The S1 Cafe - Helping Your Espresso Dreams Become Reality

I hear solenoid click but only a few drops come out. (boiler red light is steady and steam pressure very good)

If the steam is working I'd open up the valve assy & check for blockage. Also drop the screen on the water tap. Ever descaled the boiler?

I have hardly used the hot water tap. Never descaled yet.

today after taking the cup warmer cover off and inspecting I fired up and magically everything works 100%.

Perhaps not using the electrovalve for a long time made it stick

steve96822 wrote:today after taking the cup warmer cover off and inspecting I fired up and magically everything works 100%.

Perhaps not using the electrovalve for a long time made it stick

That's what I was thinking after reading your previous post. If you seldom use the water tap I'd definitely consider draining the boiler if you plan to use that water in drinks. We use ours daily & I still drain the boiler once a month. Easily done with the drain plug underneath but you might have to elevate the machine to get a pan under there if you are using the stock "feet".

Thanks, I will drain boiler.

So the moral of the story; if something doesn't work on an S1, sleep one night then try again.

A followup; Upon looking inside housing and inside boiler I discovered an occluded outlet. Mineral deposit was the culprit and easily cleared blockage, sort of like doing an embolectomy.


As an idea, a possible way to clear a mineral obstruction would be t open hot water valve and use a wound guitar string (like low E) to insert in hot water outlet and probe distally. Would need to take safety measure to prevent getting burned.Hands, arms, face, body.

I found that the solenoid valve for the hot water developed scale when I was not regularly pulling hot water. I had to open the valve and clean with white vinegar. After that I made it a practice to pull some water each morning and I have not had subsequent scale issues. As an added benefit this helps to bring fresh water into the steam boiler to help slow the rate of scale build up.

Did you wait 5 years to look in the boiler or just took that long to post the followup? My V2 is long gone but I do use the hot water function on my pump machines daily for rinsing the p/f, cups & for brewing.