# Sage DB reliability - opinions please.



## Beeroclock (Aug 10, 2015)

Hi All

am about to push the button on a Sage DB as there are some good deals about...this is to replace my ageing and slightly frustrating Silvia at home, (have a La Spaziale mini vivaldi 2 at work which I love). I only make one flat white a day (at home) and 4-8 at the weekend depending.

The Sage ticks all the boxes in terms of quick up to temp time relatively compact easy to clean etc. The machine will come with a 2 yr guarantee - my worry is once this ends, is it case of throwing it away if it goes wrong?

Any help much appreciated.

Thanks Philip


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

Where are you buying if from ?


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## Beeroclock (Aug 10, 2015)

looking to buy from ecookshop - but john lewis won't price match as their online business is separate to their stores?? - could get an extra yr on my extended warranty cover through my bank...


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

if you buy a tv, do you expect it to last any longer than the warranty period? I have a Sage with 3 years John Lewis warranty, but I would probably expect to chuck it after that, however, Sage do route all their repairs through one UK company who say they can mend anything so I would not worry


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## Beeroclock (Aug 10, 2015)

Fair play...just weighing up the costs...3yr old Expobar would still be worth a bit and fully serviceable - though I realise this is a different machine etc.


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## GerryM (Feb 6, 2016)

Whilst the DB isn't built to last a lifetime I will be disappointed if mine only lasts as long as the warranty, I've had TV's that last for years and only get rid of them to buy something more modern.

It's not a given that the DB will only last 3 years, although, if it can't be repaired after three years I will have had my money's worth. At the moment it hasn't missed a beat and it's a fabulous machine to use.

My view is go ahead and buy one, they are a great machine for the money and if you want an extended warranty they can be bought separately at a cost I suspect.


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## michaelg (Jul 25, 2013)

Or buy from Lakeland with their lifetime 'satisfaction guarantee' which I think a few people have used to replace items outside the warranty before. I bought from there myself for my Dual Boiler. Very happy with it.


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## DavecUK (Aug 6, 2013)

seems no reason why a machine of that class shouldn't last 5 years +. Sure it's not a steel and chrome prosumer jopbbie that you can keep going for 20+ years but it should be fairly robust.


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## Ritch (Aug 23, 2015)

Another vote for the Lakeland warranty. i've had the joy of using it in the past for some other kitchen electricals and they didn't bat an eye at the prospect of replacing a six year old piece of kit with a new equivalent; really couldn't fault them. Just don't lose the receipt...


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## abvilejn (Feb 6, 2015)

I got my my DB in January 2015 from ecookshop. Their service was great, but when machine packed up after 6 months (steam boiler), they wouldn't swap DB for another machine like John Lewis is doing for it's customers. I was left on my own to ring Sage appliances customer service and they did fix the problem, although it took 3 weeks just to replace faulty boiler. In January 2017 I've started experiencing problems with DB again: this time was leaking from steam wand and hot water spout. Service team had to come twice to sort the problem out. It turned out that it was steam valve (faulty). Just a few days ago, after descaling machine (don't know if it's any coincidence or not) my beloved DB started playing up again: making "funny" noises, and no water coming to extract coffee and hot water spout is working intermittently. Rang customer service and was advised to descale machine again. Unfortunately, it's no better. I'm not sure what could go wrong, but the top of DB (where I usually have my cups) is significantly hotter than before (around 55•C). I'm really disappointed in DB performance, but I think I've got "a bad apple". I wasn't expecting all of this problems literally just outside warranty period. I only make 2-3 coffees a day, so in my opinion it should have flawless performance longer than 2 years.


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## Beeroclock (Aug 10, 2015)

Hmmm this is what I'm worried about, at £849 from ecookshop with 9 months interest free - it seems like a no brainer. There just isn't anything out there quite like it for the price. John Lewis won't match ecookshop and not sure about lakeland. They obviously sell a ton of these machines - so it's hard to guess where they fall in regards to the others. Would be interesting to do a poll on who's had problems etc.


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

Beeroclock said:


> Hmmm this is what I'm worried about, at £849 from ecookshop with 9 months interest free - it seems like a no brainer. There just isn't anything out there quite like it for the price. John Lewis won't match ecookshop and not sure about lakeland. They obviously sell a ton of these machines - so it's hard to guess where they fall in regards to the others. Would be interesting to do a poll on who's had problems etc.


Can you not buy an extended warranty through Domestic & General or the likes of


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## Beeroclock (Aug 10, 2015)

Had a quick look at D&G and they didn't recognise Sage (or Breville for that matter) as a manufacturer:starving: Can't us my Barclays additions any more cos they've screwed me and stop that particular cover....


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

Beeroclock said:


> Hmmm this is what I'm worried about, at £849 from ecookshop with 9 months interest free - it seems like a no brainer. There just isn't anything out there quite like it for the price. John Lewis won't match ecookshop and not sure about lakeland. They obviously sell a ton of these machines - so it's hard to guess where they fall in regards to the others. Would be interesting to do a poll on who's had problems etc.


Buy it from John Lewis pay the extra to have the comfort they bring .

A poll on problems wouldnt tell you much as you dint know how many has been sold ( alot i I imagine ) . How many errors are down to user error ( poor water , descale etc ) and how this compares to other machines


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

http://www.lakeland.co.uk/19340/Sage™-The-Dual-Boiler™-Professional-Espresso-Coffee-Machine-BES92OUK


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## NickdeBug (Jan 18, 2015)

Completely agree with Boots.

Worth buying from a company with a good reputation for aftersales service rather than an online box-shifter

Any servicing/repair work is likely to be managed through Sage, but if you have no luck with them then Lakeland always give you the option of just handing it back for exchange or refund.

If you want to be cheeky then you can ask Lakeland if they will price match as they include online retailers but it will have to be a silver one as that's all they sell. It has to be a retailer promotion rather than a sale item for them to match it.


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

Lakeland sell on Amazon. It is full price but they also extend the warranty to 3 years for £39. Amazon regularly has these on at a discount so wait a bit and see what turns up

https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Coffee-Tea-Espresso/Sage-Heston-Blumenthal-Boiler-Machine/B00G6FVTTE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1489056638&sr=8-1&keywords=sage+dual+boiler


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## fluffles (Sep 4, 2012)

Lakeland do price match online, I did this with them last week


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## Beeroclock (Aug 10, 2015)

Thanks for all the responses and do agree - however it's the £849 deal I was interested coupled with the interest free option - If I go to lakeland or John Lewis - we're back up to over £1000 and I'm not sure I'm prepared to shell that out on the Sage - would probably rather look at a traditional machine on that basis.


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

I think these machines fall into categories. Those that will never miss a beat (and there seems to be plenty fitting that category) and those that will need repair. I think it just comes down to which type of machine you receive and thats the difficult part. I got a red one price matched by John Lewis and a black one from Ecookshop. I have made this point before. Sage have a repair contract with

http://coffeeclassics.co.uk/what-we-do/machine-repair-or-breakdown/

so your machine will always be fixable and Sage themselves normally seem to play ball with older machines , but.......is a traditional machine a better bet for longevity?


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## NickdeBug (Jan 18, 2015)

Interest free deals can be replicated for any purchase using an interest free credit card. Even PayPal now offer 4 months at 0% for purchases over £150.

If you are debating whether or not a Sage DB is worth a £1000 then that is something that can only be answered by you based on your circumstances. I paid quite a bit less for mine but I also compared it to a nearly new Rocket R58 (which had cost me £1100 *£1800 new) and I preferred the Sage.


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## ronsil (Mar 8, 2012)

Beeroclock said:


> Thanks for all the responses and do agree - however it's the £849 deal I was interested coupled with the interest free option - If I go to lakeland or John Lewis - we're back up to over £1000 and I'm not sure I'm prepared to shell that out on the Sage - would probably rather look at a traditional machine on that basis.


I have owned & used both types.

Other than the Vesuvius which is in a class of its own, over the years I have owned a Izzo Vivi, a La Spaziale S1 & several other machines of the same kind.

To my almost complete surprise the Sage Oracle (upmarket DB) meets all my needs & outperforms the other prosumers without falter.


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## flattie (Mar 7, 2017)

Beeroclock said:


> Thanks for all the responses and do agree - however it's the £849 deal I was interested coupled with the interest free option - If I go to lakeland or John Lewis - we're back up to over £1000 and I'm not sure I'm prepared to shell that out on the Sage - would probably rather look at a traditional machine on that basis.


Have checked with John Lewis and they will price match Go Electrical, which has it for £888 at the moment, if that interests you.


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## Beeroclock (Aug 10, 2015)

Thanks Flattie will check out tomorrow


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## Beeroclock (Aug 10, 2015)

So I called John Lewis this morning and they will price match Go Electrical - but the extra 1yr warranty option for £39 seems to have disappeared since yesterday - all they are offering is accidental cover for 2 yrs at £25 (runs concurrently with the standard warranty)....perhaps in light of their recent announcements they are tightening up....


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## GlennV (Mar 29, 2013)

This machine has been available for longer in the US, and a good report on (the generally good) long term reliability can be found here:

http://www.home-barista.com/espresso-machines/breville-dual-boiler-five-years-on-t45361.html

Having taken one apart myself, this all sounds credible to me - the connectors do rely on the o rings being in good condition. Some changes have been made to the solenoid and the way it's mounted, so one would hope that it's now more reliable. As has been mentioned, coffee classics supply parts and will service them - I've bought parts from them and they're very helpful. It's easy to take the top off the machine to get to the innards, much more difficult to access places like the bottom of the steel boiler though (when you drop something ...). Good machines, I hope to keep mine going for a long time.


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## MatthewBw (Sep 9, 2015)

My Sage BE went wrong in warranty due to following Sages inadequate descaling instructions (at least according to the repair guy) which apparently aren't effective in the Uk due to hard water. Sage sent a guy out without any arguments and were very good.

The non Sage repair guy said the parts arent hard to source and it's a good solid machine that will be serviceable long after my warranty. I certainly felt better and he also gave some puly descaler to use.


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## MatthewBw (Sep 9, 2015)

Actually he may have been from coffee classics


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## flattie (Mar 7, 2017)

MatthewBw said:


> My Sage BE went wrong in warranty due to following Sages inadequate descaling instructions which apparently aren't effective in the Uk. Sage sent a guy with it without any arguments and were very good.
> 
> The non Sage repair guy said the parts arent hard to source and it's a good solid machine that will be serviceable long after my warranty. I certainly felt better and he also gave some puly descaler to use.


About to pick one up... what's the tip on descaling?


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## MatthewBw (Sep 9, 2015)

He said to use Puly descaler, the instructions say to use white vinegar which the repair chap said isn't sufficient in the UK as a general rule.

It's a powder in small packets, seems very effective.


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## MatthewBw (Sep 9, 2015)

I think this is it.


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## Dylan (Dec 5, 2011)

If you live in a hard water area it is worth picking up a pack of Urnex Dezcal, less expensive than the Puly and does the same job.


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