This morning I brewed 4 espressos without any problems. However, when I was done I removed the shower screen and proceeded to do the automatic backflush; which I've been doing successfully every day since I first got the machine. All went well for the 1st cycle, with water being discharged into the drain box but on the 2nd cycle no water was discharged and it started making noises. So I immediately turned the machine off and pulled out the drain box and the water tank. All appeared fine but to the right of the machine I noticed a large puddle of water. So I waited a half an hour and now none of the 4 keypad shot buttons will produce any water, nor can I get the auto backflush to do anything but display that it's doing its routine; which it's not. The hot water dispensing button still works and I can steam but that's it.

FYI, I've now had the machine running for exactly 7 days and never encountered this problem, nor any others. I've sent an email to the CCS service department but hopefully someone here has the answer and can walk me through a fix.

Keith

Bummer to hear that. It's one of the reasons that I sold my GS3, just worried that one day something like that would happen with such a complex machine. Looks like you're under warranty and CCS offers on site repair as well, included in the warranty with them I believe

Check Water in La Marzocco GS/3 Brain Box

We have already spoken to our customer this afternoon. He backflushed his machine and used a tablespoonful of detergent. He plugged up the three way solenoid valve with detergent. He told me that the GS3 instruction manual said to use that amount of detergent. I will be looking at the manual on Monday and if in fact that is what it says I will contact La Marzocco and tell them they need to correct their manual. For any of you out there with GS3's if your manual says to use a tablespoonful do your self a favor and ignore what it says, you will clog up your machine if you use that much detergent. Back-flush as ofter as you like with plain water but in a home setting once a month is sufficient and do not use anything other than detergents specifically designed for espresso machine back-flushing and not more than 1/2 a TEASPOONFUL.

chris wrote:We have already spoken to our customer this afternoon. He backflushed his machine and used a tablespoonful if detergent. He plugged up the three way solenoid valve with detergent. He told me that the GS3 instruction manual said to use that amount of detergent. I will be looking at the manual on Monday and if in fact that is what it says I will contact La Marzocco and tell them they need to correct their manual. For any of you out there with GS3's if your manual says to use a tablespoonful do your self a favor and ignore what it says, you will clog up your machine if you use that much detergent. Back-flush as ofter as you like with plain water but in a home setting once a month is sufficient and do not use anything other than detergents specifically designed for espresso machine back-flushing and not more than 1/2 a TEASPOONFUL.

Chris, the manual for my two-year old GS/3 says to use a tablespoon of detergent.

I knew this had to be an error when I first saw it, and have never used more than 1/2 teaspoon of espresso machine detergent in my GS/3. The spoon on the back end of my Pallo brush is just the right size. Joe-Glo happens to be my favorite brand of detergent because it disolves quickly an doesn't suds up. I don't bother with plain-water backflushes and do a detergent backflush once a week or every two weeks at most.

I could swear I told LM USA about the error in the manual not long after I got the machine, but that was a long time ago.

Readers should take the comments about the GS/3 being too complicated and prone to breakdown with a grain of salt. Using a tablespoon of detergent would likely clog the 3-way valve in any espresso machine.

Peppersass wrote:Chris, the manual for my two-year old GS/3 says to use a tablespoon of detergent.

That's an unfortunate typo. It's worth noting that the instructions for Cafiza specify 1/2 teaspoon. Purocaff instructions also say 1/2 teaspoon. Since they formulated the cleaning agent, I view their instructions as definitive.

The frequency of backflushing with detergent is regularly debated. Some say daily, some say weekly, some say monthly. For what it's worth, I have noticed that the first shot of the day suffers from a tinge of bitterness if the grouphead screen wasn't cleaned with espresso detergent (Ian raised this point in Sink that First Shot). So as a compromise on excessive backflushing with detergent, I've switched to removing the screens, soaking them or running them through the dishwasher, and then wiping down the grouphead (it's easier with an all-stainless steel group). I water backflush after every session. Then once or twice a month, I'll do a chemical backflush to clear the 3-way valve of any buildup.

from my manual (version 1.00, page 9, column 1, item 2 under "Cleaning (Daily)", shipped with machine purchased this May, 2011, sn 1333):

"... Place a tablespoon of detergent powder for coffee machines into the blind filter and install the portafilter into the espresso machine. Cycle the espresso machine on and off using the continuous button. Cycle approximately 10-20 times."

Note that 1 US tablespoon = 3 US teaspoons (or SIX half teaspoons). Which detergent are they talking about? The one that comes in the box is Cafiza. Note also that for home use, I can't imagine why you'd have to chemically backflush more than once or twice a week (agree w/previous post). Finally, there's a 50% difference (or 100% depending on how you look at it) between 10 and 20 cycles.

SOLUTION: Rewrite-- "Backflush periodically as needed using good quality coffee machine detergent as per the instructions provided by the detergent manufacturer."

I just checked my GS/3 manual, and it says "Place a tablespoon of detergent powder for coffee machines into the blind filter ..." My machine was shipped from LM this year, but the manual is identified as "Version 1.00" so LM apparently hasn't addressed the reported problem (while providing further unwelcome evidence to the old rule to "never trust Version 1.00 of anything").

I was spared this problem myself only because, when I took delivery of my machine, Clive Coffee warned me to go easy on the detergent and recommended using one Cafiza tablet - and then tossed in a box of them to make sure I didn't do something really stupid, like squirt in a tablespoon of liquid Dawn. It's too bad when a great product is laid low from careless documentation, and the OP is certainly blameless.

I was mistaken. The detergent that came in the box is their own, made by Puro Caff. On the back, it says "add up to 1/2 teaspoon (3g) of Puro Caff powder..."

Chris responded to my email almost immediately, which was outstanding service considering it was on a weekend. However, I don't know to go about unplugging the three way solenoid valve and would really appreciate some detailed guidance.

Thanks to all that have responded to my problem and verified that the manual does state to use a tablespoon; which in retrospect seems like way too much.

Keith