one year old lusso is acting up. i can only get my temp up to 140ish. over the last few months it the boiler has moments of not wanting to shut off. now it sounds like it is working at about 25%. all the wiring seems good. any thoughts???

Sounds like the pressurestat has gone bad.

I agree that it sounds like a bad pressurestat. I had the same symptoms you describe, and replacing the pressurestat solved the issue.

is there an easy way to test that?

Put a pressure test gauge somewhere on the machine, steam wand works as well as anywhere and bypass the pstat with a wire pigtail....short wire with spade terminals. The pressure gauge is for safety and to basically reduce the nervous factor while you wonder if the safety pressure valve actually works......if it's the pstat a new mater isn't that expensive depending on where you get it. We had a Giotto for a long while and it ate pstats and only now am I getting curious about just what is sealed inside the body of that thing....the microswitch seems to keep on ticking but makes me wonder about the diaphragm inside and just why they "go bad". By the way, if the pstat is bad don't throw it away, the microswitch can still be used.

The pstat on my Lusso started sticking too; it did not need replacing, however; descaling was sufficient.

Doug, was it you who had devised an elbow to keep the pstat up and away from the water? The factory location has it near the typical water-line.

orphanespresso wrote:We had a Giotto for a long while and it ate pstats and only now am I getting curious about just what is sealed inside the body of that thing....the microswitch seems to keep on ticking but makes me wonder about the diaphragm inside and just why they "go bad".

When I was shopping for replacement pstats for my Oly Club two years ago, it became clear (from discussions I had with the tech-support engineers) that many of the pstats in espresso machines are being subjected to temperatures that exceed the pstat-manufacturer's ratings/specs. And there are also electrical issues that can reduce the unit's service life, which I learned from H-B regulars with expertise in matters electrical.

http://www.home-barista.com/espre...look-t2053-40.html

http://www.home-barista.com/espre...threads-t3981.html

http://www.home-barista.com/espre...r-et-al-t4018.html

http://www.home-barista.com/lever...urestat-t4051.html

I need an element for one of these machines, where do I go?
thanks geir.

so i talked to joe (good coffee co.) he is sending up a p-stat and a element. i hope i don't go off the deep end waiting. geir, you can call joe and he will hook you up but it might take some arm twisting. joe is the BEST. old school rulz!

Any thoughts as to why this would happen. not the p-stat.