Hi there, I have a 10 year old Gaggia Classic which has done great service to date. Sadly, I forgot to descale it in the last 3 months with the result that although it makes steam really well, no water flow comes out of the bottom of the machine to make coffee. Instead, the water if just pumped back into the water tank. I have taken off the rose holder and the rose and it makes no difference. I guess I need to take the machine apart to try and clean it out. Can anyone give me any clues on where to start and which bits to clean?

I have got this diagram (http://www.saecoparts.com/user/ER0182_Rev01.pdf) so I can see how it fits together. Many thanks in anticipation, Andy

after 10 years i would say it's time for a new machine

I think you'll be fine, small machines like yours are great to work on and I'm sure you can do it. I have a Saeco machine that's similar in construction. In 5 years of ownership we never descaled it and I did a cleaning of it about a month ago with some good results.

Because you get good steam, I'm guessing there's no problem with the pump or heater so you're half way there. I'd suggest that first, take off the screen and gasket above the portafilter slot (that little disc style filter and the thick rubber gasket above it. If you want, you could try and run the machine this way but it still may not work.

Next, it's safe to assume you've got a lot of scale. Instead of taking it apart and boiling or scrubbing, I'd suggest the following:

Put about 750 mL water in the tank mixed with 250 mL lemon juice. You can run this through the steam wand (just brew, not steam temperature as if you were priming) and then steam. Next, try to brew (again, this could be with the group gasket and filter off). If this doesn't work, just keep the machine on (preferably set for steam) for a couple of hours, but keep trying to brew periodically. The intention is to make cleaning easier and this may not necessarily brew for you.

If you still have a block, you'll have to take the machine apart but only slightly (unplug, let cool first). The part you're focusing on is the big block (the heater and boiler). You'll have to take off the steam knob but if your machine has flexible tubing from the pump to the boiler, try to keep this intact. Also, you may have to disconnect some electrical wiring (at the terminals) but LABEL THESE before removal. I had to disconnect two sets only, you shouldn't need to do much more. On my machine, I had to first disconnect the boiler from the frame before I could split the casing but from your diagram, it looks like you can split the casing (bolts labeled 18 on your diagram) and perhaps keep the boiler bottom half in place. The intention here is that once it's apart, you may find a good deal of scale that's loosened from the acid treatment hanging out in the bottom of your boiler. If the lemon loosened it enough, it should just be like grainy sand in the base, waiting for you to scoop it out and discard, if you hadn't done the acid treatment, you would have had to either mechanically clean the parts or take everything apart and boil it all in a big pot.

When you reassemble, make sure you clean as much as possible inside, and reassemble carefully, with enough torque (but not too much on the small bolts on the boiler, these can shear if you torque them too much. I'd then run the machine without a cover on to spot any immediate leaks (run this test in your washroom where you should have a GFCI receptacle).

I know it's tempting to get a new machine but there may very well be nothing at all wrong with your current machine and as you know from the forum, it's earned a reputation for making great coffee and a tested design. I'm sorry I didn't include any photos of my cleaning but most importantly take your time, take photos if you need to remember the reassembly and as you disconnect, save all your parts in a small bowl to keep track of it all.

Best of luck!

Hi Thomas, Many thanks for such a comprehensive reply. I will have a go and see what happens. Andy

It should not be necessary to take the boiler apart. Remove the shower screen (held by one phillips screw) and dispersion block (held by two Allen bolts). Under the dispersion block is a small nut. Remove the nut, and there should be a plastic ball and a spring. Remove the ball and descale it in a bath of vinegar or citric acid. Reassemble everything.

Also, you may need to run a descale routine as described by the other posters, though I would use citric acid or a coffee descaling product rather than lemon juice.

With any luck, that should solve the problem. Gaggia machines are simple and sturdy, so you should be able to bring it back to life with a bit of descaling and cleaning.

Breezer may be right, I had to take mine apart because I had LOTS of scale. It's definitely worth trying Breezer's method first and you may get enough scale washed out to get you going perfectly without having to resort to a boiler split.