# What's happened to my Gaggia Classic?



## Cainzer (May 17, 2014)

Hello People,

I have trawled the internet for hours and hours trying to find someone with the same issue as me to no avail. I'm certainly wiser on the in and outs of how to make a good espresso and how to maintain my machine but I still have a major problem.

I have owned my Classic now for about 7 years and have loved using it and the consistent results I get. Over the last 6 months or so however the coffee it produces has become watery and tasteless. Having read so much now it seems the usual solution to such issues is in adjusting the grind / tamping etc. BUT (please don't lambast me too much for this) I only ever use tins of Illy ground espresso. Previous to owning my Classic I had a Gaggia Espresso for about 4 years and a Krups machine for 3 years before that and only ever used ground Illy then too. So I've certainly been keeping Illy in business but it why the deterioration now?

I live in a soft water area (Aberdeen) and do not have issues with scaling. I still use descaler every now and then for the sake of it and keep the machine nice and clean but when this problem started happening I looked deeper into maintenance. I have now replaced the group head gasket (completely perished) and have bought a blind basket and cafiza and back flushed a couple of times too. I was extremely excited on completion of the works to get my first lovely cup of espresso. Disappointed does't cover it when the same watery tasteless coffee came out.

I've since started to mess about with a burr grinder and fresh coffee beans (as well as espresso beans ground in the shop to espresso grind) and its still the same.

Can anyone help? Has my machine reached the end of its useful life?

I would be eternally grateful if anyone can suggest a solution.

Cheers


----------



## funinacup (Aug 30, 2010)

Is the coffee as hot as it usually is? It may be that one of the thermostats is dead and water is either too hot or too cool. Failing that, you may have a blocked solenoid somewhere affecting water pressure. Very difficult to say without seeing it in person.

Michael


----------



## Cainzer (May 17, 2014)

funinacup said:


> Is the coffee as hot as it usually is? It may be that one of the thermostats is dead and water is either too hot or too cool. Failing that, you may have a blocked solenoid somewhere affecting water pressure. Very difficult to say without seeing it in person.
> 
> Michael


Hi Michael, I really appreciate your quick response. I'm not sure about the temperature as I've never measured it before! I see there are a few guides to this on the site and will go investigate. Is is meant to be 89-90C? I've got a 'meat' thermometer with a spike on it. Will that be sufficiently accurate? (don't have a polystyrene cup though). Assuming it is either of these issues are you able to advise if it's repairable or a bucket job?

Thanks again.

Neil


----------



## El carajillo (Mar 16, 2013)

Cainzer said:


> Hi Michael, I really appreciate your quick response. I'm not sure about the temperature as I've never measured it before! I see there are a few guides to this on the site and will go investigate. Is is meant to be 89-90C? I've got a 'meat' thermometer with a spike on it. Will that be sufficiently accurate? (don't have a polystyrene cup though). Assuming it is either of these issues are you able to advise if it's repairable or a bucket job?
> 
> Thanks again.
> 
> Neil


Definitely not a bucket job, thermostats are reasonably cheap £5 -10. Simple to change, unplug two cables, unscrew the "stat" (no water escapes as it does not go into water) screw in new "stat" push connectors back on job done. (DO NOT OVER TIGHTEN THE STAT little more than finger tight. (17 mm spanner or small adjustable.

The brew stat on L/H side of M/ch Steam stat on top of boiler towards the back. do not mix them up they have different ratings /temperatures.


----------



## Cainzer (May 17, 2014)

El carajillo said:


> Definitely not a bucket job, thermostats are reasonably cheap £5 -10. Simple to change, unplug two cables, unscrew the "stat" (no water escapes as it does not go into water) screw in new "stat" push connectors back on job done. (DO NOT OVER TIGHTEN THE STAT little more than finger tight. (17 mm spanner or small adjustable.
> 
> The brew stat on L/H side of M/ch Steam stat on top of boiler towards the back. do not mix them up they have different ratings /temperatures.


Thanks again for sharing your expertise. Are you able to advise a good place to buy a replacement thermostat?

Another thing I noticed is that the after brewing I have a very wet puck. This never used to happen either... Could this provide another clue to the issue?

In anticipation.

Neil


----------



## Wando64 (Feb 28, 2011)

Cainzer said:


> I only ever use tins of Illy ground espresso.


It might not have anything to do with your problem, however what's inside the tin of Illy is out of your control.

Illy could have changed their blend, for example, and you just wouldn't know.

What surprises me is that you don't seem to have found variations so far over the years.

Edit: or maybe your local supermarket is getting rid of some exceptionally old tins...


----------



## Charliej (Feb 25, 2012)

Wando64 said:


> It might not have anything to do with your problem, however what's inside the tin of Illy is out of your control.
> 
> Illy could have changed their blend, for example, and you just wouldn't know.
> 
> ...


Having watched that mega factories programme on Discovery it's a 100% certainty that Illy have changed their blend as apparently they do so all the time to try and get the same flavours out of the coffee they are able to buy and burn at any given time. They have computer control over the amount of any individual bean is fed to their enormous roasters from the silos they store the beans in.


----------



## DavecUK (Aug 6, 2013)

It could be that the pump is nadgered....which is a technical term for "end of life"


----------



## Wando64 (Feb 28, 2011)

DavecUK said:


> It could be that the pump is nadgered....which is a technical term for "end of life"


Wouldn't that cause a slower extraction? I.e. Less watery

Likewise, a problem with the thermostat could cause sourness or bitterness, not a 'watery tasteless' extraction.

The only way I can imagine a watery extraction is if it happens too quickly either because the grind is too coarse or the coffee is stale.


----------



## Cainzer (May 17, 2014)

Hello,

Thank you for all the replies, I really appreciate the help.

I have done a temperature check now and cannot achieve a temp higher than 82C. Is this acceptable or definitely too low? Would this low temp point to the thermostats being "nadgered"

Water pressure seems OK ie not significantly different from before, although if there has been a slow decline I might not have noticed.

I have considered Illy coffee being inconsistent hence trying out a grinder and beans from a specialist (and also coffee ground by the specialist). Still the same results...

As regards replacing a thermostat, can anyone suggest a good vendor? *El carajillo also suggested I may have a blocked solenoid. Can these be cleaned / replaced?*

*
*

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Cheers, Neil


----------



## El carajillo (Mar 16, 2013)

Cainzer said:


> Hello,
> 
> Thank you for all the replies, I really appreciate the help.
> 
> ...


For your thermostats contact "Mark ==Gaggiamanualserve" on this forum, send him a PM.

The solenoid valve can be removed, taken apart and cleaned, you will need a 4 mm allen key for removal and a spanner to unscrew body 19 mm I think. Fit S/valve in a vice to hold OR screw it to a piece of wood to hold it. Take care with small pieces and note positions.


----------



## Wando64 (Feb 28, 2011)

Cainzer said:


> Hello,
> 
> Thank you for all the replies, I really appreciate the help.
> 
> ...


How did you check the temperature?

It is a notoriously difficult thing to do.

82C in the cup sounds about right to me.

Water loses a lot of temperature from the shower head to the cup.

In any case, in my experience either the thermostat works (well) or it doesn't (at all).


----------



## Charliej (Feb 25, 2012)

Neil,

Have you had the shower screen and dispersion block off to clean those properly as backflushing doesn't do an amazing job of cleaning this area. I would suggest that if you haven't then do it as a priority, your best bet is not to soak the dispersion plate in any backflushing solution but use something like Fairy Powerspray or use water as hot as you can stand, normal washing up liquid and some elbow grease, the screen itself is fine to soak in Puly Caff/Cafiza. The reason for this approach is that the plate has a brass nut embedded in the centre to hold the shower screen and the backflushing detergent solution creates an electrolytic reaction between the 2 and discolours the plate, it goes black which can be cleaned off , but IMHO is an unnecessary pain in the rear.

If you find, as is often the case, that the plate seems stuck after you remove the 2 allen head bolts securing it then the best option is to buy a bolt of the same diameter as the shower screen screw (M5) but around 2 inched long. You then basically carefully screw the longer bolt into the shower screen retaining thread, with the 2 allen head bolts removed, and it will effectively "jack" the plate off the stuck surfaces.


----------

