# Gaggia Classic - Water flow problem



## Whatlarks (Aug 22, 2019)

Just having a problem with my 7 - 8 year old Classic. Up to about a month ago it performed without a hiccup. First signs of a problem was after I'd made an espresso, switched the machine off then came make another about 1 hour later. Switched the machine on, attached the portafilla, left to warm up for about 5-10 mins. When I came to run some hot water through the portafilla into my cup there was no water flow and the pump started making a much quieter sound than usual - I checked and no water flow through the steam wand either.

So I left the machine until it was cold, switched on and tried to run some water through the group head and all was fine. So I carried on and made a successful espresso.

This lack of flpw continued to be a problem until a week or so ago when I switched the machine on from cold and there was no flow at all either through the group head or the steam wand.

So I spent some time combing coffeeforums.co.uk and others and found this could possibly be a blocked 3-way solenoid valve or maybe a faulty pump.

Yesterday I removed the 3-way solenoid valve and opened it up. There was no calcification evidence at all, just a couple of very small dark brown deposits in the part where the two holes are - we live in a very soft water area with zero calcification problems.

So I cleaned off the dark brown deposits, checked that the small holes weren't blocked and re-assembled.

Still no water through either grouphead or steam wand. So I tried to manually prime the pump. I couldn't really work out quite how to do this but ended up removing the pipe out of the water tank and placing it into a jug of water at a higher level than the Gaggia; my logic to utilise gravity to help the water into the pump. What actually happened is that I unintentionally allowed some air into the pipe followed by water and this started up the pump which flowed first through the steam wand and then, with the steam wand tap closed, the group head. I switched off the brew switch, quickly replaced the pipe into the water tank and switched back on. The flow continued for 1-2 mins with water flowing through the steam wand and then with its tap closed the group head ... so by this time the group head and boiler up to temperature so no blockages.

So I switched off the brew switch, attached the empty portafilla and started my coffee brew sequence ... Grind some coffee, empty cup under portafilla, switch on to fill cup with hot water ... just a quarter of a cup and then the water flow stopped and the pump reverted to a quiet hum.

Any suggestions would be much appreciated. Is this a weak, worn out pump or is there some other faulty item. I'm struggling to see how this could be the 3-way solenoid valve, given the steady water flow earlier in the day.

Many thanks

Ian


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## Bacms (Jul 25, 2019)

Whatlarks said:


> Just having a problem with my 7 - 8 year old Classic. Up to about a month ago it performed without a hiccup. First signs of a problem was after I'd made an espresso, switched the machine off then came make another about 1 hour later. Switched the machine on, attached the portafilla, left to warm up for about 5-10 mins. When I came to run some hot water through the portafilla into my cup there was no water flow and the pump started making a much quieter sound than usual - I checked and no water flow through the steam wand either.
> So I left the machine until it was cold, switched on and tried to run some water through the group head and all was fine. So I carried on and made a successful espresso.
> This lack of flpw continued to be a problem until a week or so ago when I switched the machine on from cold and there was no flow at all either through the group head or the steam wand.
> So I spent some time combing coffeeforums.co.uk and others and found this could possibly be a blocked 3-way solenoid valve or maybe a faulty pump.
> ...


Seems like you have a blockage on your group head. Do you descale the machine at all? If not even in a soft water area may be your problem

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk


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## Agentb (Feb 11, 2017)

All i can suggest is the pump should move about 500-600 ml per minute. So i think i'd test it without it being connected and see how it performs. Also test without the shower screen and plate detached.

If you haven't descaled for a while then that may well be the problem. ?


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## Whatlarks (Aug 22, 2019)

Bacms said:


> Seems like you have a blockage on your group head. Do you descale the machine at all? If not even in a soft water area may be your problem
> 
> Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk


 I suppose it could be a blockage, but I'm not totally convinced. Yesterday I had the water flowing through the group head for over a minute and it was a strong flow, so it seems odd if the blockage is there.

No, I have never descaled it ... when I opened up the 3-way solendoid valve there was zero scale ... but I do remove and clean the shower on a weekly basis and I backflush every couple of months. I have also taken the shower holder off and cleaned it up with Puly Caff ... no scale, but quite a bit of brown coffee residue welded on. At the moment it is difficult to descale, so I guess I'm goint to have to dismantle the group head and boiler.

Thanks for your help,

Ian


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## Whatlarks (Aug 22, 2019)

Agentb said:


> All i can suggest is the pump should move about 500-600 ml per minute. So i think i'd test it without it being connected and see how it performs. Also test without the shower screen and plate detached.
> 
> If you haven't descaled for a while then that may well be the problem. ?


 I'll give that a try.

Many thanks, Ian


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## Bacms (Jul 25, 2019)

Whatlarks said:


> I suppose it could be a blockage, but I'm not totally convinced. Yesterday I had the water flowing through the group head for over a minute and it was a strong flow, so it seems odd if the blockage is there.
> No, I have never descaled it ... when I opened up the 3-way solendoid valve there was zero scale ... but I do remove and clean the shower on a weekly basis and I backflush every couple of months. I have also taken the shower holder off and cleaned it up with Puly Caff ... no scale, but quite a bit of brown coffee residue welded on. At the moment it is difficult to descale, so I guess I'm goint to have to dismantle the group head and boiler.
> Thanks for your help,
> Ian
> <img alt="IMAG2021.thumb.jpg.25ded99d085297eaaeb07cd7156d6933.jpg" data-fileid="32005" data-src="<fileStore.core_Attachment>/monthly_2019_09/IMAG2021.thumb.jpg.25ded99d085297eaaeb07cd7156d6933.jpg" src="https://www.coffeeforums.co.uk/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png">


As mentioned before test the output of the pump. You can disconnect the tube going to the boiler and measure the flow per minute. If it is fine then it is certainly a blockage. Maybe a loose particle of scale that keeps moving hard to know. 
In any case run some citric acid through the boiler no need to disassemble anything.

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## les24preludes (Dec 30, 2017)

Not sure how this ended up, but a cautionary tale about descaling. I had the low flow issue, and mine is actually a Baby but an early 2002 one, very like the Classic internally. I took off the shower screen and group head to no avail, at this point just getting drips. Having nothing to lose I put a very concentrated mixture of citric acid and hot water into the tank and thankfully the drips started to increase and turn brown, followed by a small flow and then a nice robust flow. Put is all back together again, ran around 3 litres of clean water through the machine and it's working fine again. Possibly a narrow escape. A reminder to clean more regularly in my case - left it for a good 6 months over the summer period.


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## Whatlarks (Aug 22, 2019)

Thank you all for you helpful replies. In the end, having opened up the solenoid 3-way valve, I was quite certain this was not a scale issue; we live in a very soft water area. So I went with my gut instinct and bought a new pump (a CP3A 65W Invensys ARS Eaton D from Shock_Waves_Shop on ebay) and after a week of problem free espresso I can confirm that this has solved the issue.


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