Did descaling damage my La Pavoni Europiccola? :(

Equipment doesn't work? Troubleshooting? If you're handy, members can help.
paksu
Posts: 1
Joined: 1 year ago

#1: Post by paksu »

Hi friends,

I tried descaling my Europiccola today. I used Descaler by Impresa. Left it boiling in the machine for 15mins+ and now the inside of the machine looks rough.

Seems like I cannot add pictures to this forum from my phone, but the inside is completely brown, the top of the reservoir is flaking, there are flakes (dark from one side, silver and shiny on the other) in the water despite rinsing and emptying the boiler three times now.

What do you think? Did I damage the machine?

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Jake_G
Team HB
Posts: 4295
Joined: 6 years ago

#2: Post by Jake_G »

Hey there, and welcome to HB!

You can add photos, just tap on the Images tab below the Preview/Submit buttons and then tap Add Files, and then finally, use the buttons to insert the images into the text of your post. See Posting images on HB for details.
paksu wrote:Left it boiling in the machine for 15mins+ and now the inside of the machine looks rough.
Did you have the cap on tight when you let it boil?

According to the SDS, Impressa Coffee Machine Descaler is a mixture of Citric acid (7-10%) and Sulfamic Acid (3-7%). It shouldn't have hurt anything unless you boiled it dry...

Did you have visible scale you were trying to eliminate prior to dealing? How much descale fluid did you add to the boiler, and how much water?

Post some photos and we can better help you go from here.

Cheers!

- Jake
LMWDP #704

Jonk
Posts: 2176
Joined: 4 years ago

#3: Post by Jonk »

Some Europiccolas have nickel plating inside the boiler that can peel off after descaling. Inside the group there's often chrome plating that can also come off*. Good news is that even if you damage these coatings it's not the end of the world, just try to remove the rest and your Europiccola will work just fine.

*it's a good idea to remove the group from the machine and clean it separately while descaling the bottom 2/3rds of the boiler.

WWWired
Posts: 352
Joined: 5 years ago

#4: Post by WWWired »

Hi paksu :) Great issue and fantastic replies by Jake_G and Jonk :)

Descaling isn't likely the cause of any "rough" appearance and it is worth considering that the "Descaler by Impresa" is just revealing the "roughness". It is very important to remove any plating that is flaking and/or corrosion out of the machine as that is removing possibly unhealthy free metals from the machine that are already breaking free and finding their way into beverages slowly. Certain metals (Lead in brass, copper etc.) can pose health problems if excessive so your maintenance is excellent and you are revealing and removing corrosion that is already present, and likely not being caused by a descaler. Descalers are excellent to reveal corrosion that may not be obvious on first inspection. If you are seeing "rough" spots, corrosion, or flaking of plating then that is already present and the descaler is just revealing it.