GR8 Infusions Tech Log Blog

in the shop today

2011-12-17T13:56:00.001-08:00

New patient - an old Olympia Cremina needs TLC

This Astra Gourmet has a halting water flow.

Still trouble shooting the hydraulics.

Update - Interesting, this is a Pour Over machine so it does not have line pressure from the water source. The water is pumped into the system - eventually to the group to make espresso & when water is not being pumped a check valve (one way valve) prevents water from being pushed by pressure (heated water) back towards the pump. The one way valve has failed allowing the HX water to be drawn back into the pump & tank. This results in a dry HX - and when the barista tries to pull a shot - they get air instead of water for a shot or 2. Solution - replace check valve.

astoria - back from the dead - just in time for halloween

2011-10-26T14:31:00.000-07:00

New tech, John just gave this Astoria a minor rehab.

looks good to go!

HX rotary pump, HX vibe pump, double boiler rotary

2011-04-30T12:22:00.000-07:00

This week brought 3 machines for repair in the shop that demonstrate 3 distinct choices for home espresso machines.

The Double boiler was an older Marzocco GS3. This came in with a bad group solenoid and needing adjustment to the expansion valve. Otherwise it is in good shape. The 2 boilers provide steam from the large rear boiler and dedicated espresso from the front boiler. The front boiler is thermostatically controlled at the front mounted led pad. Brew temp is very consistent and predictable.

Heat Exchanger (HX) machines use a different approach to heating. They heat one large boiler for steam and run the espresso supply water through the very hot water in a tube. The conductive energy heats the espresso water. The result is that you do get copious steam on demand and lower temp water for espresso making. The water temp in the HX for espresso is not as predictable as in the double boiler. With an E61 group the water is siphoned & circulated back into the HX system which does provide some temp stability. The HX can be fairly easily mastered so that the operator can produce consistent & great shots. The other choice is Vibe or Rotary pump. The Rotary pump is quiet and extremely reliable. It produces excellent pressure stability. Most Rotary units require plumb-in water. The vibe pumps work well, though they are noisy and have a generally shorter life (though they can last a decade or longer).

These HX units are both Quick Mill units. The Vetrano (LEFT) is a Rotary plumb-in model that had some scale problems throughout the hydraulics. The Andreja Premium (RIGHT) is a Vibe pump model with pour over water tank. This one had a little leak.

Marzocco GB5 PM & steam boiler refill issue

2011-03-04T11:11:00.000-08:00

Marzocco GB5

I had recently reminded this small cafe that the GB5 was due for a PM and we had planned on making an appointment... Then the steam boiler was shutting down and the LED read 'Steam Boiler Empty." The GB5 has 2 level sensors - one to alert the unit to refill the steam boiler when it is depleted from steam or hot water use & a second sensor to shut off the heater if the boiler is not refilling. If the second sensor is activated, the LED reads "Empty" though the boiler is still far from empty. If the system works as designed it will avert a much more expensive Heating Element Replacement.

As part of a Preventative Maintenance Service we always remove the sensors and inspect, clean or replace appropriately. In this case the sensors were badly fouled with thick, dark, very hard crust so replacement was the best option. Otherwise the PM was typical and we recommend more frequent change out of water filters.

Seeking new Technician

2011-02-19T14:02:00.000-08:00

Great Infusions is seeking a self-motivated, highly organized individual to support our service department. You will be responsible for for the installation and service of commercial coffee and espresso equipment, preventive maintenance and emergency on-site technical support. Qualified candidates should have electrical/mechanical DMM mastery and trouble shooting experience. Well organized & tight record keeping a must. Clean DMV & reliable transportation a must.

Email your resume to info(at)greatinfusions.com

office pn. 831-458-3568

Brewtus by Expobar

2011-02-19T13:46:00.000-08:00

This is the interior of an Expobar Brewtus. The Brewtus is a double boiler espresso machine. The rear boiler - on the left - is steam and the front boiler is for coffee. The steam boiler is controlled by pressure stat and the front boiler is thermostatically controlled with LED control. As with past Expobar units, this had a few components that are less reliable than most other makes. The Ceme brand vibe pump seems to have a poor record - replace them pretty often. The pressure stat on this unit was bad and it is a cheaper part than other makes. This machine had virtually no scale - so the part died prematurely. This unit also had a worn E61 gasket housing that prevented backflushing and pressure release after shot making. The maker leaves the plastic laser tape lining the stainless inside of the box - why? It had burnt/curled in areas and was loosening in others - funky.

Olympia Cremina

2010-10-17T16:01:00.000-07:00

I serviced a Cremina with a bad pressure stat. The micro-switch was fine but the proprietary membrane/housing was sticking, causing overheating.

Instead of importing the new (expensive) part from Switzerland, I replaced the brass housing with a copper tube and a MATER p-stat. The $40 part worked well... When set to disengage just shy of 1 bar it would re-engage at .08 bar.

Picture shows the new installed MATER and at bottom the original Cremina stat.

Repairs in October

2010-10-17T15:43:00.000-07:00

The commercial repair business has been strong... Great Infusions recently hired a new lead tech to handle the increasing demand. Big welcome to Julien.

As always, lots of home units & a few Pavoni lever units.

Elektra Maxi had severely scaled left group requiring removal of group & replacing flowmeter.

Also the pump was seized.

September had me snowed in

2010-09-30T23:19:00.000-07:00

This month saw a whole bunch of work.

Maintenance call in Santa Cruz (Astra Mega1)

Steam Wands rebuit on a FB80 in San Jose

Monster Linnea needed a minor rebuild

The bench is just packed!

Our service has Wheels

2010-09-04T11:29:00.000-07:00

We recently added a new member to the Great Infusions Service team...

The Scion XB is a super economic cargo utility car.

It holds as much packing peanuts, boxes & bubble wrap as a small pickup....

I can easily store my service gear in the rear hatch without folding seats.

Averaging 30 mpg... I Love That!

Separated At Birth

2010-09-02T16:53:00.000-07:00

Pasquini will not admit it, but the Livia 90 is made for them by Bezzera.

Both of these came in with flow meter errors and the Livia had a shot expansion valve.

Check out these views:

They appear different with Pasquini wrapped in Stainless & Bezzera in Plastic panels.

The top view shows same boiler layout:

Side 1 shows control box (same gicar) and relay (same finder)

Side 2 shows same placement of p-stat & same flowmeter...

Dialing it in

2010-08-21T16:27:00.000-07:00

What you see in this photo is a nice tool of the trade.

The gauge displays the accurate brew pressure at the group.

The digital thermometer displays the group temp.

I adjust the expansion valve for brew pressure & the pressure stat for temperature

for about max Bar pressure 10 & temp 200 f.

This portafilter fits several machine groups.

For those with different portafilter sizes I have PSI gauge

& thermometer attachments.

Retro Rancilio Home Unit

2010-08-11T16:50:00.001-07:00

This Rancilio Audry came in for repair and consignment. It had been used for a few months when new and then shelved so it was amazingly clean and original. It did need a new pump and set of gaskets... But once fixed it ran like a champ.

The jobs that come to me...

2010-07-10T12:48:00.000-07:00

The subject is an old worn out Conti, originally sold through Illi distributer and now parked hopelessly in an Ethiopian restaurant. Not working at all - no heat, water flows mysteriously into the drip tray from behind the groups and 1 group has a trickle while the other is dead. The group that has a trickle leaks everywhere. Group gaskets are petrified. When it did heat up it emitted a steaming sound from inside.

Why would anyone service this unit?

Well... The owner seatbelted it into her car (on its side) - leaking water onto the seat - with her little boy along for the ride - and drove 4 hours because no-one in her area would touch it... I couldn't refuse.

Work:

replace burnt heater

rebuild both groups

rebuild 1 flowmeter

rebuild 1 opv strangely placed in front of the refill valve

replace overheat safety valve and level probe

old heater was leaking directly onto the poorly situated motor which grew some strange green fuzz.

All of the gaskets I tried to order were for newer models and was not able to find parts for this older one. ended up using pavoni europicola boiler gaskets on the group head. Used old worn o-rings with teflon and locktight to fuse the groups onto the boiler. Not pretty but effective.

After all of that - it works. That is the best I can say for it.

eeww, that's nasty

2010-06-30T15:57:00.000-07:00

I had a Fiorenzato espresso machine in for service this week. The Fiorenzato has a decorative curved body panel that wraps the 2 sides and back of the machine... It looks cool! It also leaves a gap on the underside of the unit that can allow VERMIN into the espresso machine - And the vermin might decide to use your espresso machine for a crapper... After vacuuming u the crap, I found typical scale & foul group head. Descale, replace level probe, vac valve & needed saftey valve. Plus a vigorous group cleaning...

Giott - oh - no

2010-06-02T12:49:00.000-07:00

Poor little Giotto...

Hard times. Hard water. Pic's show fittings have mineral build up... Needs to be totally descaled. Strange leak at heating element leads and also building effervescence will require new element as well. Pump is fine. Can't test the P-stat until I get it cleaned up and heated up.

Elektra Maxi

2010-06-01T17:16:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I posted... but have been very busy on the bench. I have been rebuiding from ground up an Elektra Maxi. This came in in the kind of shape that usually means scrap metal... Not working and full of scale, grime & decay. I know these Elektra units are good solid performers and I have been using it to train my new 'Tech' Ken. So I have to say that Ken has done quite a lot of the repair with me looking over his shoulder.

It needed just about everything from procon pump, all gaskets, solenoids, acid bath, complete rebuild of groups and now it needs a push button pad for 1 side. I think it will be worth it for the owner who will be selling it as soon as we get it done & it will be a great piece of equipment for a small business. Here is a pic of the unit on its 1st heat up (no leaks). I will post another when it is all dressed up.

First week Feb 2010

2010-02-13T14:10:00.000-08:00

Funny story. An owner of a nearby bistro brought his La Pavoni commercial 1 group 'Pub' model espresso machine in for a service - which turned out to be a fried Pressure stat. I noticed the machine did not have an internally installed motor & pump & assumed he had it mounted under his counter at his shop... On completion of the repair I mentioned the missing motor... nope... he had no idea that he had been running his espresso service on line pressure for months!

This week had an on-site repair of an Astra Mega 2 with yet another burnt out Presure Stat

At the shop we had an overheating La Spaziale Vivaldi. It needed a new thermostat probe & a good cleaning and tune up. The 2 boilers in the Vivaldi do not use pressure stats to control temp - they each have probes with leads to the cpu.

Did I ever warn you about scale?

2010-01-21T16:02:00.000-08:00

An ECM Giotto came in with a pretty serious scale issue. The result was several leaks in various fittings, shorted out solenoid coil & needed replacement of the vacuum valve and safety valve. The E61 was also obstructed by calcium build up (see the valve body soaking in solution).

The frame had a fair amount of rust though still able to hold the unit together.

Most or maybe all of this repair would not be needed if proper descale procedure or filtered water was used.

first week Jan 2010

2010-01-09T14:54:00.000-08:00

Yikes!

A slew of small home espresso machines have come in.

Problems are... boiler in francis francis X5; switch on Pavoni Piza; steam valve on another Piza; switch on Pavoni europicola; 3 gasket sets on europicolas; electrical short on Livia 90; frozen group on an Ascaso dream...

Most interestingly a warranty Silvia came in with a rare cracked group base:

December week 1

2009-12-10T11:46:00.000-08:00

Oh what fun it is...

Too many fix ups to list so I will mention two interesting items. An old La Riviera came in with no heat. Found the pressure stat was mechanically jammed and easily got it heating up - only to find the piston seals were so worn that they would not allow it to build pressure. As the unit is quite old, I had track down a set of o rings... Once in hand I had not much trouble replacing them. This is a spring loaded lever and using a clamp is essential in getting the piston back in. All back together & a very nice home espresso maker.

Also I had a mysterious leak on an Expobar. Thought it might have been a seal or the tube that sends over pressure to the drip tray (redirected the over pressure to the water tank). After much searching, I found a faulty gasket in the Ulka pump was the culprit. Additionally the vac valve was scaled and leaky as well.

November 1st week

2009-11-21T21:20:00.000-08:00

The repair biz has been steady with a lot of typical issues ranging from solenoids to boilers. This week saw a burnt out pump on a Starbucks Barista (ya I fix them too), a leaky Giotto and a frustrating Kitchen Aid/Gaggia rebrand.

The pic to the right is the disemboweled KitAid. The KitAid is an interesting idea... A dual boiler made with Gaggia parts and wrapped in a big bubbly aluminum body. It came in with a non functioning boiler on the brew side. After a fair amount of wrangling to get the cover off it was a quick TS to find a bad thermostat. Also the 2nd boiler had a steam seep at the base that was releasing moisture. I pulled it off and re-set it with a new gasket and some locktight for good measure. Putting the thing back together was a total pain in the behind! These are pretty cool units but they have a bunch of weak plastic consumer grade parts...

The rest of September

2009-10-06T15:55:00.000-07:00

We have had a slew of Home unit repairs. Several Silvia's a few Pavoni's and a rare Rancilio Lucy.

Silvia's needed typical repairs. Most common we get are blocked solenoid, burnt out boiler, leaky steam valve. Replaced a stock steam aasy with the v3 for one customer.

Pavoni issues included gasket sets, a completely pulled apart electrical assy & a descale/inspection/tuneup.

The old Lucy needed a tune up, new steam valve assy & burr set. The Lucy was a nice unit - wish Rancilio would bring her back!

Wednesday Sept. 9th 2009

2009-09-09T15:30:00.000-07:00

Expobar Office

Another pressure stat "eats it."

Notes on Expobar Office:

This is a low cost HX with volume dosing (push button panel). User is an avid coffeegeek and all around good guy. no gauge for brew or boiler psi.

Reason for service:

"Pop, hissssssssss"

Diagnostic & Repair:

Looked to be either a spent pressure stat or possibly a bad safety valve. After a bit of monitoring , determined that... another p-stat "eats it." Replaced with a MATER. Using a group thermostat, I set the boiler to produce 204 f. after robust flushing routine. Temp before flushing runs up to 211 f.

Sept 3 2009

2009-09-04T15:48:00.000-07:00

La Spaziale S1

Onsite rescue at busy tech co. in Silicon Valley.

Notes on the unit:

This is the La Spaziale S1 double boiler espresso machine. Set up as 15 amp service. It is used by a bunch of coffee geeks at a tech co. I have been surprised how well it has held up in this demanding environment.

Reason for service:

Office manager called to report leaking water on floor - she unplugged & shut water valve. The coffeegeeks were getting antsy for their coffee!

Diagnostic & Repair:

Found the group solenoid was jammed allowing water to flow directly to drip tray (overfilling it quickly). Removed solenoid to determine if needed replacement. After thorough cleaning and installation the unit was working as it should. Instructed the OM to back flush to prevent the problem.

8/22/09 ECM Giotto

2009-08-22T16:10:00.000-07:00

ECM Giotto

Another home unit suffers from excessive scale...

Notes on this model:

Well known equipment maker ECM of Italy has been selling the Giotto for home users for several years. The components are average quality for the class. Lacks a group pressure gauge.

Reason For service:

Customer has had recurring issues with leaks on boiler fittings. Pressure stat may be bad. Requests to have hot water dispenser removed and to have a group pressure gauge installed.

Diagnostic & Repair:

Found the level probe was not responding, causing boiler to overfill (scale damage). Vac valve leaks (scale damage). Removed hot water assy. and found fittings, tubes fairly choked with scale. Will Descale entire system. Group pressure gauge will require some creativity to mount without awkward appearance. P-stat is operating as it should - i will confirm that customer wants it swapped.

Installed a Group pressure gauge in the hot water opening. works perfect, looks pretty good. I had to cut a piece of pipe to mount the gauge on the surface of the unit...

8/16/09 Tech Log Blog

2009-08-16T07:19:00.000-07:00

Elektra Maxi

This week saw a repair on a commercial 2 group Espresso Machine by Elektra.

Some notes on the design:

Elektra (e-61 type) groups

Steam & Water paddle valves (cool)

Retro post modern design

Reason for Service: Owner states left group no flow. Owner wants to sell machine so wants a tune up and complete service.

Diagnostic & Repair: Left Group has completely jammed with mineral deposit. Leaky safety valve, vac valve & mineral stains on exterior of boiler suggest excessive scale build up throughout. Removed L group and completely disassemble & acid bath. Solenoid stem is packed with scale. Group head scale blockage requires careful removal by power drill (nice that Elektra has a purge hole at front of group). WOW that was a lot of scale! R group not as bad with scale - Cleaned out and tested; ok.

Descale main boiler and HX's

Replaced vac valve and safety valve

Test for temp & pressure

8/15/09 tech log blog

2009-08-15T22:03:00.000-07:00

Mini Wega

Worked on a mini wega today. This is a single group commercial espresso machine being used by a home barista for home use. The mini wega is a very nicely made unit with a rotary vane pump plumbed in.

Some notes on the design:

e-61 type group

boiler has separate HX for hot water & group

sturdy heavy duty construction

no group pressure gauge

rotary pump

Reason for Service: Owner removed boiler to descale and now it will not heat. Also requests install of Sirai P-stat to replace stock mini stat.

Diagnostic & Repair: Continuity check verifies blown heater. Boiler position requires removal to replace the heating element. Removal is not bad as all fittings are accessible with body panels removed. Installed new heater and replaced boiler. Refill boiler heat up & test fittings for leaks. Replacing Sirai requires re-shaping the copper tubing to a lower position in order to fit. Setting Sirai to produce group temp of 203 f. Test group pressure & Temp.