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Water alarm but tank is full + pulsing pump
Hi there!
I recently installed the new digital preinfusion kit, and now I'm having two minor issues with the LR. First, the water alarm is going off pretty often when the tank is full. I pulled the tank when installing the module, and pulled it again to clean it but the issue persists. Turning the machine on and off a few times fixes it. I'm using distilled water with Third Wave minerals (never had an issue with this). Is there anything I should do or check?
Second issue is the pump starts pulsing sometimes when the heating element is on. It sounds almost like it's trying to preinfuse or something. It tends to happen late in the morning after being on for a few hours. Not a big deal though the sound is kind of annoying.
Thanks!
Andrew
I recently installed the new digital preinfusion kit, and now I'm having two minor issues with the LR. First, the water alarm is going off pretty often when the tank is full. I pulled the tank when installing the module, and pulled it again to clean it but the issue persists. Turning the machine on and off a few times fixes it. I'm using distilled water with Third Wave minerals (never had an issue with this). Is there anything I should do or check?
Second issue is the pump starts pulsing sometimes when the heating element is on. It sounds almost like it's trying to preinfuse or something. It tends to happen late in the morning after being on for a few hours. Not a big deal though the sound is kind of annoying.
Thanks!
Andrew
Comments
I rarely have that, but when it happens it's after I pulled and re-installed the water reservoir. Best to pull it and clean the contact points carefully, making sure there is no transparant grease on these points. If they don't make correct contact, the machine control board assumes there mnight not be enough water in the reservoir and the alarm sounds.
Then when it works again, do not pull out the reservoir if it's not absolutely necessary.
I rarely have that, but when it happens it's after I pulled and re-installed the water reservoir. Best to pull it and clean the contact points carefully, making sure there is no transparant grease on these points. If they don't make correct contact, the machine control board assumes there mnight not be enough water in the reservoir and the alarm sounds.
Then when it works again, do not pull out the reservoir if it's not absolutely necessary.
Thanks, I'll try cleaning the contacts!
hi andrew
the two issues are unrelated
1. you should have a 40mm length of silicone tubing pushed onto one of the electrodes in the bottom of the water tank to ensure that that pump can not run dry. if when refilling the tank your pour onto this silicone tubing you are likely to get a bubble of air trapped in the 40mm of silicone tubing mounted on the electrode. to remedy simply pinch the top end of the silicon tubing between your forefinger and thumb to dislodge the air bubble. if this doesnt address it please revert. to prevent this issue recurring pour water into the opposite end of the tank when refilling it
2. second issue: on the very bottom of the pump, protruding out through a hole in the chassis, is a pressure adjustment screw. take a 10mm wrench (not a cursed adjustable wrench) and turn the adjustment screw in a clockwise direction so it winds deeper into the pump body. when it comes to the end of the thread unwind it two turns in a counter-clockwise direction. i think this will solve your issue. please revert if it does not
kind regards
reiss.
Thanks Reiss! Reseating the tank, pinching the tube (it did indeed have bubbles in it), and pouring water on the other side of the tank seems to have fixed the water alarm issue.
I'll try the pressure adjustment on the pump. Just so I understand what I'm doing, what does that screw do? Why would it being backed out too much cause the pump to pulse when the boiler element is on? Just trying to understand the inner-workings of the machine every time I work on it.
hopefully the diagram above is self-explanatory
so if you have set the digital pre-infusion module to deliver X bar, but the pressure relief screw is unwound to the extent that at X bar the path of least resistance is through the pressure relief pathway then the pump can never deliver X bar (as the water heads down the path of least resistance, down the pressure relief pathway)
winding the pressure relief screw in such that the pressure relief pathway exceeds X bar ensures that the pump is able to deliver X bar
kind regards
reiss.
thank you for reporting the outcome of this issue; it is appreciated
a 10mm socket should allow you to reach in through the hole in the chassis if the need arises again
kind regards
reiss.
So I'm running into issues here again. I've adjusted the bolt on the bottom, which got rid of the pulsing for a while. Now, the pulsing is back (typically after the machine is on for a few hours, not right away). It pulses right when the boiler starts heating (like turns red, pump pulses 4-5 times then stop). If I tighten the pressure release bolt any more, the pump makes a terrible screaming noise when filling the boiler.
Any suggestions? Does that valve under the pump need to be replaced?
Cheers,
Andrew
this post in the permanent file addresses your issue:
https://londiniumespresso.com/permanent-file/1336-does-the-pump-stutter-on-and-off-repeatedly-when-the-lr-is-idle
kind regards
reiss.