Pavoni Europiccola drips water when heating up... normal?

[odradek]

I have just bought a Pavoni Europiccola. I think there may be a coupe of faults with the machine. When heating up, some drops of water come from the safety valve (not the steam arm). Also when heating up, tiny beads of condensation form around the base of the boiler. I assume these are faults, but would appreciate any help/ suggestions from those familiar with the machine.

[mogogear]

I would say - Do not worry- all sounds OK to me.. The old water in your boiler is merely acting like a cold glass on a hot day- sweating till it warms a bit... The little bit of steam seepage is also normal -to an extent- while coming up to temp. If your model is a 2 switch La Pavoni, this vent will also tell you when to switch from the High setting switch to the low setting switch for brewing.
It is not uncommon for the slight bleeding when first heating up( the air in the top of the boiler -usually expands to trip the valve before the machine actually comes up to temp / or pressure...

I think your Ok-- if it seeps a lot- it may need a dip in descaler to clean it up.

[odradek]

Thanks. I'm still not clear about 'tiny beads of condensation form around the base of the boiler' - these are on the chrome right on base of the machine immediately around the bottom of boiler. I don't understand where these are coming from other than inside the boiler, which can't be right?

the espresso coming out of the machine is great, but I'm just worried that there's some basic problem that might get worse over time.

[mogogear]

If this is right at the base flange and your machine is old it is conceivable that you could have pinholes in the boiler tank causing this - Does it happen if you fill the boiler with hot tap water and then turn on the machine?

Have you had the boiler open so you know if the inside is in decent condition ?

[odradek]

The machine is actually brand new - just bought from Italy. Perhaps if I posted a picture of the problem it would be better?

[mogogear]

If what you are describing is really condensation and not some casting defect causing leak- your OK- Post if you would like- There are some real La Pavoni experts around ( but away for the Holidays it seems)They will also chime in for your peace of mind

[A2chromepeacock]

The machine is actually brand new - just bought from Italy. Perhaps if I posted a picture of the problem it would be better?

Hi odradek,

My first post here, actually, but i've been lurking

I'm a bit confused--a machine shouldn't get actual "condensation" on the base of the boiler--that would occur if the air was warmer and more humid on the exterior of the boiler while cold on the inside of the boiler. As we all know, the boiler gets ridiculously hot even early in the warm-up.

Also, does the water that you notice rapidly boil away as the boiler heats up to brew temp? That is--is it a temporary problem during the heat cycle?

Two thoughts as to the water's origin:

1. On my pavoni (millenium europiccola small boiler size), during the heating up cycle I frequently get a few drops of water coming out where the steam control nob connects to the steam valve body assembly. This water drips directly down to the base of the machine, next to the boiler, at about the 10-o'clock position if viewed from above. Occasionally enough water comes out that it wicks around to the front of the boiler (6 o'clock position) and appears as bubbling water at the junction of the boiler and machine base. This only happens for me during the initial heating cycle, and the drops only come for a portion of the heating time. I presume it's from a faulty seal (part P23 on espressoparts.com), but it's never bothered me much so I just let it drop whilst heating, or I catch the drops with a rag. I missed it the first few times it happened, so I also was initially confused as to the origin of the water bubbling myself.

2. Water could leak out from the base of the boiler if not properly screwed down onto the machine base (also known as the heating element base not being screwed "up" into the bottom of the boiler). But, I think this is highly unlikely, particularly in a fresh-from-the factory machine. And, I think that'd tend to be a bigger leak. I'd put this as pretty unlikely, but possible. One way to check if to grasp the (cold) boiler and gently twist in a clockwise (when viewed from above) manner on the base--does it rotate? If so, we'll talk more.

Enough for now--let us know how it goes!

Pics are always great

Derek

[odradek]

I frequently get a few drops of water coming out where the steam control nob connects to the steam valve body assembly. This water drips directly down to the base of the machine, next to the boiler, at about the 10-o'clock position if viewed from above. Occasionally enough water comes out that it wicks around to the front of the boiler (6 o'clock position) and appears as bubbling water at the junction of the boiler and machine base

Thanks for this - I think that this may indeed be what's happening, and I really should have thought of it earlier! I think the water drops from the safety valve gather round the base and form tiny bubbles. I've now tested this once by placing a cup directly under the safety valve for the water to collect in as the machine is heating - and no bubbles appeared. If this works a second time, then it looks like wqe've sorted it, so thanks but also apologies for not working it out myself!

Just a couple of extra things, not problems but merely noted in contrast to a friend's Pavoni Pro I borrowed for a while:

1. The amount of coffee extracted is less than from the Pavoni Pro, even though the Pro was a pre-millenium smaller grouphead model, plus when pulling down the lever the Pro registered resistance pretty much at once but with the europiccola its about half way down that you start to feel resistance.

2. with the Europiccola you can hear water boiling for a quite a while before the green light goes off, whereas with the Pro yuo couldn't hear the noise of boiling water at all.

anyway, the coffee from the europiccola is excellent so far, so that's certainly the main thing!

[A2chromepeacock]

[quote="odradek] I've now tested this once by placing a cup directly under the safety valve for the water to collect in as the machine is heating - and no bubbles appeared. [/quote]

Nice--glad that was the culprit. It of course points to a minor annoyance with the LP--that the "wand" draining the pressure pop-off valve (which as you originally suggested is acutally condensation at that level!) isn't quite long enough to point directly over the drip tray, as I think it should. Instead, the condensation drops frequently land on the machine base as you've mentioned. Over time they can collect beneath the drip tray and cause corrosion (particularly bad on the more rare ceramic base models). You may try loosening the safety valve fitting (the rounded-head nut) to be able to rotate the safety valve arm forward...you may be able to get the tip of positioned closer over the drip tray.

Yeah, I know what you mean about lower shot volumes, particularly between machines. My close friend has the exact same machine (with presumably the same pressurestat and pstat adjustment) and he gets significantly larger volumes than I do--even with same grinder, same tamper, same coffee. His actually does taste a bit over-extracted, though, to my palate. The pressure also seems higher in his--the water *really* whooshes into the group upon raising the lever, and the pressure "push-back" is almost immediate when depressing the lever. I wouldn't sweat the volume, though, nor the pressure push-back. I've let it go and focused on the quality, even at lower volumes. And by reading a bunch of the threads here, it seems appropriate.

have good times with the peacock!

-derek