I recently purchased an Astoria Argenta JUN, sight unseen. The poster said it was dirty and had a leak.
I found the leak (Group head Solenoid O-Ring) but to get to that I had to tear the machine down pretty far. At That point fearing other peoples experience, I decided to crack the boiler and see how bad the scale buildup is.
I was pleasantly surprised to find:



Does this amount of buildup require a citric acid bath, or would you guys just run (something??) through the machine a few times.

also, my model is the Stainless/Copper exterior, all the Stainless is pretty clean but the copper around the drip tray has some nasty buildup especially around the "Astoria" logo. Does anyone have any cleaning suggestions?
Thanks for your help
Mark

As you have taken it this far it would be worth going the whole hog and removing the tank / heat exchanger assembly and putting it in an acid bath - throw all copper pipes in as well, just for good measure. Be sure to rinse well. Do not put in any part that has rubber seals in, it could cause them to break down and best to leave the element out - the acid bath will reduce their life, simply brush off any loose deposits. All the copper will turn pink and will look really clean, the trouble with this is that now it is in this state it will tarnish up very easily. We avoid this by putting the time in and polishing all the pipes and the tank. Use Brasso or similar metal polish.
The satisfaction you get from all the copper gleaming and getting it all back together is great. You'll also know that any dirt on it is YOUR dirt not someone elses! Take a look at our previous projects
>> http://www.theespressomachine.co.uk <<
Next you need to clean around the Astoria badge - you will need to ascertain if the dirt is purely that or scale. If it is dirt/coffee etc then the best way we have found is to use a toothbrush and a solution of hot water & puly caff/prep-x or similar. If it is more stubborn then you can remove the front cowl and then the badge - go very careful when removing the badge you will have to straighten the 'pins' that hold it in place, only straighten them far enough to remove the badge - it'll go quite happily in acid if it is scale on it or again the prep-x/puly solution. when re-fitting the badge if a pin breaks then it's time to get out the araldite!
Hope this helps and I haven't pushed you into doing more than I am sure you are capable of. If you need any inspiration take a look at that website - http://www.theespressomachine.co.uk

Thanks for the reply. Do you find that you need to polish the inside of the boiler after the citric acid bath? and if so, how do you polish the insides of the HX? To be honest, Im kind of trying to avoid a ton of work (to be read polishing for weeks on end) of the "insides" of the machine if
A. I can get away with it,
B. If it wont hurt it to leave it unpolished

I'm kind of ashamed to write that, considering how enthusiastic I am about espresso, but Im in the process of moving / getting married / being self employed and need as little headache as possible for the next few months.
Thoughts? opinions? Beuller?

What are your thoughts on Descaling ALA this guys method. Descaling Astoria SAE-JUN 1N