# La Pavoni Advice



## urbanbumpkin (Jan 30, 2013)

I'm having a play with the La Pavoni that I picked up for Rhys.

There's a few things that need tweaking on it.

The boiler swivels on the base a bit, which is not an uncommon problem with them and fairly easily fixable from what I've read.

The PF doesn't lock particularly far. Not sure if this is normal or if it's just the gasket that's a bit too thick.

Also the green light doesn't come on the side to say it's ready. Although I can hear the heating element clicking on and off. The longest it's been on is approx 35 mins.

The steam wand drips a tiny bit after use, bit is fine when the machine is first switched on.

So this is what I've been doing so far:-

Leaving it on for approx 20-25 mins. Giving the steam wand a quick purge. Waiting 30 secs then lock in the PF with a 14g dose.

Slowly lift lever to the top, waiting till the first drops come out (usually approx 8-15secs) then slowly pulling down the lever.

I did grind finer today and waited for approx 20 secs with the lever up, nothing came out so I panicked and pushed the lever down anyway. Shot seemed ok.

Any tips from the La Pavoni users on here of what I'm doing wrong?


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## Rob1 (Apr 9, 2015)

I've never had drops appearing from lifting the lever unless the coffee is old/ground too coarse. I always pulled based on pressure rather than time aiming to exert about 13kg of force on the lever, but you can obviously profile.

I'm surprised your machine didn't over heat in 20-25 minutes. I find the Pavoni pro unusable in less than 15.

The portafilter barely locking in is normal with a new gasket and is nothing to worry about so long as it doesn't move during the shot.

The dripping steam wand is possibly because of damage to the valve caused by over tightening, or could be condensation in the steam arm but I haven't experienced that.

There a good seal between heating element and boiler/ boiler and base? I wouldn't want to use it until I'd fixed the swivelling boiler.


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## urbanbumpkin (Jan 30, 2013)

Thanks for the guidelines. There's no pressure gauge on this one so it just guess work.

The drip guide I only got from an online guide. I only had the drips come when I used grinds from a porlex at work.

If it was mine I'd probably look at tightening the base. From what I've read it could be a couple of gaskets or just need tightening. As it's not mine I don't really want to mess about with it in case I damage it.

I'll probably knock it on the head if it's not good to use it in this condition.

14g dose ok though, how long do you leave the lever lifted for?


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## aFiercePancake (Dec 8, 2013)

I would strongly recommend fixing the loose base problem as soon as possible. Seriously. You can be damaging the machine further by using it as is.

To my recollection, none of the La Pavonis' power lights turn off when the heating element cycles. I could be wrong.

For the portafilter, as noted it might be the portafilter gasket. Unless you know it was replaced before you bought it, replace it. PF gasket replacement is standard maintenance. With a basket and a good gasket, the handle does not turn very far when locked.

For a Professional (the larger version), I would expect it to reach operating temperature the first time (from cold) within 20 minutes.

Some people think it is best to wait for a few drops to come out before pulling the shot; I prefer to grind tighter. If I see drips before my counting ends, the dose is not enough or the grind is too coarse. Pre-infusion time can vary depending on bean, grind, and dose, but my experience suggests waiting no longer than 10 seconds before pulling the shot.

I assume that you are using the La Pavoni double basket, yes?

Without intending to seem snarky, the best suggestion for success with a La Pavoni is patience. Lots of patience. And a good grinder. That goes without saying.


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## Rhys (Dec 21, 2014)

According to the advert, it was fully serviced and then not used for a while.


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## urbanbumpkin (Jan 30, 2013)

aFiercePancake said:


> I would strongly recommend fixing the loose base problem as soon as possible. Seriously. You can be damaging the machine further by using it as is.


Cheers Fierce pancake, I've stopped using the machine


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## Rob1 (Apr 9, 2015)

You probably need to remove the heating element and tighten the boiler to base ring. You might need to replace the gasket on the heating element.

I keep the lever up until the group is filled (I have to give it a few pumps without putting pressure on the coffee by not lower past the point where water starts to enter the group). In my experience it didn't make a difference to the shot if the lever was up for 10 seconds or 30, though of course you are going to be losing heat as the group fills and the coffee will be heated before the extraction really begins if you keep it lifted for too long. I always got the group full in less than 20 seconds and let the machine heat up for 13 minutes before pulling the shot. I think around the 8 minute mark I flushed water through the group and portafilter into a cup to preheat. I haven't used it for a while though so can't quite remember, not that it's relevant to you with your europicolla since it's a different size with two temp settings.


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## Rhys (Dec 21, 2014)

Found a thread here on how to fix it.


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## PreCoffeeCantankerousness (Dec 14, 2014)

Hi urbanbumpkin

Boiler swivel: I get this on my brand new pavoni europiccola when putting the portafilter on and off. I thought that was just the way it was. Should I be concerned? Contact the supplier to get it repaired under its guarantee?

Dripping steam wand: I think I once read this was down to valves needing replaced.

Pouring & waiting times: This ones a bit odd. Slowly lift the handle. Hold for 5 seconds. Nothing should come out. Slowly start pulling the handle down. Within 5-10 seconds coffee should start dripping out. 20 seconds later you should have something drinkable.

If you have to apply a lot of pressure or nothing comes out in about 15 seconds then the grind is too fine.

If when you start pulling the handle down, coffee comes out within 2-3 seconds, then you didn't grind fine enough.

Be sure to also monitor your temperature.


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## Rhys (Dec 21, 2014)

Update: The green light does come on while it's heating up, then goes out when it's up to temp. The base is quite stiff when cold and moves slightly whwn hot so does need tightening. It doesn't move if I hold onto the pf handle when pulling, or the lever when putting the pf in. Just need to get a gasket set and a security torx bit now to fix it. Oh, and a way to tighten it up without having to buy a special tool I've seen mentioned before.


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## urbanbumpkin (Jan 30, 2013)

Isn't it something like an oil filter spanner that you can use?


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## Rhys (Dec 21, 2014)

urbanbumpkin said:


> Isn't it something like an oil filter spanner that you can use?


I don't know if that will be big enough tbh. Some methods say to use a large punch and give it a whack, but I think I should be able to find a way to tighten it.


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