S1 boiler side pressure gauge problem

[Cu$hman]

Hello all,

Seasons Greetings!
I just picked up a used S1 VII which is working well except that the boiler side of the pressure gage only reads zero. The machine is a 20A plumb in model but I'm using a water jug for the water supply. Has anyone run into this issue? Suggestion on how to repair?

Thanks

[chas]

The following assumes that the problem is just with getting a pressure reading and that you are actually getting steam and hot water as expected.

There are three possibilities:
1) The copper tube to the steam boiler is plugged up somewhere between the boiler and the gauge or the gauge itself is bad. The best way to tell which is to remove the front cover so that you can get to the back side of the guage and disconnect the copper tube from the gauge. Do this with a cold unit otherwise, if it's the gauge you'll likely hose yourself down with a hot steam bath. Then turn on the boiler and let it come up to temp. At some point, steam should start blowing out the end of the copper tube if the gauge is bad.

2) If you get no steam out of the copper tube, you will also need to disconnect the copper tube at the boiler (once again with a cold, disconnected machine. Then you can try blowing through the tube to see if it is blocked.

3) On the outside chance that you can blow through the tube and it isn't blocked, the remaining possibility is that the opening at the steam boiler has mineral crust blocking the opening. In this case you might try poking a Phillips screwdriver into the opening to break through the minerals. Of course if this ends up being the issue, you are probably looking at the need to descale the boiler sooner than later.

NOTE: I just looked at the fitting on the boiler. It is a 90 degree fitting so you won't be able to jam a screwdriver into the opening should you get that far without finding the cause to be something else. Perhaps a pipe cleaner would work.

[Cu$hman]

Thanks for the suggestions Chas, I do get great steam and hot water. I had pulled the top and gage face panel off to take a peek. The copper line from the gage heads over to the right side of the machine where it has been coiled for perhaps four or five loops that connects to a brass fixture that has some solenoid and some plastic water line coming off it and... I'll need to check again. I put it back together to make an Americano. I sent Chris Coffee Support an email also just to get as much advice as possible before I "dive in". Hope it's not the gage. I'll keep you informed.

[Cu$hman]

Follow up email from Chris Coffee service dept.

"If you are using the machine with a water jug then you should use a demand
pump like this: http://www.chriscoffee.com/products/hom ... ing/flojet
This is very important because if the machine is used without the pump then
it can damage the rotary pump inside the machine and cause a leak which can
then damage other components or cause water damage at your home. As far as
gauge pressure goes the left side is the pump pressure gauge and will not
show any pressure unless the machine is plumbed in or the pump gets
activated.
The right side is the boiler/steam side of the gauge and will only show
pressure if the steam boiler is turned on. Feel free to contact me with any
questions.

Regards,

Jason Verenini
Chris' Coffee"

The left side isn't the boiler pressure but actually the pump pressure. So I'm on my way to Lowe's for a few plumbing items I guess.

[chas]

If you do a search here for ShurFlo you should find a number of posts from quite a while ago. This hasn't come up in close to 3 years, if I recall correctly. Typically, at least for long term use, you will also want a ShurFlo Accumulator tank. These are often sold for RVs. These hold about a gallon or so of pressurized water which provides a steady, even flow to the espresso machine. Otherwise, with just the FloJet it constantly turns on and off providing an annoyingly pulsating flow.

Below is a link to one on Amazon, but if you Google Shurflo you'll find a bunch of purchase options.

http://www.amazon.com/Shurflo-181-201-A ... B004KF41CY

[Cu$hman]

Me again,

I plumbed the machine in. Problem solved. The left gage is not boiler (oops) it's inlet pressure. Odd it wasn't mentioned in the manual. Speaking of the manual... with my Vivaldi II when programing the single / double buttons I have to press the power button to close and save the programming. I'm not sure where this info should be posted.