Is this an old gasket on my boiler cap?

[kenyabob]

Im refurbishing an old pavoni, and I cant tell if my boiler cap has a gasket, or if its part of the plastic knob itself. I was tempted to cut into it, but I dont want to ruin the cap if so.

Ive put my new boiler gasket on as well, but it looks funny.

[jtrops]

I learned from my first boiler cap seal that they can become cone shaped if you over tighten them. At least in your picture it looks like the cone, and the plastic cap are separate things.

Here's a picture of one that is well on its way to being a cone:

[kenyabob (original poster)]

Sounds like I need to remove it. The rubber is pretty dried out, so it'll be quite the task.

[jtrops]

Once you have the new seal on you will get many more years out of it if you don't over tighten it. I discovered that if I screw my boiler cap down to where it stops turning easily, and then back it off an eighth of a turn (or thereabouts) it is tight enough to work once the seal swells from the heat. It will wobble just the smallest amount when it's cold.

[kenyabob (original poster)]

Any tips on how to remove this? The gasket is about as hard and brittle as the cap itself.

[jtrops]

If the cap is brittle I would consider replacing it. My cap has a metal threaded bit, so it's not an issue. I haven't had a plastic one.

I have had to remove brittle old seals before, and there wasn't really anything special I did to break them out. Hopefully someone has a suggestion for you.

If you don't mind changing the look of the machine a bit the Romantica metal boiler cap is about the same price as the plastic one, and it has an anti-vacuum valve built in. That's what my machine came with, and it solves a few problems at the expense of aesthetics.

[kenyabob (original poster)]

Yeah, I purchased a new one from Stefanos this morning. I really hacked away at the gasket, and it was amazingly brittle. Felt like it would take me the rest of the weekend and Id undoubtedly scratch the cap itself.

[drgary]

I would use a picking tool on that, and it'll chip out.

[henri]

A bit late to this... but in case it's useful to anyone, I had the same problem and found that a neat cut with a hobby knife made the whole gasket come apart very easily.