I’ve had a Gaggia Classic for a few years and over the last few months I’ve been having issues with the flow from the group head.

I think it might be an issue with the solenoid valve. There was some guidance I saw online about flicking rapidly from the group head to the steam wand, as this forces water through and clears any blockages. And yes this does seem to work - if I rapidly flick the switches the water suddenly flows a lot faster from the group head. But it’s not a permanent fix.

I’ve descaled it several times. Is there something else I can do, or does the valve need replacing?

  • OmegaMouse@pawb.socialOP
    1·
    13 days ago

    Thanks for this - I could certainly take it apart and try and clean everything individually. Are there any particular guides you used when doing this?

    What kind of water do you use now? Distilled or through a brita filter?

    • Spokesyon@lemmy.world
      2·
      13 days ago

      https://youtu.be/0ipvBdWaVzQ

      I used this, but I’ve installed the shades pid, shades pressure gauge, and a dimmer mod so I was fairly familiar with the innards.

      Consumer carbon filters don’t really remove enough hardness to be effective. For convenience I use distilled gallons and third wave espresso packets. There are cheaper methods though.