The sensors and probe are clean. I am getting hot coffee water. When you say to test the element, do you mean just do a continuity test? I don't know what the ohms should be. I don't see it mentioned in the manual.

I've called Boyd's.

Now back to my real mechanical work. Porsche 928 timing belt replacement. Puts this little stuff to shame.

In the Techno, there is one triac. The microcontroller turns it on and off. There is also a relay that switches the output of the triac between the brew and steam heating elements; the machine will never have them on at the same time. When you hear the click as the light turns on or off, that's the steam element; otherwise it's the brew one. There is an over-temperature sensor that is mechanical and kills the power to the whole machine. In the later machines it's accessible from the top. If your element was really on constantly, that would have tripped if the electronic over-temperature sensing didn't. That leads me to think that the LED circuitry is the problem. I would begin by re-seating the connectors on the cable running from the main board in the Gicar box to the front panel, and the microcontroller in its socket. The latter drives the LEDs directly, as I recall. I've put the Techno manual up here if you want to look at it for the wiring diagram or error codes.

Best,
David

Thanks David. Everything you mentioned was stuff I pretty much knew. Not only that but there is an over pressure valve. Yes I did see the over temp breaker.

So I reseated the ribbon cable connectors, and nope, it's still boiler light on.

My guess is that something is screwy with one of the chips. I would imagine there's overvoltage protection. But this could have happened when the power came back on. A spike of some kind. Who knows.

I still haven't pulled the fuses and actually ohmed them. I could do that. But it looks like Boyd's will have to get back with their engineering guy.

Gregg,

The "boiler light" is the one on the right with the wavy symbol above it. In the tech manual it's known as the LNA.
The LNA has two functions. Its primary purpose is to indicate proper water level. "On" means the water level is fine, so this one should be on all the time. If it isn't and the pump isn't running to refill the boiler, that's when you should start worrying.
The second function is related to the "volumes" function (convenient for timely swapping filter cartridges, or regenerating a water softener). If you have set this, the LNA will start blinking when the machine has used the programmed amount of water.
In short, if the LNA is on & the machine is working as it should, things are absolutely cool.


Cheers,


- h "...happy Techno owner since 2002..." v

I would swear this light went on and off as the boiler heat was on or off. Just like the steam boiler light.

Now I feel like a fool. Because I never even realized the LNA was only water level.

So here is what I think happened. I've been building my place to live. I've been in a trailer where the water pressure is low. And there is no doubt that the LNA light would go on and off almost in sync with the boiler heating. That's why I thought it was also for boiler indication. Now that I'm in my new place, water pressure is high. Maybe that has something to do with the light being on all of the time.

Well, I'm sure feeling silly. And I thank you all for being so kind to help out.

By the way, I love this machine like the first day I got it. A great design.

Back to the Porsche repairs.

Don't worry, I know how intimidating these things get. When you switch a machine on again, you're inclined to take every light as a sign something may be wrong. I've had the same a dozen times. Do download the service manual, if only to be sure about things.

Anyway, just to clear up one last thing; the orange light on the left (poetically called "LCH") indicates that one of the heaters is switched on (iow, not just the steam boiler) As David explained, there's one triac that drives both heaters. The LED is in parallel with the circuit driving the triac.
If LCH is on, then the click of the relay tells you the steam boiler is being heated, otherwise it's the coffee boiler.

Good luck with the Porsche!


Cheers,


- hv

Hi.
As time goes by,I think when is the time to go for another machine,say one GS/3.
Do you think we will have better results from such a change?Is there somebody,having experience from both machines?
(I waited a couple of years now,believing that Reneka,could deliver another "Techno",as there were rumors about this,but when crisis went on,it seems that the project was frozen).
Theodore.