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My gaggia repair thread

1K views 7 replies 4 participants last post by  MartinB 
#1 ·
My gaggia classic (well, in a different shell) has developed a problem. The opv is always kicked in! Well, that's what it seems to be anyway...

This means, after priming, if I turn on the brew head, instead of water rushing out, it just pours back into the water tank at the back. With a bit of guidance from MartinB, who has been an absolute gent with his generous knowledge, I managed to clean the brew head, just in case there was gunk there preventing water flow. Here they are after a soak in puly caff.

Automotive tire Tire Plant Wood Wheel


Sadly, on reassmbling back to a clean head, still no luck. Motor vehicle Audio equipment Gas Machine Auto part


Water was still going straight back into the tank.

The next job is likely to check the opv for a fault and properly descale it (I descale the machine earlier - very little scale came out, bar a tiny bit from the wand, and it didn't help with the issue).
 

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#2 ·
I opened the lid and this is what I saw.

Circuit component Electronic engineering Gas Engineering Electrical wiring


A remarkably simple machine! I could see the OPV in the left corner and immediately thought I'd take an Allen key to it, give it a descale and get it back on, no other parts touched.

But holy COW is that thing seized on. I've closed the lid for the night because I think I will need to remove the whole boiler to get to it. I did notice one connector looked a little burnt, but I don't think that would have any impact... And still looks fully functional.

Any tips for removing seized bolts, or is it a vice and a lot of spinach? :D

On the plus side, it feels great to get to feel a bit of confidence in opening this up. I hope to fully understand its workings and install a PID next year, so this is a nice intro!
 

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#3 ·
These machines are a great tool and superb to tinker with as there is so much knowledge and advice out there!

Dont be afraid to take it apart, just take photos along the way and be prepared for the occasional unexpected bill when stuff doesnt quite to plan.

It does indeed sound like an OPV issue. Mine was a nightmare to get off the first time and even worse to release and adjust, Yes get it in a clamp if possible and definately give it a soak once opened up.

Good luck

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk
 
#5 ·
Yes you will need to reset the OPV afterwards. Although you should get the pressure gague anyway as they are set to 12 Bar standard (someone correct me here) and you will brew best somewhere about 9 (I liked mine set just below).

There is a pressure gague that has done the rounds on here in the free /pass on section in the sale part of the forum you will just have to pay to post it on to the next person who wants it.

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk
 
#6 ·
Morningfuel said:
Will I need to reset the opv pressure after removing and soaking? If so, I'll need to get a pressure gauge for the portafilter...

Thanks for the kind words [emoji4] I can see why my friend told me, "pourover is a drink, espresso is a hobby".
Yeah, you'll need to reset the OPV pressure if you're stripping it down. There's a portafilter gauge doing the rounds here.
While you have the dispersion block off, check to make sure the water hole isn't blocked.
 
#7 ·
Minor update on this!

Given I couldn't get the opv off easily, I thought I'd take a look at the solenoid. I forgot to take a photo, but this has some fine particles of scale!

I gave it a soak, reinstalled it after a clean and it worked great - for one shot. I then ran more descaler through, but repeatedly flipped the steam switch with the pump on. This eventually cleared the valve of scale enough to work perfectly again.

Not happy with that, so today it'll be coming out again for another soak and clean - but it seems my problem was caused by scale (as expected) and was due to the solenoid getting stuck of being clogged.

Woo!
 
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