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Expobar Brewtus issue x 2

4K views 33 replies 4 participants last post by  DavecUK 
#1 ·
Hi all,

I've got an issue with my 2014 Brewtus and I'm weighing up my options so I'd appreciate your opinions and advice.

There are 2 issues that I need help with.

1. The pump has started to 'stick' when I flip the lever. I'll explain. So when I warm the machine up I sometimes hear the pump drawing water from the reservoir to fill thr boilers. Recently I can hear the click of the pump, but then nothing for a couple of seconds, then the pump kicks in as normal. This morning it didn't kick in as normal and I just heard it click. I tapped the machine on the side and it kicked in. So my point here is that I think the pump needs changing. I've watched a video on YouTube from WholeLatteLove and it looks pretty simple. Had anyone done this? I've included a picture of my pump as I'd like to know if anyone knows where I can find one.

The second issue was found whilst looking at the pump. In short, water is expelling from the steam wand boiler and it looks like it shouldn't be. It's best explained in a few short videos.

Here is video 1 (apologies for the quality, they get better!). This shows the front valve (for want of a better phrase) expelling water from the top, with the water then resting, boiling and dissipating on the top of the boiler



So, what I'm after knowing is whether anyone can say with confidence what the issue is and how easy it is to fix. I'm in two minds whether to sell up and replace my system, noting it's now 6-7 years old and I'm probably due an upgrade.

Or do I simply replace the pump and valves and keep on using it? I appreciate its a personal choice, but I've been off the forum for a few years so I've not kept up to date with new gadgets and machines. I wouldn't mind a new grinder and machine, but my current set up cost me around £1700 back when I bought it so I wonder whether I just change those parts and keep using it.

Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance

Tony

Automotive lighting Electrical wiring Gas Cable Electronic engineering
 

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#2 ·
Hi @Big Tony . There's plenty of people here who can advise on this. I'm sure it's fixable, and it doesn't seem too bad, IMO. Unfortunately this is a bit out of my depth as I don't know this machine well, but, looking at your videos related to steaming and leaks, it there could be lots of things, and, unfortunately, you'll need to isolate the problem in order to find out exactly what's causing it.

First of all, I would focus on the leaks. If the leaks are not coming from the top of the valves, then you have a leak on the fitting, it seems. You may want to undo them and refit them. PTFE is your friend.

It wasn't clear to me whether the safety valve triggered. If it has, then it might be that the boiler is over pressured (What's the pressure reading on the boiler?). That's triggering, escaping trough the top, but some water is also spluttering back on top of the boiler. And that could indicate a bad pressurestat or thermostat. The only water which should be spluttering on the top of the boiler is the vaccum breaker, which shuts off as the temperature inside the boiler reaches approx. 100C. It will leak a very small amount of water and hiss for a few seconds, all normal. Because the boiler is hot, that will evaporate instantly.

Personally, if you are happy with the machine, I'd fix it. The parts in question here, if they need replacing at all, won't be too expensive.

As for the pump, might as well check the contacts to see if it's all correctly set. If you do need to change the pump, again, it's not too expensive for a replacement.
 
#4 ·
Hi @Big Tony . There's plenty of people here who can advise on this. I'm sure it's fixable, and it doesn't seem too bad, IMO. Unfortunately this is a bit out of my depth as I don't know this machine well, but, looking at your videos related to steaming and leaks, it there could be lots of things, and, unfortunately, you'll need to isolate the problem in order to find out exactly what's causing it.

First of all, I would focus on the leaks. If the leaks are not coming from the top of the valves, then you have a leak on the fitting, it seems. You may want to undo them and refit them. PTFE is your friend.

It wasn't clear to me whether the safety valve triggered. If it has, then it might be that the boiler is over pressured (What's the pressure reading on the boiler?). That's triggering, escaping trough the top, but some water is also spluttering back on top of the boiler. And that could indicate a bad pressurestat or thermostat. The only water which should be spluttering on the top of the boiler is the vaccum breaker, which shuts off as the temperature inside the boiler reaches approx. 100C. It will leak a very small amount of water and hiss for a few seconds, all normal. Because the boiler is hot, that will evaporate instantly.

Personally, if you are happy with the machine, I'd fix it. The parts in question here, if they need replacing at all, won't be too expensive.

As for the pump, might as well check the contacts to see if it's all correctly set. If you do need to change the pump, again, it's not too expensive for a replacement.
Hi and thanks for your message. I think the water is being expelled from the valves. I've taken a screen shot and have circleed the two valves that the water was clearly coming from. The blue circle is the valve that lots of water was coming from in the first video. What I failed to explain was that I started taking the video after the water started coming out, so by the time the video was recording it was showing the top of the boiler with water around all the other areas. To make it clear, the water was only coming from the very top of the blue circled valve.

Secondary to that (and when I opened the steam wand) the pink circled valve started expelling water. But the blue one was a one off (so to speak).

Pressure looks stable. About 3/4 of a bar pressure on the steam wand, but rises to 1bar when open. About 9 bar pressure on the lever, but rises to 10 when open.

Gas Cylinder Auto part Machine tool Machine
 

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#3 ·
Welcome back Tony,you appear to have more than one leak or the water is spreading about.

The tall valve with holes at the base is the safety valve, this should definitely not be leaking, they can be cleaned but as it is a safety valve it should be replaced.

With the water spreading about it is difficult to say exactly which other valve or if it is the thread sealant leaking where the valves screw into the boiler. A video showing just start of warm up and concentrating steadily on the top of the boiler would help identify what is leaking.

The pump looks like a standard Ulka pump, easy to replace and not expensive.

Unless you are determined to change machines I would have it serviced/ do it yourself with help from the forum.

Are you in ahard water area ? / use bottled water ? Has it been descaled ?
 
#5 ·
Welcome back Tony,you appear to have more than one leak or the water is spreading about.

The tall valve with holes at the base is the safety valve, this should definitely not be leaking, they can be cleaned but as it is a safety valve it should be replaced.

With the water spreading about it is difficult to say exactly which other valve or if it is the thread sealant leaking where the valves screw into the boiler. A video showing just start of warm up and concentrating steadily on the top of the boiler would help identify what is leaking.

The pump looks like a standard Ulka pump, easy to replace and not expensive.

Unless you are determined to change machines I would have it serviced/ do it yourself with help from the forum.

Are you in ahard water area ? / use bottled water ? Has it been descaled ?
Hi, and again, thanks for the message (and welcome back ☺)

Hopefully I've clarified in the post above that I think it's coming from just two areas, it I take your point re warming up and will record it doing just that.

It's a hard water area, but I've always used bottles since day 1. I used ashbeck until 12 months ago and have now switched onto the waitrose one (Lock something). I do clean it, but it's not something I do as religiously and if I'm honest, I've always found this machine to be easy to flush back but harder to descale. I'd actually like a video showing how to descale a Brewtus if you know of one?

Separate to that, how easy is it to replace the valves?

Appreciate all your other advice, very helpful indeed
 
#7 ·
Great, thanks for this. I'm going to film it warming up this afternoon to see if anything else comes a cropper, but replacing the two bits you mentioned seem straight forward. I've seen a video to replace the pump (below if anyone else wants to see it)



Re the safety valve - I'm struggling to find the exact name of the replacement part. Any ideas?
 
#8 · (Edited by Moderator)
@Big Tony - I don't think it really matters that you fit the original one. Any one will do, providing the thread is compatible, but don't forget to buy it for the same rating (approx. 1.5 bar presumably)

I searched in Spanish and Italian, but not to much avail.

There are some generic ones here: https://www.theespressoshop.co.uk/en/Anti-Vac-and-Safety-Valves/c-80.aspx

You could always give them a ring and see it it will fit your machine.

Also, check this thread: https://www.home-barista.com/repairs/expobar-brewtus-iv-r-safety-valve-leak-t66970.html

Part available in the US: https://www.wholelattelove.com/products/expobar-tall-safety-valve-65000110
 
#11 ·
@Big Tony - I don't think it really matters that you fit the original one. Any one will do, providing the thread is compatible, but don't forget to buy it for the same rating (approx. 1.5 bar presumably)

I searched in Spanish and Italian, but not to much avail.

There are some generic ones here: https://www.theespressoshop.co.uk/en/Anti-Vac-and-Safety-Valves/c-80.aspx

You could always give them a ring and see it it will fit your machine.

Also, check this thread: https://www.home-barista.com/repairs/expobar-brewtus-iv-r-safety-valve-leak-t66970.html

Part available in the US: https://www.wholelattelove.com/products/expobar-tall-safety-valve-65000110
Excellent, thanks so much. I'll look into those this evening and let you know how I get on. As you suggest, it's often better to call to tap into their knowledge to ensure I get a compatible one. I'll check out the last link first though ☺

I went ahead and warmed it up, standing next to it with my camera at the ready....... But nothing unusual happened. I opened the hot tap, ran the group head for a good while and opened the steam wand for a couple of minutes, but I didn't notice anything untoward and there was no leaking at all.

What I did notice was the water pump stalled again, but a quick tap made it kick in again. One thing I failed to mention when I started this thread was the fact my coffee machine is set up on a WiFi plug, meaning it comes on automatically to ensure it's warmed up and ready to use when I get up in the morning. The relevance here is that I think the water pump would've sat idly for at least two hours, just clicking every now and again in an effort to get it started. Maybe that had a consequence that affected the valves and caused them to expel water?

I'm not sure, but it would stand to reason. Anyway, thanks for the links once again.
 
#18 ·
Morning all, I've decided to replace three things - the anti vac valve, the water pump and the safety valve. For anyone in a similar position, the parts have cost me £16 for the pump, £21 for the anti vac and £28 for the safety valve (all with shipping costs included).

I'll update the thread once I've fitted them, but I just wanted to say a big thanks for the help you've given me. I joined this forum years ago for that very reason and it's nice to see nothing has changed ☺
 
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#19 ·
Morning all, I've decided to replace three things - the anti vac valve, the water pump and the safety valve. For anyone in a similar position, the parts have cost me £16 for the pump, £21 for the anti vac and £28 for the safety valve (all with shipping costs included).

I'll update the thread once I've fitted them, but I just wanted to say a big thanks for the help you've given me. I joined this forum years ago for that very reason and it's nice to see nothing has changed ☺
Did you managed to get them all from the same supplier?
 
#22 ·
I've got my bits mixed up! The safety valve was £23.50 + £5 postage. The vacuum breaker was £16.20 + £4.20. I did consider a cheaper one, but I'm looking at selling and upgrading so I wanted to use genuine parts. I appreciate it probably won't make a difference to the sale, but it's peace of mind for the sake of an extra £10
 
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#32 ·
Quick update from me on this. I eventually set aside a couple of hours yesterday and managed to change both valves and the pump. I followed the video tutorials on YouTube for WholeLatteLove and I'm pleased to report it was a great success 😃

I can't believe what a difference a new pump has made (when compared to the old one). I've also changed the gasket for good measure and given it a good once over to ensure it's firing on full cylinders. I'm definitely back in love with it, but can't seem to get rid of that urgraditus itch!
 
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