I notice my Elektra Semi-Automatica has trouble pushing coffee through the porto filter after it's been on for over an hour - and more so after 1 1/2 hours. (The coffee puck also will begin sticking to screen after machine on 1 1/2 hours.) It did not always do this. I reduce grind setting to coarser - but seems ad-hock solution - and not fully effective. This has been going on several months. One suggestion was to let out steam for a while in order to release any air bubbles that may be blocking pressure: That does not seem to work. (The steam pressure seems strong regardless of the time machine has been on, by the way). So what's going on when the machine gets hotter - it loses brew pressure? (The pressure-stat seems to be working normally).

Any suggestions?

As Jim says
(hello Jim how are you?)
you can certainly re-use your existing pump frame for the mounting (unless of course is rusted trashed etc etc)
however it will need to be remove first complete,
then replace it with the suggested 41w,
remove the 2 screws on the side, pull shaft complete out, no need to mess with the pump "guts"
just pay attention to the 3 pieces between the coil and the pump shaft
in this order
metal plastic metal

I don't remember if I wrote this somewhere else, but if I let the machine on for some time, the water tank reaches almost 50°C. The Ulka pump doesn't like heat, and even worse, it stays hot below the machine.

I've been using ice cubes and water inside the tank right before my brewing session and it works fine - the pump peaks at 12-13 bar (very slow flow) and stays around 11-12 bar if the flow increases. If I use the hot water at the tank, the pump pressure fluctuates, some times below 8 bar, during the slow initial flow.

It's funny - I just replaced the pump on my Semi-automatica this weekend. I found Jim's advice to re-use the frame from the original pump on an old thread just in time to stop me from going to the hardware store to pick up a thread tap. That is a brilliant piece of advice.

Pump replacement was a snap - the only tough part was lining up the pump with the screw to re-attach the pump to the machine.

I have a leak that I have not yet been able to identify that began before I replaced the pump. This has made me realize the biggest downfall to having the guts of the machine hidden in the base. There is no way to witness the source of a leak.

Dogshot wrote:I have a leak that I have not yet been able to identify that began before I replaced the pump. This has made me realize the biggest downfall to having the guts of the machine hidden in the base. There is no way to witness the source of a leak.

keep the base off
place 3 pieces of 2x2 or something of the sort under the base
place a tin foil or any thing that will not adsorb water under
and watch it
then with a flashlght or and an inspection mirror you should be able to locate the leak

Thanks for the suggestion - I'll try it tonight.

Thanks for the comments: It looks like a pump replacement it will be.

(I may also replace the plastic inside the brew button - that plastic part that keeps the button depressed till you press it to stop pumping - has been broken for years - I just have been keeping it manually pressed in for the entire brew time. (Not to mention - the outside plastic covering of the brew button split a long time ago, as well. Also, come to think of it: the plastic cover split on the switch of my Macap M4 Step-less grinder; do I have sharp fingers?)

After about 7 years (10,000 cups?) - and many pressure-stats later, the Elektra is a touch crotchety.