Hot water LEAK in bottom drawer - PINHOLE in the heating element!
I started getting half-full cups of expresso and American coffee from the machine together with a large hot water leak coming from the left side of the machine and a lower drawer with the missing water that did not go into the coffees!
Well, as I am an engineer, I thought it would be wise to disassemble to machine to find out what the problem was!
I unscrewed and removed the top plate right on top of the heating element. The plastic hoses are in perfect condition - no leaks coming out either from the hoses nor from the fittings to the water tank or heating element.
SO, I decided to plug the machine to the electric outlet and ran the machine to get a coffee out of it to see what happened, and
HELLO! did I get a surprise when I ran the machine without the top metalic plate. There is a minuscule PINHOLE in the body of the heating element, which is jetting steaming water out of the heating element STRAIGHT into an electrical connection that has 2 wires coming out of it! So, even though I knew it was not a good idea to get close to the machine while it was jetting steaming water out of the unit and spraying it into the electical fitting, I saw that half or more of the water supposed to go into the expressso coffee, was just leaking out of the body of the casted heating element. I can tell that there is not gasket or anything to be replaced in the heating element because it is a PINHOLE in the body itself. Therefore, I think, I need a new heating element.
Does anybody know if I can get/and where a new heating element to replace my leaking one?
If you experience this same problem, WATCH OUT! You could have the same problem I have and this situation could represent a MAJOR hazard because you could get an electric shock if you are touching the machine and water coming out of it while the machine is running!
JUST TAKE CARE, please.....
Well, as I am an engineer, I thought it would be wise to disassemble to machine to find out what the problem was!
I unscrewed and removed the top plate right on top of the heating element. The plastic hoses are in perfect condition - no leaks coming out either from the hoses nor from the fittings to the water tank or heating element.
SO, I decided to plug the machine to the electric outlet and ran the machine to get a coffee out of it to see what happened, and
HELLO! did I get a surprise when I ran the machine without the top metalic plate. There is a minuscule PINHOLE in the body of the heating element, which is jetting steaming water out of the heating element STRAIGHT into an electrical connection that has 2 wires coming out of it! So, even though I knew it was not a good idea to get close to the machine while it was jetting steaming water out of the unit and spraying it into the electical fitting, I saw that half or more of the water supposed to go into the expressso coffee, was just leaking out of the body of the casted heating element. I can tell that there is not gasket or anything to be replaced in the heating element because it is a PINHOLE in the body itself. Therefore, I think, I need a new heating element.
Does anybody know if I can get/and where a new heating element to replace my leaking one?
If you experience this same problem, WATCH OUT! You could have the same problem I have and this situation could represent a MAJOR hazard because you could get an electric shock if you are touching the machine and water coming out of it while the machine is running!
JUST TAKE CARE, please.....
Coffee Makers & Espresso... - Lavazza - Espresso Point Capsule Machine