I am rebuilding a Wega that a friend of mine gave me after it sat in his barn for a year or two and I need to replace the diaphragm for the Sirai pressurestat. The model number appears to be a P302-6, however I can't find a rebuild kit for sale anyplace. Once I took the component apart and de-scaled the copper it looks like it will work just fine, only the diaphragm has become brittle with age and has broken clean off from the plunger.

Can anyone point me in the right direction so I don't have to buy a whole new pressurestat?

Thanks,
JD

Yep,
That sure looks like mine, only mine is broken into a couple of more pieces... Thanks for finding that so quickly!

The rebuild kit is $45 and a brand new one is $52:
http://www.orphanespresso.com/SIRAI-Pre..._3852.html

Does anyone have any opinion on whether it's better to rebuild or replace if it's nearly the same price?

JD

I went the replace route with my Elektra T1 rebuild as some of my contact points looked like welding rod.

If I was you, I'd go replace, IMHO it would add more 'value' should you ever sell it. It also gives you some extra spare parts.

Since I think the Wega is an HX machine, before you go too far, be sure the HX line and boiler aren't ruptured (or have subtle cracks) by freezing water.

Mark

I went the rebuild route using cafeparts pn 50104. My contacts were still looking good... and I had already powdercoated the cover to match the frame.

If the cost is the same I like the replace idea too, plus the having extra parts benefit. However, I wonder if (and this is only to be attempted under close supervision, and preferably not while drinking) I could keep an eye on the pressure gauge and as my own pressure stat? At least at first...

And yes this Wega machine is a single boiler, w/HX. Although I have done a citric acid bath and cleaned all the parts I have not checked for leaks...hadn't even thought of it.

So there's two more questions right there:
1) Can I run it without a pressure stat and simply disconnect the heating element when pressure is reached?
2) How do you check for leaks in the HX (short of assembling everything and running)?

Perhaps I should start a new topic for all the issues that arise during this rebuild project...
JD

mhoy wrote: before you go too far, be sure the HX line and boiler aren't ruptured (or have subtle cracks) by freezing water.

Good advice Mark,

I pressure tested the HX by plugging two of the three ports, put compressed air into the third, then submerged the whole boiler in water. Sure enough I got a steady stream of bubbles coming from one of the welds. It should be an easy fix, thanks a million for the heads-up.

JD

Be sure if you weld/solder/glue it you use food safe material. After all, you'll be drinking from it someday in celebration. I'm sure there are some threads that mention the correct steps.

All the best, I certainly get a lot of satisfaction using my rebuilt machine every day I use it (which happens to be every day!!).

Mark

Do not run it without the pressurestat. There are two types of Sirai pressurestats, one being in the $60 range the other nearly $100. What is the difference, one is NSF rated for a commercial establishment, the other is not. The only difference I know of between the two is the sticker put on the pressurestat. When I rebuilt my two group I replaced the pressurestat, why spend the time rebuilding when a factory fresh unit is only a few dollars more. Hopefully your boiler/pipe/HX are in good shape. I had a machine that had frozen at one point and burst the heat exchanger. I could actually see the ruptured HX by looking in the boiler through the heating element mount.