Low Steam Pressure/ Slow Recovery
Troubleshooting for Cafe Personnel
The first thing you will want to check is your steam
pressure gauge, which is usually located at the bottom left hand side of your
machine. The gauge is round and has 2 needles, the bottom needle reads the
water pressure and the top needle reads your steam pressure. If the steam
pressure in your boiler is low then the gauge will read that your steam
pressure is low. Normally your gauge should be in the area of 1.0-1.3.
Your boiler does not
have unlimited steam capacity and if run continuously, without a brief period
of time to rebuild steam pressure, it will be problematic.
You can avoid any
downtime by diligently watching your steam pressure gauge. This is the top
needle (usually red) in the round gauge on the left side of the machine. At
full pressure this needle should read 1.0 -1.3. As you use the steam wands the
pressure (and the needle) will drop. As you use the machine during this busy
season you should watch the gauge/needle and if it drops to .07 you MUST give
it 1-2 minutes to recover back to 1.0 -1.3. If you do not give it a short time
to recover you will drain the pressure to zero. If you drain the steam pressure
all the way to zero you will then have a boiler full of cold water to heat and
bring to temp. And I assure you it will take a LOT
longer than 1-2 minutes to get back up to temp during which time you will be
unable to steam milk.
If the gauge reads
normal (1.1-1.3) then the pressure in the boiler is probably fine but you may
have a blockage somewhere preventing adequate steam from your steam wand(s).
You will need to check: A) Steam wand tips for clogs. B) Steam wand/valve
levers to make sure that they are activating your steam wand properly. (e.g.:
if your steam wand valve lever/handle assembly is worn out it won’t open and
shut the valve properly and you won’t get consistent performance from your
steam wand).
If the gauge reads low
then you will need to schedule a technician to come on site to diagnose the
problem. Please call Espresso Parts NW to arrange service for you. The
technician will check all pressure related functions such as: voltage, heating
element, and pressure stat/switch.
Important! If all of the above procedures have been done, the equipment
checks out as operating properly and there still seems to be a pressure related
problem then you may need to examine the operation of the equipment. The only
other cause (with the exception of “flukes” or unusual circumstances) could be
procedures of steaming/water extraction. Any usage
that pulls excessive amounts of water or steam from the boiler is going to
affect your steam pressure. Examples: rinsing portafilters w/ hot water tap,
making tea with center hot water tap, using the extra large pitchers for
steaming one pitcher after another, etc.
Copyright Espresso Parts NW
(800) 459-5594
Fax (360) 357-8895
www.espressoparts.com
1(800)459-5594
8AM-5PM Pacific Time
