I purchased a used VBM Domobar Super HX this past weekend. After reading the manual and tips from online resellers I have some questions:

- I want to purge the boiler of old water through hot water wand, but how do you do it without setting off the low water light? Can I leave the plastic reservoir empty? If I fill it, won't that just put new water in the boiler?

- Should I descale, backflush, or both? For descaling, is Durgol or Cafiza better?

- Which gasket and shower head do you recommend? Espresso Parts has cheap ones for those who backflush / don't back flush, an IMS nanotech screen, and another screen that's built sturdy for longer wear.

- Do you really need a 20 amp circuit for the VBM? I only have 15 amps on the counter where the machine would go.

- Tamper size - 58mm or 58.4mm? I have VBM single and double baskets, plus plan to get either IMS or VST baskets. It didn't come with a tamper, and my La Pavoni 49mm ain't gonna cut it.

Many thanks!
--Scott

I should have mentioned this is the tank version, manual grouphead.

To purge the boiler, remove the cover & tank support.

Remove the vac break [which you should replace w heavy duty] and siphon the boiler.

Cafiza is for cleaning
Descale with Citric Acid Simplified HX Descale [PourOver]

The BLUE Cafelate 8.5 is perfect and last forever. Check out site sponsor Stefano's Espresso Care. He's tight with Vibiemme and has exploded images of the machine.

I'm a dinosaur, but IMO, the stock screen is fine. Baskets are like jockey shorts. Some just feel more comfortable depending on your build

15A circuit is fine unless you have other heavy amperage devices.

Re tampers see comment on baskets. I've collected a few over the years and the only time they really make a whit of difference is when dosing and the puck hits the screen. Tamp must be level at a reasonable pressure. Even if you do a handstand on the tamper, it's only a fraction of the water pressure applied.

Reading your coffees, a fav blend of mine is 60/40 Chiappas*/Yrg medium roast
* or any yummy central

Not sure how well the KR804 will be for espresso. It has nice big burrs, but what is the retention factor. Before I got the Niche, I purged my MXK & MCX with about 2g due to retention.

Diagrams
Manual @ EspressoCare

Thanks for your comments. I caught everything except here:

cafeIKE wrote: Remove the vac break [which you should replace w heavy duty] and siphon the boiler.

What is a vac break, and what method do you use for siphoning the boiler?

Re: favorite coffees, sadly I don't have any Yirgacheffe at the moment but will try that blend with Chiapas when I do.

scoran wrote: - I want to purge the boiler of old water through hot water wand, but how do you do it without setting off the low water light? Can I leave the plastic reservoir empty? If I fill it, won't that just put new water in the boiler?

- Should I descale, backflush, or both? For descaling, is Durgol or Cafiza better?

If you heat it fully and shut it off, the boiler-fill cycle won't run. The valves look manual in the pictures, so I assume you can open the hot water valve with the machine off, though I don't know the VBM Domobar.

Yes, You should backflush with just water daily before shutting it down. Backflush with detergent every two weeks, assuming you make 2-4 drinks a day. Adjust the detergent backflush schedule depending on how dark it each time.

For descaling, don't use Cafiza, Cafiza is one of those tri-sodium phosphate (or similar) detergents for back flushing. Don't ever run Cafiza through a pump.
Durgol or any descaler is fine, but don't descale more than you have to.
Use a good water softener system, good water is good for the machine. Descaling is hard on the machine.

I see that the Domobar Super is a 2boiler machine. While it is possible to empty the brew circuit, it may not be a good idea to do so if you don't need to. The machine won't auto-fill the brew circuit and there's no sense damaging an element just to goof around with a machine.

vac break is left fwd. Your's may be shorter.

Some ¼ID silicone hose works nicely as a siphon. If the machine is hot, fill the tube by running under the tap, pinch one end, insert other in boiler and lower the pinched end into a sink or bucket below counter level. A bulb siphon can make it a bit easier. Amazon or marine or RV supply.

BE Careful. Espresso machines are HOT and can cause nasty burns & scalds