# Do the black plastic grouphead covers ever deteriorate?



## phario (May 7, 2017)

Pretty standard question. Do the black plastic grouphead covers ever deteriorate from heat or other day-to-day usage?


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## Jasetaylor (Jul 31, 2020)

phario said:


> Pretty standard question. Do the black plastic grouphead covers ever deteriorate from heat or other day-to-day usage?


 Only time will tell as they are around a year on the market, thus far I've heard nothing of the black covers deteriorating and I suspect it is highly unlikely. I'm not sure what plastic Rancilio use but I'd imagine it's something thermally stable.

The older chromed plastic covers did not suffer from heat deterioration as far as I know, it was more due to repeated impact of the portafilter against the cover over years of usage leading to damage to the chromed coating.


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## Doram (Oct 12, 2012)

phario said:


> Pretty standard question. Do the black plastic grouphead covers ever deteriorate from heat or other day-to-day usage?


 Can't say what will happen to the black plastic after years, but in the 9 months I had the machine it looked very stable and durable. In fact t looked new when I sold it. This is the solution Rancilio came up with after many years with the peeling chrome cover, so surely they would want something better. As far as I could see, they succeeded in solving that problem.


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## phario (May 7, 2017)

Doram said:


> Can't say what will happen to the black plastic after years, but in the 9 months I had the machine it looked very stable and durable. In fact t looked new when I sold it. This is the solution Rancilio came up with after many years with the peeling chrome cover, so surely they would want something better. As far as I could see, they succeeded in solving that problem.


 I'm sort of debating whether to spend £50 on the stainless steel grouphead covers that someone in Australia has cast. Or whether the black £20 ones will do.


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## Jasetaylor (Jul 31, 2020)

phario said:


> I'm sort of debating whether to spend £50 on the stainless steel grouphead covers that someone in Australia has cast. Or whether the black £20 ones will do.


 It wasn't too long ago that I pondered the same dilemma, I like the look of the black cover but seeing as my V5 chromed cover is in perfect condition and not wanting to invest much more in the Silvia in order to reduce any loses when I upgrade & decided to stick with the original cover.

https://www.ferrari-espresso.com/product/rancilio-silvia-chrome-plated-group-head-cover/


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## Doram (Oct 12, 2012)

phario said:


> I'm sort of debating whether to spend £50 on the stainless steel grouphead covers that someone in Australia has cast. Or whether the black £20 ones will do.


 I didn't like the idea of black plastic before I saw it in person. In fact, I thought it was a downgrade and initially ordered a V5 even though the V6 was already available. But when I got the machine I thought it was very good, not only durable, but also a smart choice as the black doesn't show marks from water and coffee droplets as the chrome/stainless, so it looked neat even when not perfectly clean. If it were me, I would happily replace a pealing chrome cover with the new black cover.

Having said that, I ended up selling the Silvia and getting an HX, because if you start throwing money at Silvia mods, you soon get into better machine price category.


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## espressoSquirrel (Jul 24, 2020)

my chrome one looks perfect after 14 years... the black will probably last even longer


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## phario (May 7, 2017)

Doram said:


> I didn't like the idea of black plastic before I saw it in person. In fact, I thought it was a downgrade and initially ordered a V5 even though the V6 was already available. But when I got the machine I thought it was very good, not only durable, but also a smart choice as the black doesn't show marks from water and coffee droplets as the chrome/stainless, so it looked neat even when not perfectly clean. If it were me, I would happily replace a pealing chrome cover with the new black cover.


 Thanks! That was really helpful, particularly the point about how the black cover would show fewer marks when there is dirt.


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## Bigbrownbear (Oct 7, 2020)

Fitted the black cover last night. £22.50 to replace a chromed one. Granted the machine used every day almost for 5 years and needed a new one. Unbelievable how it's fixed with two screws into plastic but it's Italian!! Too expensive when They could have fitted a decent stainless one first.

guess you could always paint the original but overall worth doing as you have to look at that every single morning.

also insulated the boiler while inside. A job been meaning to do for years.


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## phario (May 7, 2017)

Bigbrownbear said:


> also insulated the boiler while inside. A job been meaning to do for years.


 Any tips on doing that?


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## Bigbrownbear (Oct 7, 2020)

Plenty of info on the net. Think it's been done and advices on in here. Using 8mm silicone foam cut to shape. ( it's about the most you'll get around the boiler in the room it has. )Take off the connectors to switches inside. Use a phone to take pictures every step so you can refer back when reconnecting them. Cable tie the foam around. A couple large heavy duty types will suffice. Really sharp pairing knife to chop out gaps for connectors and done. I did the group head plastic replacement before hand as the foam will cover over the screw heads for that when in place.

Quite a difference noticed already with how warm machine stays and how little energy is used to kick the boiler back into play by thermostat. Given the Silvia's wattage and our cold kitchen in winter I may even help save the planet 🌏 a bit .... 😁


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