Posted Sat Nov 5, 2005, 12:05pm Subject: Clogged Gaggia Classic
I encountered a thread (Clogged Gaggia Espresso from July 2004) originally posted by Daniel McMath regarding a clogged Gaggia Espresso. I'm now having the same problem with my five year old Classic. Your solution sounds fine except I have no idea how the things actually come apart and am not familiar with the part terminology. I believe that Classic & Espresso have the same type of group head, although I might be wrong. I took out those two allen bolts but nothing seems to come out. Do I need to whack something with a hammer to loosen up something or do I need to remove the whole boiler assembly to get into the group head to clean it out? If so, I'm concerned about remembering all the connections for when I need to put it all back together. Lots of wires/tubes/bolts! Are there any online instructions, especially with photos or illustrations, that are available for this? I also think I need such instructions to replace the gasket.
Incidentially, I do periodically clean the machine with Clean Caf, although probably not often enough. when cleaning it double strength, it temporarily alleviates the problem just a little but before long it is down to a trickle once again.
Posted Sat Nov 5, 2005, 12:16pm Subject: Re: Clogged Gaggia Classic
Had the same problem. Take a screw with the same thread as the shower head screw (metal screw #14 i think) With the shower head off screw the metal screw up the middle of the group head (after you have taken out the two allen nuts). Slowly.... 1/4 turn at a time.. easy... Voila, the group head pops off. Clean up that and clean out all your hole in your shower head as well. If your rubber gasket is stuck (mine was) take a dry wall screw and screw it into one side of the rubber gasket. Take plyers and pull it off by pulling down on the drywall screw. That should take care of your machine. Do a cleaning of the group head every month. Good luck
Posted Sun Nov 6, 2005, 6:55am Subject: Re: Clogged Gaggia Classic
Thanks, Jon. I'll give it a try. The only thing I'm concerned about is that that #14 screw size is accurate. I'd hate to damage the threads so I can't reattach the shower head. I just be very careful.
Hello Fellas, Quick Question - I noticed the both of you have classics and mdf combos - how do you feel about the mdf? I recently purchased a classic and am debating on the mdf - any postives/negatives? Within the price range would you do it again or would you opt for something of higher potnetial (mazzer etc)?
also any interest in the gaggia base to support the 2? is it worth the extra $50 thanks ahead of time
Hello Fellas, Quick Question - I noticed the both of you have classics and mdf combos - how do you feel about the mdf? I recently purchased a classic and am debating on the mdf - any postives/negatives? Within the price range would you do it again or would you opt for something of higher potnetial (mazzer etc)?
also any interest in the gaggia base to support the 2? is it worth the extra $50 thanks ahead of time
Hello Fellas, Quick Question - I noticed the both of you have classics and mdf combos - how do you feel about the mdf? I recently purchased a classic and am debating on the mdf - any postives/negatives? Within the price range would you do it again or would you opt for something of higher potnetial (mazzer etc)?
also any interest in the gaggia base to support the 2? is it worth the extra $50 thanks ahead of time
I don't have this "combo" but I thought I'd chime in anyway. There's nothing magical about having the same badge on both machines. I'd get the best grinder you can get for whatever you budget. I haven't used an MDF, but I've heard the doser is rather flimsy and there's lots of plastic. IMO, there are better grinders in this price range. However, if the wife thinks otherwise, forget what I just said. If she wants a matching set and a base, there's no point asking us for advice!
Re the "classic combo" I did not have a choice on the "inherited" classic but I did on the grinder. In a two week period I went from a blade grinder ($9.95), stale roasted beans, and a $14.95 bodum to my present equipment and freshly roasted beans. With that in mind, you can probably understand why I have absolutly nothing bad to say about my "babies". The coffee machine came to me free as it was totally clogged up after 4 years of abuse and not one cleaning. Still using my blade grinder and stale beans I came across Coffeegeek one day and several hours of reading realized that , "THERE WAS A PROBLEM IN HOUSTON". More equipment was needed!!!! I did a lot of research and being from a small city in New Brunswick where Tim Hortons rule there were not a lot of options for purchasing grinders. (none for beans) There was a coffee shop that did have one gaggia evolution for sale and the owner said he could order the MDF in for me at a resonable price. Even tho I was dreaming of having one of those "amazing Mazzers", the price was just too much for me to spend on a simple grinder for coffee???? So, I spend half the money ($400 Can) and got the MDF. It was not a matter of not having the $800 for the mazzer either... just couldn't justify it. (at that time anyway) Received the MDF, bought a hot air popper, and my wife and I could not believe the quality of coffee we were drinking in comparison to before. One year later it is still the highlight of our morning and evening. Absolute Heaven!!!
Now my question.... I listened to all the folks on Coffeegeek about grinders and beans... They were right. No question about it. I have not experienced the mazzer "or" the $1500 and up espresso machines. Can it get that much better for me than it is now???? I am thinking it can in a very small, deep, dark corner of my mind.... Is there anyone out there that has any experience in this type of situation? Even better..... how do I approach my better half and explain the need for a $3000. upgrade....???*** :-)
I have already started doing my research and the first purchase will be a new grinder!!! (I still love my MDF tho. Doser is fine, piece of rubber underneath to keep it from sliding across the tiles, plastic goes with my house siding... and the grind is great for someone who has nothing to compare it to but a blade grinder!!!
I found a bolt (actually my wife did) that is the correct thread size. I used it as you suggested and it worked exactly as you said. I also used the drywall screw as you suggested to get the old gasket out and that worked exactly as you said. It looks like there is only one hole off to the side in the top part of the group head where the water comes out. At least I didn't see any others.
Anyway, I cleaned out all the excess buildup, replaced the gasket and put it back together. The results were slightly better, but far from fixed. I guess I'm now going to have to go farther, removing the whole thing and try more cleaning. I guess if I label all the connectors, I'll be able to put it back together once I'm done. Worst case, I'll just buy replacement parts from gaggiaparts.com. Not cheap, but a lot cheaper than replacing the machine.
Anyway, thanks for the advice. I'll update the thread when I've taken the next step.
As far as the MDF, I got it as an improvement over the entry level Gaggia MM, which was awful. It had no consistency and was very messy. The MDF may not be as good as other machines, but it was such a dramatic improvement over the MM that I was very happy. I will say, though, that the steps between grind levels is a little more coarse than I'd like. It depends upon the batch of coffee but the difference between two adjacent numbers on the grinder sometimes means a pour that is almost non-existent to one that is way too fast. This doesn't always happen. When it does I compensate by grinding part of the time on one level and then switching to the adjacent level. This results in helping me optimize the pouring speed (I generally shoot for 2 oz in 25 seconds). It might be easier with a stepless grinder, but I'm not about to change. After five years of making espresso, I've given up obsession and relaxed. Sometimes I even wonder if the difference of a few seconds and a half oz really makes that much difference in an objective sense. Even seemingly bad pours taste about as good as the ideal ones. As far as the base, I figure it is a matter of taste. It is not for me.
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