odangelo Senior Member Joined: 19 Jan 2013 Posts: 3 Location: Burlington, ON, Canada Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Sat Jan 19, 2013, 2:34pm Subject: La Pavoni EBR Not Making Coffee
I have a La Pavoni EBR (type 12) that decided this morning to not produce coffee. I think what happened is that I stupidly let the water get too low in the reservoir and this morning the pump was sucking air. When I opened up the case, the boiler was working fine (hot) and I noticed no corroded connections. The unit is approximately 5 years old. Taking the unit in for repair is ridiculously expensive. Does anyone know how to troubleshoot the pump (electrical and mechanically)? Is there a way to prime the pump again without replacing it?
SStones Senior Member Joined: 24 Nov 2012 Posts: 209 Location: Canada Expertise: Professional
Espresso: Giga 5, ECM Giotto, Rocket... Grinder: Anfim Milano-Best Vac Pot: No :( Drip: Some $30 thing from Walmart Roaster: I buy pre-roasted.
Posted Sat Jan 19, 2013, 3:46pm Subject: Re: La Pavoni EBR Not Making Coffee
I think that the EBR is the chrome looking one with the green rocker-switches, right? It;s just a littlr guy with a vibrating pump, anyway. If the pump is making noise, then it is trying to pump. Force water through it to prime it. If it's not making noise, then it is either burnt out or not getting power. Check for power with a voltmeter. Check both ways, some machines have a diode inline with the pump to half-phase the pump's operation. So if it has power and isn't making any noise, it is dead. If you can get a new pump for less than half the price of replacing the machine, replace the pump. If it has no power check the safety thermal fuses and high-limit thermostats on top of the boiler and what-not. See what does and does not have power, and you'll find the reason your pump has none.
odangelo Senior Member Joined: 19 Jan 2013 Posts: 3 Location: Burlington, ON, Canada Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Sat Jan 19, 2013, 8:14pm Subject: Re: La Pavoni EBR Not Making Coffee
Thanks SStones for replying. The EBR that I have is indeed the one with three green rocker switches on the front. The pump is making noise so I believe it has power but I'll check the wiring anyway. I have an illustrated parts list but does anyone have a wiring diagram (or perhaps can tell me what green, white and black wires represent)? I can tracing the wiring but I'd like to save time and guesswork. Any suggestions on how to easily force water through the pump to prime it?
SStones Senior Member Joined: 24 Nov 2012 Posts: 209 Location: Canada Expertise: Professional
Espresso: Giga 5, ECM Giotto, Rocket... Grinder: Anfim Milano-Best Vac Pot: No :( Drip: Some $30 thing from Walmart Roaster: I buy pre-roasted.
Posted Sun Jan 20, 2013, 8:52am Subject: Re: La Pavoni EBR Not Making Coffee
One way to prime a vibration pump is with those squeezy plastic ketchup bottles with the pointy squirter end that you see in diners. Get one of those from the dollar store, fill it with water, stick the pointy end into your silicon hose that goes to the pump inlet, gently squeeze the water into the pump, if there's a lot of resistance, you can try with the pump running for a few seconds. If there's still a lot of resistance, you can take the outlet-end hose off the pump to make sure it isn't something further down-stream causing the blockage. If you have no ketchup squirter, maybe a turkey baster? You can even do it next to a sink with only a tightly gripped plastic baggie full of water held around the hose. I'm sure you can picture the image.
odangelo Senior Member Joined: 19 Jan 2013 Posts: 3 Location: Burlington, ON, Canada Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Fri Jan 25, 2013, 2:01pm Subject: Re: La Pavoni EBR Not Making Coffee
Success! I tried to prime the pump manually but it was just not working. No matter how much pressure I put through the syringe, it wasn't going through the pump (either while operating or off). I was seriously disappointed and went to check prices for pumps online.
Fast forward five days to today... I was cleaning out my office and came across the original user manual for the machine at the bottom of a moving box. Low and behold, the procedure for starting up a freshly unpacked machine was there in black & white. Following it to the letter, the pump primed quickly and easily and I've got great coffee again!!! The pump still needed to be primed, but the procedure was just different. So, my friend SStones, thank you for responding and your advice. No matter how I got here, I'm back in business!
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