Yesterday I bought a second hand Vibiemme Domobar Super (manual), which I thouroughly tested: everything worked and the coffee it produced tasted very good.

I installed it today and filled the reservoir. When I put the switch in position 1 to fill up the boiler, it keeps pumping and does not get past this part of the start up. The right pressure meter continuously reads 10.4 bar.

Does anyone know what is causing this problem?

The pump is running, but is it pumping? Is water coming out of the return hose and going back into the reservoir? Is the reservoir level going down?

It doesn't seem to be pumping: the reservoir level is not going down. I just tried it again, and the pressure gauge read around 12 - 13 bar. The return hose is indeed flowing water back into the reservoir.

But when I put the lever up it does pump and water comes out of the grouphead. The strange thing is that I saw it operating in right order when I purchased it, but now it doesn't...

SOunds like a problem with the auto-fill solenoid which is triggered by the circuity of the level sensor. That is different from the brew switch which is activated when lifting the lever.

Use a volt meter to see if the fill solenoid is getting voltage when P1 is selected.

The solenoid gets voltage in P1 (meter shows 0.1 in the 200volt setting).

Now I opened the machine and have a better view of what happens inside, I see that the pump does not get in any water: also the outlet hose doesn't let any water out anymore. The intake hose is filled with water, but doesn't let in any water. The hose/pump makes a kind of hissing/rustling noise and I see airbubbles moving/vibrating inside the hose.

Also, the pressure gauge sometimes shows ~ 4 - 5 bar and climbs to 10 bar and sometimes it is a steady 12 to 13 bar. So something has changed?...what does/could this mean?

It is not in a state that even the brew lever does not work, then there is a problem. Did the DS come in different configurations...? I can't recall. Is it a vibe pump? Plumbed?

Could you hear the solenoid click? Try:
- Unplug machine from wall
- Unplug a lead from the pump
- Plug machine in
- Power switch to P1, then off, then P1
- You should hear the autofill solenoid clicking
Next step might be to remove the pump and test it separated from the machine (or at least remove the output hose). Pump some water through it and possibly test the pressure with a gauge.

The move may have dislodged some sediment or loose scale in the boiler, but you need to test the water flow from its source and go downstream from there. EXAMPLE: The auto fill may never turn off because the pump is too weak to fill the boiler so thinking about disassembling things like the solenoid is premature unless it is not working (speaking of which- disconnect the wires on the solenoid and check the resistance through the solenoid's coil).

Thanks for all the help thusfar, I'm still working on the machine! This model is a Vibiemme Domobar Super manual: HX model with a vibration pump and a reservoir.

The solenoid does click when I follow the steps you described (unplugging a lead and switching to P1, off and then P1).

Furthermore: I cleaned the pump and when tested seperately from the machine by removing the output hose, water is pumped through and out of the output with a solid stream. I don't have a pressure gauge at hand so I can't measure the pressure it produces.

When I disconnected the wires of the solenoid and checked the resistance the multimeter showed 976 ohms, is this the normal resistance that is expected?

Any further recommendations about what I can check?

So we have established that 1 - the pump moves water (at an unknown pressure), and 2 - that the boiler fill solenoid is at least trying to open at the proper moment.

For more detail on the E-61 group, see these two articles on my website:
How-To 18 - Simple Lubrication of the E-61 Group
How-To 19 - Overhauling and Lubricating the E-61 Group

Use the second one if needed, and loosen the mushroom. Wrap a towel around the group and lift the brew lever and see if water is pumped through the group at good volume (or had you established that?). The next would be to loosen the line that goes into the boiler from the fill solenoid and see if water comes out of there in P1 (brew function off. That is to answer the question, is water actually getting through the fill solenoid? At this point I would think there is a blockage in that line or the needle valve in the solenoid is stuck even though it is clicking when activated.

Another test: Use the blind filter, switch in P1, and turn on the brew function. WHen the group pressure gauge tops out at around 10, lower the brew lever to the middle position for about three or four seconds, then lower it fully. Is there a "whoosh" of water out the bottom of the group indicating that pressure was created in the group? You might even try pulling a shot with cold water to see if the extraction pressure is sufficient. From there the solution should be easy(ier?).

I've established that water is pumped through the group head, so this seems to work.

I found out by loosening the line that comes from the fill solenoid that the solenoid doesn't let any water through when I turned the machine to P1 again..so is the fill solenoid stuck /broken? How can I check this before buying a new one?

How can I know for sure that it's not the control box that may be malfunctioning? It only seems very unlikely to me that that part is suddenly broken by only moving the machine.

Picture of the connections in the control box: http://oi61.tinypic.com/x6fodx.jpg

I would remove the fill solenoid assembly and first check the pipes to be sure they are clear of scale, debris or whatever might have gotten in there that may be blocking it. The you can disconnect the pump, connect the fill solenoid, and test it without water. Look to see if it opens, or blow some compressed air through it, or similar task. I have never had to mess with one, but it should be self-explanatory once removed from the machine. Blow some air through both of the plumbing pipes to make sure they are clear, but I think we have narrowed it down sufficiently to allow you to find the solution. Be sure to let us know!