Descaling plumbed in commercial espresso machine - Page 2

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erik996
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#11: Post by erik996 »

Time to revive this thread.....

I need to (finally) descale my La Valentina, but it's plumbed in. This is a vibe pump machine, and I'm running a small icemaker filter in the water supply.

As was suggested, would it work for me to turn off the water supply prior to the filter body, put a strong mix of descaler in the water filter body, turn the water supply back on and run the water through the machine?

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HB
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#12: Post by HB »

It could work. Then again, how would you know the effective strength of the solution that passes through the HX or fills the boiler?
Dan Kehn

erik996
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#13: Post by erik996 »

Well Dan, that's why I'm hoping to use the wisdom of the experts here. I don't know the strength of the solution. Will a vibe pump pull solution from a tank that isn't pressurized like my cold water supply? If it will, then I can simply run a hose from the intake solenoid to a fresh pot of descaler. If not, I'm at a loss.

If I may back up a bit...my hot water dispenser is leaking; about a drop every minute. The folks at 1st-Line say I should descale. I'm assuming scale buildup in the hot water dispenser solenoid could cause the seals to not function properly. It sounds plausible, and I don't know what the expected life cycle is for these solenoids.

I suppose I should descale anyway as a matter of routine maintenance, but the articles/posts I've seen are mainly for pour over machines or rotary pump machines. At this point, since I don't have a plan, it almost seems easier to remove the boiler and clean it that way. I'm mechanically inclined and have all the tools, but I don't want to tear into it if I don't have to. I also don't know what consumables I may need (crush washers, rubber seals, etc....).

ETA: Now that I think about it, the vibe pump did pull water from the tank before I converted it to a plumbed machine.

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HB
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#14: Post by HB »

erik996 wrote:Will a vibe pump pull solution from a tank that isn't pressurized like my cold water supply?
Vibratory pumps tolerate inlet pressure, they definitely do not need it.
erik996 wrote:If I may back up a bit...my hot water dispenser is leaking; about a drop every minute.
I own a La Valentina and the hot water dispenser has dripped from time-to-time. Descaling might help. For what it's worth, I flick it on/off a dozen times under the assumption flotsam/swarf is stuck under the solenoid's plunger. It usually works.
Dan Kehn

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erics
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#15: Post by erics »

This could be a good first step: Checking an E61 Espresso Machine for Scale

Pictures of the hot water solenoid valve would assist someone finding this thread in the future. I'm very certain it can be disassembled "in-place" and the metal parts soaked in warm descaling solution for an hour or so.

Using the search function on this site for "descaling" and author = "CafeIke" turns up this: Simplified HX Descale [PourOver]
Skål,

Eric S.
http://users.rcn.com/erics/
E-mail: erics at rcn dot com

erik996
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#16: Post by erik996 »

As usual, I've done a lot of reading and am mostly sure I know what to do. I have a feeling I'll do this and realize it's much easier than it sounds.

To recap: I have a plumbed HX vibe pump machine with electronic push button brew head controls and hot water dispenser. Many reports say to drain the boiler as much as possible using the hot water tap, but the machine should also be off. Since my hot water tap is controlled by a solenoid, the machine must be on. How can I drain the boiler? If I have the machine on, the boiler will try to refill when it gets low. How can I disable the boiler refill?

I'll move on. I'll mix up some citric acid solution and run my machine's inlet hose from that instead of from my house water supply. Remove the wire from the autofill probe so the boiler will continue filling with citric solution above the normal water line. Open the steam valve a bit so I'll know when the boiler is full (citric solution will start to come out of the steam wand?). Let boiler sit with citric solution for an hour or so with machine on.

Flush a bit of the solution through the group head but mostly use the hot water spout. Drain as much of the boiler as possible. Repeat the above once, then hook everything back up, connect to fresh water and flush, flush, flush.

Does this sound right? I apologize for the repetitive nature of my questions: most of the previous write ups deal with pour over machines or machines with manual hot water valves....and I'm wary of new things. I may be making a mountain out of a molehill, but I want to be sure of things before I start. Thanks for the help and patience!

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erics
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#17: Post by erics »

erik996 wrote:How can I drain the boiler? If I have the machine on, the boiler will try to refill when it gets low. How can I disable the boiler refill?
a. Remove any fitting on the top and syphon it out with flexible plastic tubing

b. Attaching the lead which you removed from the level probe (for overfilling) to a good ground using a homemade wire/connector will effectively disable the auto-fill.

c. Watch out for the time you operate that little vibe pump. Specs can vary but 2 min on / 1 min off is reasonable.

d. Temporarily disconnect one of the heater connections. 150 F solution works fine; 200 F is tough to syphon safely.

e. When you're all done, inspect the gicleur/mushroom area for lots of nickel flaking.
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Eric S.
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E-mail: erics at rcn dot com

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