I have been rehabbing an Astoria machine. I have been reading many of the posts recently and learned a few things along the way. One item I am not familiar with is how should the "faucent" looking devise on the left front side of the machine work. Prior to a total descaling, nothing came out of this outlet if the button was depressed. I heard an audible click but no fluid. After the cleaning, it now has some hot water coming out along with some steam. The button on the top panel has a shower looking icon above it. Does that mean a solid stream of water should come out or is the minumal stream and steam acceptable? Also, should the internal pump come on when depressed? Other than the pressure within the boiler, is that all there is?

I took apart the valve within the solenoid to make sure there was no obstruction and it appeared fine. I blew through the inlet and outlet and air flows smoothly. I did notice some a very minimal amount of lime on the valve shaft so I cleaned that. Once back together, it still performed the same. Any suggestions?

Bob

If it's the Astoria Sibilla SAE 1, it sounds as if you are describing the manual fill valve. Run some water out of the water spout, and then push the button while watching the water level sight glass. It should be filling up.
Pictures are, of course, worth a thousand words. Either more details on the machine and the part you're describing, or a coupla pics would be rather more helpful.

In order to run the machine on the bench, I have it connected to a Flojet pump. It reads 4 column on the Astoria's gauge. I also called a tech in Ottawa, Canada about this problem and he was convinced that there was still a clogged intake pipe in the boiler. After it cooled down, I removed the pipe. Since t was just delimed and descaled, it was almost as clean as new. I then removed the tube from the "L" fitting and checked it. It was clear. I then removed and disassembled the electric valve. It was clean and moved freely. I then removed the tube with the faucet end on it. It was also clean. I reassembled everything, fired it up and then increased the water temp to help force the water through. After all this, still the same deal. It fills a 10 oz. coffee cup in about 45-60 seconds. Physics tells me that with pressure, once a valve is opened, water should flow. Is the electric valve possibly not opening up fully? How would I know? I can push the button about three times and it improves slightly. I am inclined to think the valve is not functioning right. Is there a certain way the inner valve body is supposed to fit? I did not notice "arrows" to line up when assembling. In my opinion, the valve is the weak link unless I am missing something. I will try to get some pics up shortly. Thanks, Bob

Is that the hot water tap? Most machines' hot water tap dispense with boiler pressure only- no pump. That's why it would take so long to get 12 ounces out, because of it operating from boiler steam pressure only. But without a visual aid then hard to say for certain...

The Astoria tech in Canada now tells me that the internal pump should come on when depressing water button. He thinks the button may have a loose connection or the RL-40 relay is bad whatever that is. My guess again is if the relay is bad, then the internal pump should not work at all, yes? The wire connections all seem to be tight. It sure would help if I had a parts/service manual. I hate to throw parts at it until something works. I will keep at it. Too good of a machine to just let it go without properly fixing it.

robvl3 wrote:My guess again is if the relay is bad, then the internal pump should not work at all, yes?
I hate to throw parts at it until something works. I will keep at it.

Psyd wrote:Pictures are, of course, worth a thousand words. Either more details on the machine and the part you're describing, or a coupla pics would be rather more helpful.

We're really not going to be that awful helpful until we are sure of what you are talking about.
Astoria has a coupla lines, and an SAE-1 in at least two lines, even if they are fairly different machines. And we still aren't sure which switch/valve/faucet/button you're referring to.
Get some pics, post 'em here. Circles and arrows wouldn't hurt either. Either that or far more detailed descriptions of parts and machinery.
You know, if you want detailed and helpful advice and all...

OK after many attempts to get pictures, hopefully this will work. Damn it! You know, this is ridiculous. How the hell can I post pics if the damn file is too big. I trimmed it as best I could without loosing what the picture is. Sorry I am not savvy enough to figure this out.

Sometimes it's not just the size, resolution or color depth - it's the file format compression level. JPGs can be saved at 65-50% quality level and still be very acceptable for viewing. This may get you down to the desired file size without needing to make the image too small. A great program for handling your file viewing/saving needs is XnView. It's free, fast, loaded with features and can be used in portable mode (USB stick).

George