hello everyone.

I'm sorry if this is not the right section to be posting this under. It's been a long time - years - since I've posted here.

I own an Alex Duetto 2 from Chris Coffee, purchased 5 years ago. It's started having problems (water leaking from the tube that dumps into drip tray). I know that most of you would fix it yourself, and I have spoken with the guys at Chris Coffee.

Given how busy my work schedule is - and my complete lack of knowledge regarding espresso machine mechanics - I'd rather pay someone to fix it rather than futz around myself.

Like with any repairman or auto mechanic, I don't want to get ripped off or overcharged.

Is there someone trustworthy in the southern california you can recommend to help me fix my machine. From what the guy at Chris Coffee it's not terribly complicated and the part is inexpensive.

thank you all so much.

Sincerely,
Adam

What did they suggest was failing - solenoid?

I'd ask the folks at Chris Coffee if they know of techicians/shops in your area they could recommend. Could be a good start.

Hi Adam,

The folks at Chris recommend Dave at Hi Tech Espresso. Me too. You can reach him at (877) 286-2833. If you tell him Rich sent you, he'll say "Who?"

If you're not up to date on your routine maintenance like the group-head gasket, descaling, etc., you might as well have him take care of those things at the same time he's fixing the leak.

Rich

Adam_Sickles wrote:hello everyone.

Is there someone trustworthy in the southern california you can recommend to help me fix my machine. From what the guy at Chris Coffee it's not terribly complicated and the part is inexpensive.

thank you all so much.

Sincerely,
Adam

Salvatore in Solvang repairs espresso equipment. Not sure what their shop rates are but I am sure Wendy will be able to answer any questions you might have regarding cost and time to repair. Their web site is at:
http://www.salvatore-espresso.com/espre ... rvice.html

boar_d_laze wrote:Hi Adam,

The folks at Chris recommend Dave at Hi Tech Espresso. Me too. You can reach him at (877) 286-2833. If you tell him Rich sent you, he'll say "Who?"
Rich

5-6 years ago I stored my Silvia in a part of the house that got colder than I realized and the boiler froze. I reached out for help on the old use net and Dave responded with a friendly email with repair instructions that had me back up and running in no time with.

Ed

Awesome guys, thanks for the advice!

Adam, you can fix that yourself in 10 minutes, and that's going slow and being careful. I didn't know how to fix it either until I was faced with the exact same thing on the exact same machine.

The three valves in an E-61 group have rubber seats that get hard over time and eventually, you get a nose drip. It makes sense to replace all of them since you'll have the group apart. The replacement valves are available at Chris Coffee Service and they'll be tax free, and even free shipping, since all together it's just a tad over $50 (the brass is the expensive part, if you can find a source for just the rubber seats, you'd be on easy street and save 90% of the money, I just haven't been able to find a source for just the seats yet).

Anyways, two adjustable end wrenches and a machine that's unplugged and cooled off, and you can do it yourself in a matter of minutes. It's seriously extremely easy.

Our own Randy Glass walks you thru step by step here. Your nose leak is almost certainly coming from an old hardened exhaust valve, shown in Randy's simple photo. You could just buy that, swap it in in a matter of 5 minutes and have your problem in your rear view mirror.

Solutions Espresso, San Diego, CA