Likewise. It did occur to me that the pstat relies on a flexible rubber diaphragm; perhaps that has hardened over time as it sat on a shelf for three years. Pinging Chris again; also, he had offered 20%, not 10%, my mistake. Talk soon, bmc Sent from my apple IIe
> On Nov 27, 2015, at 11:17, herman dickens <[email protected]> wrote: > > It seems like mine was around that date too. The second new one says 4/15. > They could have had a bad run of pstats or it could just be bad luck. My last > pstat lasted almost 8 years. > >> On Fri, Nov 27, 2015 at 2:11 PM, Benjamin McCafferty <[email protected]> >> wrote: >> Thanks Herman. >> Pstat looks like mfg date of 6/12; shouldn't matter but there you go. Chris >> will give 10% discount on a new one, but still chaps my butt. >> >> I'll try to pull the giemme cover and watch the relay--don't try this at >> home, kids! >> >> I instinctively don't think the PID or element is bad, but will try the >> p-stat reversal thing and see where that takes me. >> >> I'll post again in a bit. >> >> b >> >> Sent from my apple IIe >> >>> On Nov 27, 2015, at 11:07, herman dickens <[email protected]> wrote: >>> >>> Ben fwiw it sounds like you have 2 problems. I had the same problem with a >>> pstat and it only lasted 2 months. The next one worked fine. There should >>> be a mfg date on the pstat. It seems like my first one was several years >>> old and the second one was this year. I was having the same symptoms with >>> the relief valve but no chatter. The chatter sounds like a relay or a >>> solenoid. Can you pull the cover off and look at the relay while the >>> chattering is going on? That might help narrow things down. You could have >>> a bad pid or element in the brew boiler causing that not to get up to temp >>> but honestly I don't work on these things enough to do anything but guess. >>> I just bought the pid upgrade for my machine but I may hold off on >>> installing it for a few more days. Maybe Todd will jump in and give you >>> some ideas. >>> Herman >>> >>>> On Fri, Nov 27, 2015 at 1:57 PM, Benjamin McCafferty <[email protected]> >>>> wrote: >>>> Hey all! >>>> Hope you all had a great thanksgiving and that you're all waking from your >>>> food comas. I had more pie for breakfast, but alas, with no espresso. >>>> >>>> I will be talking to Todd soon about this, but thought I'd also ping the >>>> collective and see if anyone has any ideas. Unfortunately, I have a >>>> collection of symptoms at this point that I can't make fit a common cause; >>>> perhaps they will make sense to one of you. >>>> >>>> As you may recall, I had quite a bit of trouble this summer, and during >>>> that process I replaced: >>>> >>>> --Both hi-limit switches >>>> --One or both boiler elements >>>> --Giemme controller board with the updated one >>>> --PID temp probe >>>> --Main power switch >>>> --New Jaeger pressure-stat >>>> >>>> Also, as with this summer's shenanigans, my mom is visiting in two weeks, >>>> and dearly loves a good latte. I spent several hundred on overnight >>>> charges, parts, etc. while she was here in the summer, and managed 2 days >>>> of lattes for her in her three-week visit. Hoping to get the machine back >>>> in action fast! >>>> >>>> At the same time I did all that work, I totally disassembled everything, >>>> descaled completely, and cleaned the solenoid until it was shiny, i.e. all >>>> scale removed, etc. The solenoid functioned fine with power. >>>> >>>> The machine worked normally from summer until this week, but with one >>>> weird symptom. It would occasionally make a machine-gun noise, i.e. >>>> something mechanical opening and closing very rapidly, 5-10 times per >>>> second maybe. To me, it is a higher pitched sound than the solenoid, and >>>> sounds like it originates from the area of the giemme controller. Todd >>>> suspected the solenoid might be sticking; I was thinking perhaps one of >>>> the two relays in the giemme controller was misfiring (not sure that they >>>> are even relays--but I'm referring to the two small sets of contacts in >>>> the giemme that look like points from a points-and-condensor ignition). >>>> At its worst, this symptom would continue for 10+ seconds and I'd shut the >>>> machine off and back on; it would seem to "reset" and stop. At its best, >>>> it would last for a few seconds and stop on its own. It clearly is >>>> related to when the machine goes to refill the steam boiler, i.e. when >>>> closing the steam wand, dumping hot water boiler, etc. is when this would >>>> happen, very intermittently. >>>> >>>> As of a week ago, the machine-gun thing got really bad, i.e. it happens >>>> 4-5 times while steaming enough milk for a latte, etc. When shutting off >>>> the steam wand, when it goes to refill, the machine-gun noise happens >>>> every time and frequently does not stop. As the machine sits at idle and >>>> occasionally refills the steam boiler, it also makes the noise every time. >>>> >>>> At this point, it would seem to me that the culprit would be the giemme or >>>> the solenoid, but wait, there's more... >>>> >>>> A few other symptoms have happened in the past week, which really confuse >>>> the issue for me, because I admittedly don't know exactly how electricity >>>> flows through the machine: >>>> >>>> --The Jaeger P-stat has allowed the machine to over-pressure about 3 times >>>> in 5 months, causing the blowoff to activate. No way this should be >>>> happening with a new p-stat, but otherwise it has been normal. As an >>>> aside, Chris Coffee will not warrant the p-stat, stating 30 days is the >>>> warranty from that manufacturer. So I have a 90-day-old failing part that >>>> won't be covered. Unexpected. >>>> >>>> --The PID display (which I have set to 204F) has stayed at 105F for >>>> several hours each morning for about four days in a row, and then later in >>>> the day, has heated to 204F. >>>> >>>> --As of two days ago, the PID heated the brew boiler to 105F and stayed >>>> there all day, never heating to 204F. >>>> >>>> --Earlier this week, one day only, the PID display was blank when the >>>> machine was on. It remained blank for about an hour, then suddenly lit >>>> up. It showed 105F. Every time the steam boiler fired, the PID screen >>>> would flicker and get really dim, almost not visible. Then it would >>>> brighten right back up when the steam boiler turned off. >>>> >>>> --Most of the time (and this is an old thing, maybe normal), the PID >>>> numbers and "dot" will blink every few seconds, i.e. they go off for a >>>> split second, and then come back on. The dot at this point will not stay >>>> on for more than a split second also, i.e. it never shows the boiler >>>> calling for heat once the steam boiler is off. >>>> >>>> --The same day the PID display was blank and dim, there was a single time >>>> where the steam boiler filled, and then shut off (solenoid clicked), but >>>> the pump kept running indefinitely. I finally had to turn off the machine >>>> to make it stop. After power cycling the machine, the pump filled and >>>> stopped normally again. >>>> >>>> --At this time, the steam boiler fills and heats normally, with the >>>> exception of the machine-gun noise, which happens almost every time. >>>> >>>> OK--I think that's it. I'm sorry if someone has told me this before, but >>>> I'm trying to understand first how electricity travels in the machine. So >>>> far, the only thing that seems like a common point to all of these >>>> symptoms is the giemme controller, but that's based on my limited >>>> understanding. >>>> >>>> How I *think* it works is this: main power switch sends current to the >>>> giemme, which sends current to the pump and to the pressure stat (via the >>>> two "relays" in the giemme?). If the steam boiler is not up to temp, the >>>> p-stat sends current to it until it is at pressure, then it sends current >>>> onward to the PID. The PID sends that onwards in bursts via its >>>> solid-state relay to heat the brew boiler. Meanwhile, the giemme sends >>>> current to the pump (via a relay?) and to the solenoid, so the solenoid >>>> closes, diverting water to the steam boiler, and the steam boiler fills. >>>> When water touches the probe in the steam boiler, it essentially shorts >>>> out and stops the pump, and the solenoid opens, sending water line >>>> pressure to the brew boiler, which is held back by the group. When the >>>> lever is lifted, the lever mechanically opens the group to let water >>>> through, and the switch behind the lever sends power to the pump to cause >>>> it to run and push water under pressure through the group. If, while >>>> pulling a shot, the steam boiler level drops below its probe, the solenoid >>>> closes and interrupts water to the brew boiler/group until the steam >>>> boiler is filled again. >>>> >>>> Does that sound about right? Again, I would really like to understand >>>> this whole circuit, especially the giemme controller and what the two >>>> mechanical contacts are for on that board. >>>> >>>> --Also, my PID is about 5-6 years old by now; what is the expected service >>>> life of those? >>>> >>>> --Can I safely test the PID by reversing NO/NC terminals on the P-stat? >>>> Wouldn't that have the effect of prioritizing the PID first? >>>> >>>> OK, I'll stop. Enjoy your leftovers, and have a good coffee for me! >>>> >>>> best, >>>> Ben McC >>>> Sent from my apple IIe >>>> >>>> -- >>>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >>>> "Brewtus" group. >>>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >>>> email to [email protected]. >>>> To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. >>>> Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/brewtus. >>>> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. >>> >>> -- >>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >>> "Brewtus" group. >>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >>> email to [email protected]. >>> To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. >>> Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/brewtus. >>> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. >> >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "Brewtus" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to [email protected]. >> To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. >> Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/brewtus. >> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Brewtus" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/brewtus. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Brewtus" group. 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