# Barista Express Pressure Issue



## georgem96 (Apr 18, 2020)

I've had my Barista Express for almost three years and haven't had any faults until now. Would be very grateful if anyone has any advice or suggestions!

Sadly I've been having pressure issues with it over the last couple of weeks. The machine turns on and warms up normally. When I press the shot button there's a loud, electrical buzzing noise for a split second, and it begins pre-infusion. After pre-infusion, the needle on the pressure gauge hardly moves, suggesting low pressure, but the flow is very slow and coffee is over-extracted. I adjust the grind and dosing accordingly, but cannot get back to the excellent espresso I've consistently enjoyed for the last couple of years.

Steaming is also affected. When switching to the steam mode, the steam wand produces very low pressure steam which takes minutes to even warm the milk... I've thoroughly cleaned the steam wand assembly, so it's not a blockage there.

In terms of my use, I haven't changed the beans I use so don't think it's an issue with how I'm dialling in the coffee. I clean it regularly but do live in London with fairly hard water so am worried it might have just scaled up.

Would appreciate any advice, or if anyone else has had a similar issue. It's outside of warranty, so would rather attempt to fix it before sending it for a very expensive service!


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## TomHughes (Dec 16, 2019)

Were you filtering your water? 
How often were you descaling it and what with? 
Have you read my post as I mention this


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## Dalerst (Jan 22, 2020)

When was the last time you descalied it? If you are using tap water in a hard water area and haven't been doing it regularly, that is more likely the problem.


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## georgem96 (Apr 18, 2020)

Thanks both, will descale before trying anything else


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## TomHughes (Dec 16, 2019)

georgem96 said:


> Thanks both, will descale before trying anything else


 What are you descaling it with and how often? 
As that might dictate what you need to do now.


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## georgem96 (Apr 18, 2020)

TomHughes said:


> What are you descaling it with and how often?
> As that might dictate what you need to do now.


 Last descaled it a long time ago, maybe several months. Usually I just use a domestic product such as Oust. Do you think that would be suitable to try now?


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## TomHughes (Dec 16, 2019)

georgem96 said:


> Last descaled it a long time ago, maybe several months. Usually I just use a domestic product such as Oust. Do you think that would be suitable to try now?


 That would work. But if you haven't descaled it in months you may block it, so be prepared for that. You may need to run it though twice. 
For reference I live in a moderately hard water area and descaled monthly.


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## georgem96 (Apr 18, 2020)

TomHughes said:


> That would work. But if you haven't descaled it in months you may block it, so be prepared for that. You may need to run it though twice.
> For reference I live in a moderately hard water area and descaled monthly.


 Thanks for the advice, I'll give that a go. I'll make it a habit to clean and descale more often too!


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