# Gaggia Classic Electric Shock



## nickrorschach (Apr 8, 2015)

Hi,

I appreciate this is dodgy territory, but i'm getting married this year, paying for it all myself and i'm totally skint so any advice would be *greatly* appreciated. I can't really afford to even dream about a replacement.

I have a standard Gaggia Classic, it is four years old, only owned by me, it has worked perfectly all this time.

Recently the portafilter started getting very stiff and it would take some force to fit it in-place when loading a shot. I self diagnosed this as the a worn rubber gasket and bought a replacement but couldn't find the time to fit it.

This morning i back flushed the machine, the portafilter with the blanking plate was really hard to fit in but i proceeded anyway, i then ran a cup of hot water through my naked portafilter, all good, pulled a shot, all good - when I turned the machine off i got what was (to me) a really bad electric shock from the front metal of the machine. I turned it off at the wall immediately. I took the top of the machine off and look to see if could find a leak or a problem with the earth wire, both looked fine. The inside was very dry, perfect in fact except for some coffee grounds (no idea how they got in there). This is what i did next:

- Put the old kettle lead in the bin.

- Looked at the rubber gasket, it was truly knackered, so i replaced this and the portafilter fits SO much better now. Smooth as butter.

- Found a new kettle lead, this one happens to be PAT tested, not that it matters.

- I thoroughly cleaned and dried the machine and let it be for a bit. There was some water at the bottom of the machine, but i think this is just the drip tray not being great.

Is it possible the gasket caused a leak through the machine when backflushing, or do i have a bigger problem here?

Any advice on what to do or how to test? I have a multi-meter if this makes any odds, but i'm not great with using it.

As i say, i will not be able to afford to replace this for at least three months so if anyone has any tips at all about how to diagnose the issue i will be forever in your debt!


----------



## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

If you remove the top cover, is the earth lead still connected?


----------



## nickrorschach (Apr 8, 2015)

jeebsy said:


> If you remove the top cover, is the earth lead still connected?


Yeah, it looks fine.


----------



## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

What did the shock feel like? Can you describe it? I shock myself fairly regularly (NOT recommended), so I'm just trying to establish whether you're getting wall AC, or something else?


----------



## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

MWJB said:


> I shock myself fairly regularly (NOT recommended)


You know you can get things for that??

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Fetish-Fantasy-Shock-Therapy-Electro-Stimulation-Same-Day-Dispatch-RRP-58-99-/181468259327?_trksid=p2141725.m3641.l6368


----------



## johnealey (May 19, 2014)

Not quite sure of the purpose of the "free satin Mask" though.....









John


----------



## nickrorschach (Apr 8, 2015)

MWJB said:


> What did the shock feel like? Can you describe it? I shock myself fairly regularly (NOT recommended), so I'm just trying to establish whether you're getting wall AC, or something else?


Ha. I'll give it a try. It's a bit of a strange thing to explain...

It was not excruciating painful. It was somewhere between pinching myself and maybe stepping on a drawing pin, my thumb and edge of my hand made the contact and it was a very brief sudden shock that was more alarming that painful, it sort of felt like being slapped forcefully, but my hand was tingling for some time after. That is the best i can do. I remember accidentally touching the exposed wire of a light fitting when i was about 6 and this was about the same, but more 'meaty', but this was a bigger surface area i guess.... If a static shock from a shopping trolley is a 2.5, this was a 5.5. Any good? Thank you, also.


----------



## nickrorschach (Apr 8, 2015)

Actually i remember playing this once and if a static shock is 2.5, this game is about a 4, the thing from the Gaggia is still a 5.5

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lightning-Reaction-Electric-Shock-Game/dp/B00BN4OMRE

I'm not mental, you did ask!


----------



## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

What were you wearing on your feet, what kind of flooring?

I don't have a classic to look but does one of the green/yel wires terminate on the casing itself? Try a continuity test with the multimeter to the chassis, from the earth wires at the IEC socket (machine unplugged from the wall, always a good idea to use meter leads terminating in insulated clips if you have them).

Wall AC tends to be more like a pulsing/tugging, like a hooked fish, but hurtier? (Not ruling it out though).

Ultimately, if you feel it is dangerous, you should get it checked out properly.


----------



## nickrorschach (Apr 8, 2015)

Bare foot, half asleep. My kitchen has a laminate flooring.

Pulsing is actually an apt word for it.

If it was wall AC, is that good or bad? I'm not particularity worried in terms of danger, i'm still alive, just a bit bummed i couldn't diagnose the issue.

I see some Rancilio Silvias knocking about i could probably buy on a credit card if i took packed lunches for a week, just seems a shame cos the classic is not a bad machine at all.


----------



## timmyjj21 (May 10, 2015)

Thumb and edge of hand made the contact? Possibly arcing from the switch to the grounded chassis via your hand? Where your hands wet? Are the switches clean? You can often get a very noticeable spark from the Classic switches, in fact I have had one sparking and smoking from build of of crap in it that then worked fine once cleaned out.

Very few wires would be in a position to short to the chassis without causing some sort of machine malfunction I would have thought.


----------



## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

It's not good to have wall AC surging through your body, DO worry about it. Sounds like the casing is live somehow? It would be good to determine exactly where the water at the bottom of the machine is is coming from.

I'd get it checked out professionally.

Wear something on your feet.


----------



## nickrorschach (Apr 8, 2015)

Yeah, it's possible my hands were a bit wet. I had rinsed out the portafilter with the tap.

This is the thing - there is no machine malfunction at all. I did get the shock shortly after pressing the switch and i actually let the shot pull before i switched it off at the wall (i know this is naughty, but I hadn't had a coffee yet). Pulled one of the best shots i've ever pulled.


----------



## Thecatlinux (Mar 10, 2014)

What's your fuse board like ? Has it got an RCD for additional protection ?


----------



## El carajillo (Mar 16, 2013)

It would be a good idea to have your electrical circuits checked /tested in particular the earth circuit. IF there is a fault or poor connection the next time it could be FATAL !!!!

Other sockets in the property could be faulty also.


----------



## Dallah (Jan 31, 2015)

Forum member grumpydaddy is a sparky and has just put up a post on electrical safety. Perhaps he could offer some advice.

Here is a link to his post:

http://coffeeforums.co.uk/showthread.php?24760-Electrical-Safety-Your-house-and-your-appliances


----------



## grumpydaddy (Oct 20, 2014)

To be honest this is (yet another) post that made me want to.


----------

