whilst hot water and steam can be gravity fed?

Normally I wouldn't bother, but its the wife's BIRTHDAY...;-)



Oh., I sussed it.

The pump IS a high pressure one and needs priming. You do that by
filling it up with water to the FULL mark, not where SWMBO had filled it
to ;-)

Thanks to all who failed to reply in time..anyway SHE is happy. Phew.

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Default Anyone fixed an espresso machine?

On 2006-10-05 13:06:14 +0100, The Natural Philosopher said:


Ours got buggered 18 months ago, and needed a new gasket which I
got...but in the meantime something seems to have gone wrong
elsewhere.. and I am a bit stumped.

What it consists of is a reservoir of water that goes to a pump, which
pumps at what must be pretty high pressure into a boiler thingie. The
boiler output goes to a steam valve that goes either to the coffee head
itself which has a pressure switch - seems to need about 2 bar or more
to let steam out - or the steamer pipe for frothing the milk.

The basic trouble is that nothing is coming out at all. I did get some
steam briefly.

I have checked all the easy to get at stuff - the valves and pipes from
the boiler to the valve etc..

The pump runs - well makes its buzzy noise - but seems to draw no water
from the reservoir, but that pipe is OK as I disconnected it and sucked
water up.

My guess is that something is scaled up in the pump or boiler area, but
without more than a trickle of flow..how to descale it?


Yes I have. A Krups one. Works well. Actually I think they all work
in much the same way.

Normally you should descale regularly so that this doesn't happen

At this point, I think you will have to disassemble and get some
descaler into the pump and pressure chamber in some other way.

The principle of operation is simple enough. There are sprung valves
on the input and output and the pump is a vibrating plunger. It's
similar to an aquarium air pump but obviously beefy.

Another thing that can have happened is that one of the valves has
failed or there is some crud under it. That will involve disassembly
as well. Take care because there are probably ping****its inside.



What I also don't understand is why the pump seems to be configured to
run ONLY when making coffee - not when steaming or topping up with hot
water etc..is it that the high pressure an flow can only be provided by
a pump. whilst hot water and steam can be gravity fed?


What happens is that some water is kept around and boiled and opening
the steam jet valve causes it to be forced through the jet. There is
normally enough water to heat the amount of milk needed for a few cups
of coffee. You will find that if you run the jet for longer it will
probably run out. Some of the larger Gaggia machines have a separate
pump arrangement for the steam generator.





Normally I wouldn't bother, but its the wife's BIRTHDAY...;-)


Ah, so it could even be a trip to Newmarket to do business with your
favourite Currys shop ;-)


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On 2006-10-05 13:28:51 +0100, The Natural Philosopher said:

The Natural Philosopher wrote:

Ours got buggered 18 months ago, and needed a new gasket which I
got...but in the meantime something seems to have gone wrong
elsewhere.. and I am a bit stumped.

What it consists of is a reservoir of water that goes to a pump, which
pumps at what must be pretty high pressure into a boiler thingie. The
boiler output goes to a steam valve that goes either to the coffee head
itself which has a pressure switch - seems to need about 2 bar or more
to let steam out - or the steamer pipe for frothing the milk.

The basic trouble is that nothing is coming out at all. I did get some
steam briefly.

I have checked all the easy to get at stuff - the valves and pipes from
the boiler to the valve etc..

The pump runs - well makes its buzzy noise - but seems to draw no water
from the reservoir, but that pipe is OK as I disconnected it and sucked
water up.

My guess is that something is scaled up in the pump or boiler area, but
without more than a trickle of flow..how to descale it?

What I also don't understand is why the pump seems to be configured to
run ONLY when making coffee - not when steaming or topping up with hot
water etc..is it that the high pressure an flow can only be provided by
a pump. whilst hot water and steam can be gravity fed?

Normally I wouldn't bother, but its the wife's BIRTHDAY...;-)



Oh., I sussed it.

The pump IS a high pressure one and needs priming. You do that by
filling it up with water to the FULL mark, not where SWMBO had filled
it to ;-)

Thanks to all who failed to reply in time..anyway SHE is happy. Phew.


Enjoy the rest of your day :-)


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Default Anyone fixed an espresso machine?

On Thu, 05 Oct 2006 13:06:14 +0100, The Natural Philosopher wrote:

The pump runs - well makes its buzzy noise - but seems to draw no water
from the reservoir, but that pipe is OK as I disconnected it and sucked
water up.


Does it have a steam jet? The instructions usually say that after the
machine has run dry you will have to prime it by opening the steam jet and
allowing the machine to pump until water runs out.


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Default Anyone fixed an espresso machine?

On 2006-10-05 14:12:29 +0100, Huge said:

On 2006-10-05, Andy Hall wrote:


Yes I have. A Krups one.


I discovered to my horror last year that Krups are a French company.


Yes I know. The product looks distinctly teutonic though.....


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Default Anyone fixed an espresso machine?

Andy Hall wrote:

Take care because there are probably ping****its inside.


Thanks for that.. Any tips on removing coffee from the now-drenched
keyboard?

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Default Anyone fixed an espresso machine?

On 5 Oct 2006 13:12:29 GMT, Huge wrote:

On 2006-10-05, Andy Hall wrote:


Yes I have. A Krups one.


I discovered to my horror last year that Krups are a French company.


Not much difference, they all collaborated during the war anyway. So you
can be confident that it's the same thing, all things considered.
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Default Anyone fixed an espresso machine?

Andy Hall wrote:
On 2006-10-05 13:28:51 +0100, The Natural Philosopher said:

The Natural Philosopher wrote:

Ours got buggered 18 months ago, and needed a new gasket which I
got...but in the meantime something seems to have gone wrong
elsewhere.. and I am a bit stumped.

What it consists of is a reservoir of water that goes to a pump,
which pumps at what must be pretty high pressure into a boiler
thingie. The boiler output goes to a steam valve that goes either to
the coffee head itself which has a pressure switch - seems to need
about 2 bar or more to let steam out - or the steamer pipe for
frothing the milk.

The basic trouble is that nothing is coming out at all. I did get
some steam briefly.

I have checked all the easy to get at stuff - the valves and pipes
from the boiler to the valve etc..

The pump runs - well makes its buzzy noise - but seems to draw no
water from the reservoir, but that pipe is OK as I disconnected it
and sucked water up.

My guess is that something is scaled up in the pump or boiler area,
but without more than a trickle of flow..how to descale it?

What I also don't understand is why the pump seems to be configured
to run ONLY when making coffee - not when steaming or topping up with
hot water etc..is it that the high pressure an flow can only be
provided by a pump. whilst hot water and steam can be gravity fed?

Normally I wouldn't bother, but its the wife's BIRTHDAY...;-)



Oh., I sussed it.

The pump IS a high pressure one and needs priming. You do that by
filling it up with water to the FULL mark, not where SWMBO had filled
it to ;-)

Thanks to all who failed to reply in time..anyway SHE is happy. Phew.


Enjoy the rest of your day :-)


Yup. The bloody steam pipe clogged and I stripped it all down AGAIN to
find it was the bit on the outside..

Still..got a nice cappucino in front of me now. Yum. Slurp
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Huge wrote:
On 2006-10-05, Steve Firth wrote:
On 5 Oct 2006 13:12:29 GMT, Huge wrote:

On 2006-10-05, Andy Hall wrote:
Yes I have. A Krups one.
I discovered to my horror last year that Krups are a French company.

Not much difference, they all collaborated during the war anyway. So you
can be confident that it's the same thing, all things considered.


Yes, but the words "French" and "engineering" don't commonly go
together - see "Saniflo".

Or TGV? No, the frogs CAN do excellent engineering.



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Steve Firth wrote:
On Thu, 05 Oct 2006 13:06:14 +0100, The Natural Philosopher wrote:

The pump runs - well makes its buzzy noise - but seems to draw no water
from the reservoir, but that pipe is OK as I disconnected it and sucked
water up.


Does it have a steam jet? The instructions usually say that after the
machine has run dry you will have to prime it by opening the steam jet and
allowing the machine to pump until water runs out.


THAT would have been a good move since that hasn't got a pressure
valve..but the key was, as I said, fulling it up brimful to prime it.

I Have To Say A Word In Praise Of Dualit: I emailed them enquiring about
a gasket and one came free return of post...

The Dualit 889 which is what we have is obsolescent and being knocked
out at about 160 squids..its not bad at that price.


MMM. Another mouthful. This is better than Star****s.....
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Default Anyone fixed an espresso machine?

On 2006-10-05 18:52:41 +0100, The Natural Philosopher said:



Yup. The bloody steam pipe clogged and I stripped it all down AGAIN to
find it was the bit on the outside..


One trick is to blow some steam into plain water before closing the
machine down.


Still..got a nice cappucino in front of me now. Yum. Slurp


Excellent.


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from The Natural Philosopher contains these words:

Yup. The bloody steam pipe clogged and I stripped it all down AGAIN to
find it was the bit on the outside..


We have to descale ours fortnightly or it all grinds to a halt.

--
Skipweasel
Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.
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The message
from The Natural Philosopher contains these words:

Yes, but the words "French" and "engineering" don't commonly go
together - see "Saniflo".

Or TGV? No, the frogs CAN do excellent engineering.


Their nuclear power stations seem to be quite good, too.

--
Skipweasel
Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.
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Default Anyone fixed an espresso machine?

On Thu, 5 Oct 2006 20:34:24 +0100, Guy King
wrote:

The message
from The Natural Philosopher contains these words:

Yes, but the words "French" and "engineering" don't commonly go
together - see "Saniflo".

Or TGV? No, the frogs CAN do excellent engineering.


Their nuclear power stations seem to be quite good, too.


That's because the french taxpayer foots le bill.

cheers,
Pete.


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On 2006-10-06 18:38:12 +0100, Pete C said:

On Thu, 5 Oct 2006 20:34:24 +0100, Guy King
wrote:

The message
from The Natural Philosopher contains these words:

Yes, but the words "French" and "engineering" don't commonly go
together - see "Saniflo".

Or TGV? No, the frogs CAN do excellent engineering.


Their nuclear power stations seem to be quite good, too.


That's because the french taxpayer foots le bill.

cheers,
Pete.


That's OK. Can be set against their CAP subsidies.


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Default Anyone fixed an espresso machine?

The message
from Andy Hall contains these words:

Their nuclear power stations seem to be quite good, too.


That's because the french taxpayer foots le bill.


That's OK. Can be set against their CAP subsidies.


Common Atomic Policy?

--
Skipweasel
Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.
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On 2006-10-06 20:39:41 +0100, Guy King said:

The message
from Andy Hall contains these words:

Their nuclear power stations seem to be quite good, too.

That's because the french taxpayer foots le bill.


That's OK. Can be set against their CAP subsidies.


Common Atomic Policy?


Now there's an idea. Build all the new nuclear plants in Scotland
with EU subsidy.


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Default Anyone fixed an espresso machine?

Owain wrote:
Andy Hall wrote:
Now there's an idea. Build all the new nuclear plants in Scotland
with EU subsidy.


Would you really want a nuclear plant that cost 10x the budget, came in
several years late, and still had bits falling off?

Owain


You do have a point.

Maybe we should hand it over to Camelot..
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The message
from Owain contains these words:

Would you really want a nuclear plant that cost 10x the budget, came in
several years late, and still had bits falling off?


But they do that already.

--
Skipweasel
Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.


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On 2006-10-06 23:22:57 +0100, Owain said:

Andy Hall wrote:
Now there's an idea. Build all the new nuclear plants in Scotland
with EU subsidy.


Would you really want a nuclear plant that cost 10x the budget, came in
several years late, and still had bits falling off?

Owain


No but I would expect the budget to be correct, the project reasonably
to time and without bits falling off. This is all eminently
achievable.


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Owain wrote:
Andy Hall wrote:
Now there's an idea. Build all the new nuclear plants in Scotland
with EU subsidy.
Would you really want a nuclear plant that cost 10x the budget, came
in several years late, and still had bits falling off?

No but I would expect the budget to be correct, the project reasonably
to time and without bits falling off. This is all eminently achievable.


All eminently achievable, but probably not for any project the Scottish
Parliament and the EU are involved in.

Now, if Huf could develop a prefabricated nuclear plant and the Chinese
could copy it, in-home nuclear power would probably turn out cheaper
than B&Q windmills.


I want a small fusion generator meself.

I've got a few donuts from tescos. I believe they are easily adapted ;-)

Owain


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