# Refound Gaggia



## Shuttergirl (Oct 27, 2011)

Hi

I bought a Silvia last Nov as our Gaggia classic had packed up. I thought my ex-partner had passed it onto his friend, but when clearing out the garage, there it was behind loads of stuff...

Not sure what to do now or what to do with it. If I somehow upload a vid, is there anyone willing to have a bash at video diagnostics? If I can get it working again, it would be great.










Sue


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## seeq (Jul 9, 2011)

Hi there. The classic is a pretty simple machine, so fixing it yourself is a real possibility. For the guys on here it shouldn't be too hard to diagnose the problem either. What are the symptoms?


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## Shuttergirl (Oct 27, 2011)

Basically there's no water coming through main head. When its turned on, everything sounds ok for a couple of secs, then the machine pump noise goes quieter.






If I leave it on longer, machine starts to vibrate & make a louder noise. But water is coming through steam arm & is hot. I have some Cafiza - just not sure what to try first.

Sue


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## carbonkid85 (Jan 19, 2011)

I'm sure gaggiamanualservice will confirm, but it sounds a lot like a blocked 3-way valve to me. Sometimes, if the boiler hasn't been regularly descaled, a little piece of limescale can block the valve and prevent water from getting to the group head.

Seeq is right, these are really easy machines to work on. You might be able to clear the blockage by removing the valve from the boiler, soaking it in an appropriate descaler, blowing through it (!) and reassembling. Otherwise, a replacement 3 way valve isn't too hard to find.


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## Shuttergirl (Oct 27, 2011)

Thanks Carbonkid. No idea how to get to boiler etc, but will have a Google hunt.

Been trying to take off showerhead etc. But at the mo, I can't get the shower head holding plate Allen screws to budge. Have ordered some new Allen T-Handles to see if I can get some extra leverage. (May have to do some weight lifting to bump up my girl muscles, lol)

Head doesn't look that bad ?? (to me, anyway?!)


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## cafeco (Jun 15, 2011)

It's an easy fix, mine was the same. Depending on how gunked up it is, once you get those alan bolts out, you might need to prise that aluminium group bit off with a knife or screwdriver. Give it a good scrub and de-scale the machine using traditional methods.

Put it all back together and hey-presto it should work like new.


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## Shuttergirl (Oct 27, 2011)

It may be the Allen bolts that defeat me - til I can persuade a 20 yr old male body builder to come round for coffee *coughs*

Just in case, btw -? is there anywhere handy in UK to get Gaggia parts?


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## Dylan (Dec 5, 2011)

The Allen bolts are touch on these machines, I took mine [Cubika] apart yesterday for a thorough descaling. I would recommend a thick tea-towel wrapped around the Allen key which will allow you to get greater force on it without hurting your hand. Be really careful tho, the bolts will give way suddenly, which can send your hand flying off into the nearest piece of protruding metal, or trap a finger between Allen key and machine.

You will need to remove the top plate of the machine also, as the group head will lift out upwards, and there are going to be some even tougher Allen bolts holding the group head together. If it is anything like my Cubika there will also be some bolts to loosen which attach pipes to the group head. Take a photo of the insides with your phone so you know how it all goes back together afterwards.


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## Shuttergirl (Oct 27, 2011)

I've managed to get the Allen keys off, with a handy set of t-handles bought cheap online.

So should i just do a regular descale & clean, put it back together & see if it works. The showerhead doesnt look so bad to me, (but what do I know!) so does that mean it might well be something further inside?


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## tribs (Feb 21, 2012)

Yes the solenoid (likely cuplrit) is further inside. Try and clean that brown scale off if you can. That is old coffee


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## tribs (Feb 21, 2012)

Mark (gaggiamanualservice.com) wrote this wiki for checking and unblocking the solenoid.

http://coffeeforums.co.uk/showwiki.php?title=How+to+check+if+the+solenoid+is+blocked


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## Shuttergirl (Oct 27, 2011)

I think i'd need some kind of youtube guide or diagram, not sure what he means on that guide as to the solenoid is on the left? ?? I've got the steam arm disconnected ok, but am not sure what he means by disconnect pipe to boiler. Which pipe?


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## tribs (Feb 21, 2012)

Did you do the test at the top to check the solenoid works?

Hang on let me see if I can find some photos that illustrate it.


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## tribs (Feb 21, 2012)

A 5 second search has revealed exactly what you need. See here.

http://reedsmeals.blogspot.co.uk/2011/04/overhaul-of-gaggia-classic-espresso.html


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## Shuttergirl (Oct 27, 2011)

Well, that's a different version again, going in back way.

some stuff is harder to unplug or unscrew than others



















But I think I'm there -










If I'm going to soak it overnight, do I have to remove the top silvery tower bit from the brassy part, or can I just soak it as it is?

Tho' if I blow down the top silvery bit, holding it with two holes towards me, air comes out of the left hole. I think that means its working properly - doesn't it???


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## Shuttergirl (Oct 27, 2011)

I soaked the solenoid for 40 mins & put it all back together, having given head a good clean.

There is now a trickle of water coming through, but nothing much. I shd also say that the exterior of the group head is very very hot. Too hot to touch. (I don't remember it being that hot before it broke down. Any one else have this on their classic?)

With shower head back on - the water fades away


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## tribs (Feb 21, 2012)

I think you probably needed to remove the top part of the solenoid (including the silvery tower bit







) and poke the holes inside.


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## Shuttergirl (Oct 27, 2011)

I did that.


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## Dylan (Dec 5, 2011)

Trace the water back to the pump, if the path is unblocked back to this point then it is likely to be a malfunctioning pump incapable of delivering enough pressure to the group head.


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## Shuttergirl (Oct 27, 2011)

Thanks for the tip, I appreciate it - but when you say trace the water back, what does that involve?

The sound of the machine is very different when you first flick the switch, then it goes much quieter, like a mild hum, I think the first vid I posted shows that better than second. Would a pump problem do that? (I always thought it was a pump prob, when it first packed up, for some reason.)


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## Dylan (Dec 5, 2011)

Honestly I probably know as much as you now that you have taken it apart. But what I meant was that there is a pipe that feeds the group head with water, on my Cubika it is the pressure provided by this pipe that forces water out of the group head during brew, this may actually be different on the Classic as its a better machine and its obviously not ideal to feed cold water into the group head as a shot is pored.

Again, this is just a guess, but the sound you are hearing sounds to me like as the pump first provides pressure it sounds ok, but then as the pressure it has to provide builds it cannot cope, and the sound changes.

It would obviously be better to get an opinion from someone who knows a little more about what they are taking about however


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## tribs (Feb 21, 2012)

I thought that the pump is pushing water through the steam wand. That suggests the pump is ok. The change in noise is similar to having a blank basket or choking it with coffee, which suggests to me there is a blockage. But where? The solenoid is usually the culprit.

You said that if you blew in the top that you could feel air coming out of the left hole. Well the top is the outlet to the drip tray so this does not neccessarily mean that it works. Were you able to move the spring mechanism as suggested in the link I posted?

How old is this Classic? As the newer models have a smaller solenoid that is more prone to failure. It may be that it needs replacing. It seems that you have improved it a tiny bit so I might persevere trying to get it working. A new solenoid is 40 odd quid I think.


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