I found a craigslist ad for a single group linea, $1800, very tempting, though I am a newbie, this looks like a great machine for a very good price. My question is, what kind of setup/prerequisites would I need? I know that I will need an external water pump (flojet?) as i don't have the ability to plumb in. Is the single group version a 15 or 20 amp machine? I only have 15 amp outlets. I don't have much info on the machine, although I am going to email the seller and possibly visit to see the machine. What should I look for when I do see the machine in person? Anything else I should keep in mind with this?

Thanks!

Applepod,

I own a 1-group Linea EE, but I'm sure there are many on this forum who are more knowledgeable than I. So, I'll answer to the best of my ability and welcome anyone else to chime in.

Yes, you'll need a pressurized source for water. My machine is plumbed in, but I understand that it will work off of a flojet.

You'll also need a drain for the machine as there is no drain reservoir. You could do this pretty simply using a big bucket or another large water bottle mounted below the machine in a cabinet.

There are some 110V 1-group Lineas out there, but they're few and far between and are mostly heavily modded (I don't believe LM made these, but I may be wrong). Unless the ad states that this machine is a 110V, I'd assume it's 220V. The tag on my machine says that it's 220V, 11Amp. A 15Amp circuit should do the trick, though I installed a 20Amp. The plug you need is a 20Amp plug and it seems silly to install a 20Amp plug and just send 15Amps to it. I had an electrician rewire an existing plug in my home to 20Amp on a dedicated circuit to make this all happen.

One thing I'd check for condition-wise is scale build-up. You can check for this by removing the group cap from the brew boiler. You can generally assume that the scale buildup in the steam boiler is worse than the brew boiler, so if there is scale in the brew boiler, assume there is in the steam boiler as well. This will take a 6mm allen wrench. The first photo is an overhead of the brew head. I have the piero cap installed, so it won't look EXACTLY like this.


Also, I'd check to see what kind of connection the brew group has to the brew boiler. Older machines had the brew group bolted on with a gasket mating the two parts. Newer Lineas have the brew group welded on. The newer setup is MUCH more reliable and many folks have had issues replacing the gaskets on older machines due to the high temperature. I wouldn't say not to purchase a machine with the older style attachment, but you may consider that it could take more work down the line. The second photo is of the welded group.


I hope this helps.

I only have standard outlets (15amp, 110v i assume). What electrical changes would I need to make in order to accommodate the machine?

I've never used one of these first-hand, but I was quite curious and interested in the rebuilt one that was discussed and offered for sale here. An HB member had a single group that he completely stripped, rebuilt, and PID'd etc, along with swapping out the CPU and heating element to 110V, so apparently, it's doable, but like its says in the thread here, it's quite expensive just for the CPU alone.

Another Linea A1 Story

All in all, it looks like it must be an absolutely awesome machine. I was very, very tempted, but I was unboxing my Strega at the same time, and staring at an unused Cremina, Pavoni, and a Gaggia Orione, in parts, so it would have been difficult to justify.

applepod124 wrote:I only have standard outlets (15amp, 110v i assume). What electrical changes would I need to make in order to accommodate the machine?

I'm not 100% sure on this one. Perhaps someone else can chime in. The brew boiler uses 1000W and the steam boiler uses 1300W, so you're looking at 2300W total when both are on. Amazon sells 110V to 220V converters up to 3000W, but I'm not sure if that would do the trick. It would be nice to not have to do any permenant wiring changes.

These machines operate best when they're left on all the time, so you're also looking at a reliability issue with the converter operating at ~70% capacity 24/7.

If you're looking at spending $1800 for a first-rate commercial machine at home, you might want to consider having your electrician install the power it's designed for. Not long ago I bought a 220V Arrarex Caravel and had my electrician combine two 120V circuits to create a 240V outlet. But that outlet isn't quite the same as the 240V outlet for our clothes dryer. He didn't need to run a new circuit to the box and the Caravel runs fine. The Linea is a more complex machine with a brain box and may have specific requirements. Why not call La Marzocco and have them tell you the power requirements? Then your electrician should be able to tell you what it would cost to supply that level of power. A step-up transformer would be less reliable than the proper outlet.

Thanks for the helpful replies! Unfortunately, I dug around a bit more and discovered that this ad was a scam. I'm probably going to purchase a new mini vivaldi in the near future.