I note the instruction manual to my Gaggia Factory 106 states, "To remove the lime scale from the heating element and the boiler, boil a mix of water and vinegar in the boiler." Though I don't plan on doing this anytime soon, I do have some questions regarding this procedure...

1. How strong a mix of vinegar to water do you use?

2. I assume you put the mixture in the boiler, screw the cap on the machine, turn the machine on, leave the machine on for some period of time while the machine cycles on and off as the pressurestat's trigger "off and on" pressures are reached, etc. - and then I assume you turn the machine off, let the mixture cool off, unscrew the cap and then dump the mixture out through the top of the machine by inverting it over the sink... as I would assume it would not be a good idea to run any of this mixture through the machine beyond the boiler... Correct?

3. For how long a period of time do you boil this mixture in the machine?

4. Possibly most importantly, given the strength and persistence of the taste and smell of vinegar - after doing this, how much rinsing out does one need do to rid the boiler's innards of any residual vinegar taste and smell?


Thanks,
r-gordon-7

I've used white vinegar to descale drip coffee makers and "espresso" steam toys in the past, anywhere from straight to a 1:1 mix with water should work. But citric acid is a better choice; more effective and no vinegar odor. Most folks recommend 1-2 tablespoons per quart (or liter) for descaling.

Descaling the boiler should be a piece of cake on the Gaggia Factory (or Pavoni) lever. Pour the descaling solution into the boiler, bring it up to temperature, shut it off and let it sit for ~10 minutes, dump it out, and rinse the boiler several times with clean water.

Some guesswork: flushing descaling solution through the group should not hurt anything, unless a chunk of scale breaks loose and gets stuck in the brew path. If you decide to do this, I'd recommend descaling the boiler first. Once the boiler is squeaky clean and free of scale, you should be able to flush descaler through the grouphead safely. Just be sure to follow with copious clean water flushes.

Thanks, John. Your post will serve as a great "how-to" guide when the time comes for descaling my machine after a bit more use...

r-gordon-7