A leak in the heat exchange gasket of our GS3 fried the electronic board of our machine. This is very costly repair and we came close to selling the machine rather than going to the expense since our particular GS3 sadly has been far from trouble free. We decided to go to the expense and the fine folks at Chris's Coffee have repaired our machine. I will be picking it up soon. Now that the machine is back to working order, I was wondering what tips GS3 owners have to help keep the machine running smoothly?

Water in the brain box- We had the new OPV installed so that condensation will route to the drip tray. My machine is older so there are no drain holes in the brain box, I plan to drill some holes. Other good practices? Any good way to keep water from leaking in around the cable entrance (I read the thread from 2011 where some ideas were discussed) in the event of an unexpected leak?

Clogged Gicleur - I think I read somewhere that somebody was able to "outboard" the gicleur in some way so that there wasn't as much dis-assembly required. This problem seems to be more of an issue for the so called "fire sale" machines and mine is one of these so I've become somewhat resigned to pulling out the assembly and cleaning in every few months once the flow starts slowing down. Any other good practices? I think there has been some discussion that the TL-30 feed tube is now plated in newer GS3s but it isn't clear if this is an option for older models.

Descale or not to descale- We back flush fairly often but we have never descaled the machine. The general consensus seems to be not to descale the machine. What about draining the boilers, should this be done monthly as the manual suggests?

Any other basic care tips people want to share? Like some cars, does the machine have to be used often to stay in good working order? We love our espresso but we probably only put 4-6 shots through the machine a day (machine is not plumbed in), should we be concerned about this?

Thanks in advance- Jeremy

[Important Note: In fairness to La Marzocco, the problems discussed below appear to affect "fire sale" machines from circa 2009 that may have been improperly stored for a long period of time, or may have been affected by problems at the factory confined to certain production runs from that period. I have never heard a report of similar problems with newer machines.]

Water in the brain box- Sorry to hear about your gasket problem. Same thing happened to me, including the fried logic board, except that both steam boiler gaskets failed. The leaks only occurred when the machine was turned off, presumably because the gaskets expanded enough to seal properly when the machine was hot. I used to run my machine 24x7, so it took a long time for the leaks to become evident. The fatal flow occurred while the machine was turned off and cold for several days during a vacation. The flow was very slow, but over a period of days enough water made it into the brain box to fry the logic board.

My machine was also one of the fire-sale machines, as was one other I know about that had a steam boiler gaskets failure (both gaskets, I believe). Yours is the third report I know of (including mine and the other one.) The evidence isn't conclusive, but it's beginning to look like this type of failure is limited to the fire sale machines. Since there were quite a few of them sold, and we've only got three reports, it's also possible that the problem is limited to an LM production run that took place at around the same time. What's the serial number of your machine? I might be able to correlate it with mine and the other one.

I replaced the gaskets myself. It was a little tricky, but not bad if you have patience and good tools. I replaced the logic board, too, but I'm accustomed to working with electronics. I inspect inside the machine fairly frequently, and I've had no gasket leaks since the repair.

In my opinion, it's not possible to keep water out of the brain box. I drilled drain holes in the bottom and have taped over the screw holes and cover seams. But there's really no way to seal off the cable entry hole. Even if you could, water would seep in along the cables by capillary action.

Replacing the vacuum breaker and OPV with versions that drain into the drain box is definitely a good move.

My solution is to inspect the inside of the machine often. To facilitate this, I removed the screws holding the top cover down, so it can be lifted off quickly, and also removed the inner nuts on the side panels so they can be removed by turning the decorative nuts by hand. I often take a peek inside during the weekly detergent flush.

Clogged Gicleur - Again, this is pretty-much acknowledged to be a problem that affects only fire sale machines. My problem was so bad the machine had to be replaced. I know of one other owner who had to replace his as well. One theory is that there's some sort of debris in the brew boiler left over from manufacturing. Another theory is that it's caused by an adverse electrochemical reaction inside the group head. I think that's where the plated TL30 came from. When I inquired about getting one, I was told that it was only in production for a short time and that it's no longer being made (i.e., not being used in new machines, either.) There are a number of threads about the clogged gicleur issue on this board, including information on replacing the gicleur with one that's less prone to clogging and/or is easier to remove and clean. I don't know of any solutions to relocate it. You'll need a Speedster for that .

Descale or not to descale- - I don't descale. However, I use a professional cation water softener from Chris Coffee. It removes all the hardness from the water, so descaling isn't necessary. I don't drain my boilers on a consistent basis. I tend to do it after the machine has been off for a few days during vacation. But there's certainly no harm in it and under some circumstances it may help. When you do it, take care not to unscrew the ball valve on the steam boiler (always use two wrenches when removing the brass cap.) It's easy to drain the boilers and it doesn't take long. It also gives you another opportunity to look inside the machine for leaks.

Thanks for the suggestions and advice. Since the machines is with CC I don't have the serial number handy but I will PM to you after I pick up the machine. Our leak also happened after we returned from vacation and it had been off for week. I am going to keep a closer eye out in the future as well as inspect the machine more often. It's a good thing I can't plumb in our espresso machine or I would have been greatly tempted by the Speedster and I already feel like I have gone overboard with the GS/3

I am hopeful that with a bit more at TLC following these repairs the GS3 will perform well for some time.

My GS3 is going to be 4 years old soon (in December). I have always used good water in my machine. I have used RO with an additive from Cirqua (which went out of business, but the additive was taken over by another company). Last year I upgraded to the new/improved vacuum breaker to protect the brain box. I was not aware that people were having gasket problems. I like to do preventive maintenance, and will probably go ahead and replace the problematic gaskets to avoid a brainbox disaster. Do you have the gasket #'s for the gaskets I should replace from the LM parts diagrams? So far my machine has pretty much been trouble-free except for the rattling, which I fixed with a number of minor modifications.
Rob

rbh1515 wrote:I was not aware that people were having gasket problems. I like to do preventive maintenance, and will probably go ahead and replace the problematic gaskets to avoid a brainbox disaster. Do you have the gasket #'s for the gaskets I should replace from the LM parts diagrams? So far my machine has pretty much been trouble-free except for the rattling, which I fixed with a number of minor modifications.
Rob

I'm not sure what to tell you in terms of whether the risk of gasket failure warrants preventative measures. I just don't know. So far, we only know of three fire sale machines on which this failure occurred, and quite a few of those machines were sold.

Before undertaking the task of replacing the gaskets, I would carefully inspect the inside of the machine for signs of leakage, especially near the left and right sides of the steam boiler. I would also inspect the area around the triangular plates on both ends of the steam boiler to look for any signs of leakage. There was discoloration around my end plates that I didn't realize was indicative of water slowly seeping out. Finally, try turning off the machine and letting it cool completely, then look for any signs of seepage around the gaskets. It would be advisable to let the machine sit cold for a few days, checking frequently for such signs.

If you see no signs of leakage, I would hold off on replacing the gaskets. However, I would continue to inspect inside the machine on a regular basis. I would give the same advice even if you replace the gaskets. I do it -- better safe than sorry.

Although it's not terribly hard to replace the steam boiler gaskets, and the cost is minimal, you do have to be extremely careful when removing the heat exchanger on the right side. One owner broke his trying to get it out and I believe the replacement was quite expensive. Also, removal of the heat exchanger requires removal of a number of the copper tubes that are in the way. When reconnecting the tubes, you have to be very careful not to overtighten. That could lead to breaking a tubing flare or a nut. Obviously, after the job is done you must check every fitting for leaks.

I got my replacement gaskets from Chris Coffee. Call CC's service department about the proper part numbers. They can mail the gaskets to you.

FWIW, I have quite a few photos of the procedure for replacing the steam boiler gaskets. I haven't had time to post a writeup, though. Hopefully I'll get to it sometime soon.

Dick,
Thanks for the info. I had a gasket failure on my previous machine (Astra Gourmet) at about 4 years of ownership. It was a fairly easy replacement. On my current machine, I have had no signs of leaking. If the replacement is somewhat difficult, I could always have the local LM certified tech (I know him but have never had to use him) do the replacement(s). How many gaskets are we talking about? Two or three? I'm definitely going to have it done, or do it myself.
Rob

Two gaskets, one on each side.

Thanks,
I see them on the parts list.
Rob

This Thread is pretty interesting. My GS/3 is starting to misbehave with over pressure steam readings as well as watery/wet steam.

The brew pressure while just sitting idle seems to vary considerable until I engage the pump which pumps as required at 9 Bars.

I have back flushed the machine regularly but not yet drained the boilers. The machine is only 2 or 3 months old.

FotonDrv wrote: The brew pressure while just sitting idle seems to vary considerable until I engage the pump which pumps as required at 9 Bars.

I have back flushed the machine regularly but not yet drained the boilers. The machine is only 2 or 3 months old.

That's normal. What's the highest pressures you've seen while idle?