Good work, Geoff. Awesome suggestion to use the hemostat. Something new every day around here.

Try to compare your findings against this: https://www.allorings.com/O-Ring-AS568- ... Size-Chart

IMMA guess that you are a 007, simply because I've never seen/used a 006 on these machines.

You could swing by your mom'n'pop with a good selection of nuts and bolts, True Value often in my case out west, and compare your o-ring to one of theirs. And buy the one that looks right. That should get you going while you decide whether to go with AFLAS or another silicone like the stock one.

Alternately, I'm out of town right now, but when I get home in a few days, I'll compare it against my HUGE stash of 007's.

-Peter

Will do. Thanks, Peter. Appreciate it.
Geoff

I received information that my 920 is coming back from service. They received the machine two days ago, so definitely a quick turnaround.
The email did not state what kind of repair they had performed, so I was wondering if the machine will arrive with a sort of service report.

I can't remember if they indicate via email or a sheet of paper in the box, but they do list the repairs at least at a high level.

Moved over from the "mods and maintenance" thread, in order to keep that one more of a short reference thread that doesn't overwhelm...

SaqibSaab wrote:Thanks! I recently replaced my o-rings and leaky machine (BES900XL) was fixed! However, after about a week, the machine will not heat past 153 F°. And it sounds like it's not filling up the steam boiler with water, no sound of the pump. Any tips? Thanks!

I have not had this, but it sounds like the kind of thing that could happen on any machine, besides the fact that most machines don't have a dedicated steam boiler fill pump, like the BDB does. My thoughts: (I will be shooting from the hip here, because I have not had this problem in eight and half years with BDB)

The BDB uses a heat exchanger run through the steam boiler, to pre heat brew water. So if the steam boiler isn't filled, you won't get the pre heating. And from your description, it sounds like the steam boiler fill pump isn't running to fill the steam boiler. I can think of two reasons why this might happen: the pump has gone bad (highly unlikely) or the steam boiler fill level sensors have gone crook from scale or corrosion, (more likely).*

Some things I would try:
1) pull the level sensors out of the boiler tops and look at them. They are simple steel rods with an electrode on the top. Make sure they are clean of scale and corrosion, and that the electrode is not corroded or broken off and has good contact. Now would be a good time to change to a fresh o-ring too. some of the sensor require a #010 o-ring versus the water tubes that require #007 o-rings. The sensor o-rings rarely leak, but it has been known to happen.

2) while the sensors are out, manually fill the boiler with water (you might need a gooseneck kettle or rig up a small tube since the sensor holes will be small)

3) once the boiler is full (to the level of the shorter/higher up sensor), put the sensors back in an seal. now you know the boiler is properly full. heat up the machine and see what you get. also, see if you can get steam.

Report back what you find.

*water with scale and/or chlorides (not chlorine, but chlorides, they are different), will damage the heck out of an espresso machine. See this thread:
This is what to expect from good water


-Peter

JimL wrote:No doubt the BDB is an absolute steal for the price. But it looks..... Sorry.

Had to quote this post from page one because it makes me laugh and I agree!

When I sent in my BDB several weeks ago I used the old Excobar Office Leva II I've had for the past year on loan. It's from 2008 and looks identical to the Brewtus. Anyway, I grew really fond of its aesthetics and it makes fine espresso, and so was in no hurry to unbox the brand new replacement BDB. Then ironically, the owner suddenly needed it back, so I set up the BDB and started using it 3 days ago. The first thing that struck me was how much quieter it is! The Excobar hits a peak of 78db while the BDB is only 58db.

Anyway, I started using RPavlis water from day 1 on this new machine and wanted to see how long it would take to go through a gallon of water. My idea was to use until the low-water prompt came on and then use up a prepared gallon until the final prompt. This morning I removed the carbon filter in the reservoir as it seemed pointless and was also apparently softening the water a bit (58ppm from cooled water from the hot water dispenser vs 75ppm from the gallon jug - both measured at same room temp). After I pulled a shot today I did a backflush, and strangely the pressure never went up. The video below shows the flow of water, and also zero change on gauge with backflush disc, and also the anemic sound of the solenoid:


Resetting the machine didn't help, so I opened up the machine to see if anything looked amiss. On a lark I then drained both boilers and went through the initial setup process - running water through group and hot water dispenser for 30 seconds, and then steaming for 30 seconds. It now works! Any ideas on how this could have happened? This machine has the new tall-style filter. I'm wondering if running the machine without it somehow introduced air into the system? And it doesn't make sense that it could be due to the low water level in the reservoir, as I often had the prompt come on over the past 2 years on the old machine without issue. Anyway, crossing my fingers that it doesn't happen again!

Dave...

With Pavlis water, you do not need the filter in the tank. Just the mesh screen that is screwed to the pickup at the bottom and that only to trap any coffee or other foreign particles that might make their way in there.

Re your other issue, sometimes you get air/vapor lock, where opening the boiler drains or even just the steam valve in the case of the steam boiler, will break the pressure lock and get things primed and flowing again. This is especially prone to happening on brand new machines. It is a semi-frequent complaint from new Oracle users. But no reason for it not to happen with the BDB. Since I rarely make milk drinks, not even one a month, I rarely steam, and sometimes air makes it's way into my steam boiler and I have to purge it pretty much as you described.

HTH

-Peter

Ah, good to know; puts my mind at ease. The only reason I would want to keep the filter in place would be to guard against particulate matter, but I suppose the mesh screen should be sufficient.

Cheers!

In fact, I meant to say, that your Breville softener was probably sabotaging your Pavlis water to some degree, by removing some of the bicarbonates. LOL.

-Peter