forbeskm wrote:Perhaps consulting an electrician would be useful here. A dryer outlet has a hell of a lot of power and can kill. Be careful and consult a pro if in any doubt.

+1
Hire an electrician who will make sure you are in compliance with the local building codes and have a safe circuit for the machine.

DucaiMann wrote:You are absolutely right. No sense in killing myself before getting a taste of what this machine can do!

So glad you got that advice and that you're taking it.

Your 4 wires at the dryer outlet would have been two 120V split phase hots, one neutral, and one ground, and if you get it wrong you could easily have only 120v in machine. Get it wrong in a different way and it could be lethal. Have a licensed electrician wire your outlet for you, and ask him to add GFCI protection. (GFCI may not be required by code, but is a good idea for a coffee machine.)

Done and done. Everything is in order. I talked to an electrician and he said it should have the correct power.

Unfortunately, that means I still have a couple solenoids that dont seem to be working right. I am going to have to keep trying...

Ok, I am really stretching now. Does this help at all?




Do I need to test it somehow with the unit on?

This looks normal to me. Both can move, one side is a bit harder to compress than the other.

DucaiMann wrote:Ira,

Could you explain to me how to test that? I should mention that I wired my own plug and outlet in the wall...Could that be the issue? It also takes a long time to heat the boiler (a few hours). I have no experience using a multimeter but just picked one up and with a little instruction, I am sure I can test whatever needs testing.

Cheers!

Just came across this intro to multi meter video series today, how timely.

http://lifehacker.com/this-three-part-v ... socialflow

Nice. I will be watching that right now.

Also, I found another solenoid to test that is in the 2-way valve in the back of the machine. It is identical to the other two. I believe it works as well but when installing it on the grouphead, I am still having the same issues.

All 3 units have a resistance (from the upper identical prongs) of around .933-.955. I believe that is in the normal range. I am not convinced that the coils need replacing as that would mean all 3 needed replacing...Anyone care to test a working one and let me know what they find?

Hi Ira, the problem seems the core of the solenoid valve, ( even if seems ok maybe the strength of the springs are not well) try to switch the core of the other 3 way valve.

How can I test it when it's plugged in? Should I measure from the ring to the terminal?