Need help repairing our Starbucks Barista

[akamaverick]

I'm new to the forum so be gentle ... I own a Starbucks Barista, my first espresso machine. It is not working and is out of its warranty period. It stopped one day in the middle of steaming milk. I bought a new motor and replaced it, but still no go. Any suggestions about where I might get it fixed? Is it even worth my time or dollar? Thanks in advance for your input.

[HB]

It stopped one day in the middle of steaming milk.

What stopped working?

[akamaverick]

The steaming wand. I was steaming milk and the pressure slowed down then stopped. Nothing worked after that. No sound, no steam, nothing.

[mhoy]

Does it have a boiler and does it get hot?

Mark

[another_jim]

There's not a lot to the machine. It has a small boiler with a heater, a pump, and some controls. You can check the pump by hitting the brew button. If no water runs out of the group (the group is to what you attach the portafilter, which carries the basket), it could be the pump or some controls. You can check the boiler by turning on the machine and waiting an hour. If it's not warm, the heat isn't running.

If neither the pump nor the heat run, it isn't that both have failed -- a protective fuse or thermal link has blown. If the pump doesn't run but the machine gets hot, your initial post was inaccurate. If the machine doesn't get hot, try turning it to the other mode (steam or espresso). If it heats in one mode but not the other, you have a bad thermostat. If it doesn't heat in either mode, but the pump runs, you have a bad heater.

If you don't understand what I'm staying, call starbucks and pay for the repair.

If you actually want good espresso, get a grinder.

[peacecup]

I used an Estro Vapore, which is the same machine, for two years. I think they make very good espresso within their limits. I used a simple hand grinder.

Jim is right - if you put water in and turn on the brew switch, and don't hear any noise, its the pump. Simple fix, two wires and two hoses (its the same pump as the famous Silvia).

If it pumps but does not get hot its probably the heating element, which is like the coil of an electric stove. Its submerged inside the boiler, however, like an electric tea kettle. This is also home-repairable, but more involved because the boiler needs to be sealed properly when you put it back together. Its also more difficult to access than is the pump.

Like Jim said, if both don't work it might be a fuse or thermal cutoff. That's cheap and simple, but you'll need some tech support.

I found a few images of parts diagrams with a simple google search - I'm sure you can find all you need:

http://images.google.com/images?q...pore+parts+diagram

[ntwkgestapo]

Having one of these myself, I can agree, it's a very simple machine (not as simple as my Gaggia Factory! ). I'd suspect EITHER one (or more) of the thermostats (there's 3 attached to the boiler, a 95c, 127c and 175c. The 95c one is the brew thermostat, the 127c is the steaming thermostat and the 175c is the "OMG, something's wrong I better stop this thing from catching fire!" safety overtemp thermostat), or, as others have mentioned, what's more likely, the heating element has gone bye-bye. This ALL assumes that the problem is a lack of heating, NOT "the pump has quit running". I don't BELIEVE there are any fuses or fused links in the system (but haven't done an extensive check). Parts Guru shows an extensive list of parts (http://www.partsguru.com and select "Espresso Parts" from the left site menu, then Saeco Home Models, then "Barista Rio Vapore" from the selection). I'd check with them (or even the folk @ Espresso Parts NW, http://www.espressoparts.com. They have SOME Saeco/Barista parts, including the heating element, etc..).

[UNCLG]

My Starbucks Barista (1999 model) will not pump water. The pump makes noise and vibrates and I have taken the pump apart and cleaned all parts, but it still will not pump water. Is the pump dead? Does anyone have any suggestions for me or run into this?

Thanks,

UNCLG