Restoring a Le Grand Danieli/Conti 2 group lever espresso machine

#1: Post by **athoangphan** » October 4th, 2021, 5:21 pm

Hi all, I am going to attemp to restore a Conti 2 group lever espresso machine that is no longer heating up. I opened up the boiler and the machine was in a bad shape of scale. I am going to attempt to descale the boiler and heating elements first, then try to put the heating elements back in to see if the machine heats up.
The machine comes with an auto-fill feature, I did take pictures of the electrical components. What do you think of the chance of one of these components would go bad? Could you please help identify these components as well? Thank you so much!

Anthony

Relay

Gicar autofill controler

Single phase thermostat

October 9th, 2021, 9:44 pm

The machine is in a bad case of scales due to the hard well water. I was able to remove the heating elements. I am currently descaling the heating elements and hoping for some advice on how to remove the stuck bolt. I also just received a sheet of high heat silicon rubber to eventually use as gaskets.

Next step is to remove the scales inside the boiler and reinstall the heating element to see if the machine heats up. Once that is done, I'll take every apart again preparing for a compete restore.

#3: Post by **ira** » October 10th, 2021, 1:17 am

Mine was about that bad. I descaled it by filling the boiler to the top of the scale with solution and connecting one of the heating elements to 117V. It was enough to keep the water just under boiling. Disconnected all the top fittings and then let it sit some hours a day with fresh solution every day till it cleaned up. A lot easier than trying to find a giant bucket.

Ira

October 10th, 2021, 2:38 pm

Thank you so much for your suggestion, Ira! I think that's what I'll do with the boiler. My concern is with the electrical components, but I'll find out once I install the heating elements and turn the machine on.

#5: Post by **ira** » October 10th, 2021, 2:48 pm

Only electrical components are likely a pressurestat controlling that big relay and a Gicar autofill controller controlling a solenoid. That's all my 2 group lever has. Set up like that so you can easily convert between single and 3 phase. I would also check the gauge on the wires going to the heating elements, they look small. Mine is 3000 watts so 12.5 amps if it was single phase which probably means 14ga wire, I assume you're is similar. If you decide to replace it, you might even consider 12ga, it's short pieces so the cost difference is minor.

Ira

October 14th, 2021, 10:35 pm

Thank you so much, Ira! I took the time today to trace the wiring. The Gicar autofill controls the solenoid and it is on its own, not controlling the heating elements. The pressurestat is connected to the thermostat which controls the heating elements through the big relay. The cupid, I think is, the thermostat which cafeparts.com is out of stock at this point. I may have to resource to using a different thermostat. I received a sheet of high heat silicon rubber which I cut and installed as gaskets for both the boiler and heating elements. My next step is to take everything apart to repair the rusty frame and descale the boiler. I am starting to like this machine a lot for how simple it is. I would love to be able to find for myself a Conti Prestina in the future.

I am going to change out some of the wiring as well. I was also surprised looking at the wiring being used on this machine considering it is 220V.

#7: Post by **ira** » October 14th, 2021, 10:42 pm

If the thermostat is just there as a safety, usually they have a reset button, they tend to be standard and again commonly available at most appliance parts stores, Amazon, eBay and aliexpress.

Ira

October 14th, 2021, 10:47 pm

I put the heating elements back yesterday the machine heated up, so I turned it off. Today I turned the machine on and it did not heat up, so I used a multimeter to try troubleshoot to find there was no power on the thermostat's output pole, after fiddling with the reset button on the thermostat, the machine heated up, so it might be that the reset button has gotten bad.

October 27th, 2021, 11:23 pm

Just an update, I was able to remove the majority of the scale from the boiler and remove the stuck bolt using a torch and a vice grip. I am now in the process of reassembling the machine. Just wondering if I should take advantage of this and replace the safety valve and vacuum breaker. How often these go bad, I do not know. Thoughts? TIA!

#10: Post by **drgary** » October 27th, 2021, 11:34 pm

The safety valve and vacuum breaker are pretty rugged. If the thermostat works, why fix it? You can always replace it if it fails.