No pressure/heat from Bezzera Strega - Page 3

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doublehelix
Posts: 470
Joined: 9 years ago

#21: Post by doublehelix »

What would cause the relay to burn like this? Bad capacitors ? I think homeburrero here mentioned that the capacitors should also be replaced when the new relay is added.

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homeburrero
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Joined: 13 years ago

#22: Post by homeburrero »

doublehelix wrote: I think homeburrero here mentioned that the capacitors should also be replaced when the new relay is added.
It seemed sensible, since that RC filter is a functional part of that relay circuit and is inexpensive compared to the relay cost, but I can't say that I have any experience or expertise here. I run a mechanical relay on my old ECM Giotto's element with no snubber at all, and so far haven't had any problem with burnt contacts. In my case it's a $25 ice cube relay, and it has a spare set of contacts so I'm not too concerned if my contacts were to burn out in a couple years.

I'm not clear at all about why Bezzera has that RC filter there, so perhaps someone with more expertise can weigh in about that, as well as what might have caused that relay to burn.
Pat
nínádiishʼnahgo gohwééh náshdlį́į́h

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DanoM
Posts: 1375
Joined: 11 years ago

#23: Post by DanoM »

You could try asking Bezzera directly about it, maybe even pointing them to the photo in this thread. Andrea Ferrari often answers emails directly about Strega questions.

Whether it's a problem on your end or a problem with the product, either way he'll likely be interested - as will many of us.
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Vitriol (original poster)
Posts: 32
Joined: 13 years ago

#24: Post by Vitriol (original poster) »

Well, I received a relay I ordered online. Not the same as the original but similar. Put everything back together and the Strega is finally working fine and making awesome espressos.

I don't know what caused the relay failure. One good thing is that after all the time I spent troubleshooting I now know much more about how it works.

Thanks again to everyone that helped!

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