Sunbeam EM4800C repair

UNM

Just picked up a sunbeam em4800. Not the highest spec machine, but the price was right (free). Apparently there is a problem with the pump and I happen to have a spare ulka ep5...

I don't know if anyone here has ever worked on these, but if so and there are any gotchas, please let me know. So far it looks pretty straightforward, but I haven't taken anything apart yet.

And I have now seen my first pressurised filter basket!

beanflying

Haven't used one but from what I have read fitted with a non pressurised basket they make a fairly decent shot. Just play carefully around water and electricity, the two mixed are a very bad idea 😉. And to this make sure you are using an earth leakage connected power point or power board for a little more protection when firing up unknown appliances for the first time.

UNM

Actually mixing water and electricity can be a good thing, depending what you want to achieve snd with who 😉 An earth leakage breaker on the main distribution panel is a given - any appliance can go bad any time. Pulled the back off last night and that gives good access. A bit of testing and can hopefully power up and find if it really is the pump, or a blockage. Then I can give it away to someone in need.

UNM

Well I did some testing and then cranked it up last night - pump sounded iffy. Changed for a spare and all working within 5 mins so it was as easy as I hoped. Will play with it for a couple days and then pass it on to somebody deserving.

UNM

AngerManagement wrote:

Well done, and I like the pay it forward outcome..

Just makes sense since nobody wanted my pump which was on there for a long time (along with thermostats and various bits and pieces). This way I get to play and we get 1+1 >= 2 The quandary is whether to convert the pressurised baskets to unpressurised. I think I'll wait and see who wants the machine - while it would be nice to encourage people to use real coffee, some may be quite happy with less.

Koffee_Kosmo

Does anyone want a small Breville I think its a Cafe Roma My sister in-law gave it to me & said that it works fine but has a crack on the plastic case of the top rim I am keeping the 2 cute espresso cups ;D ;D KK

UNM

When I got back from hols, I fired up this new toy with the last beans I had sitting at home (old). Shot poured really quick (not sure I had the grind right), but ' crema' from start of the pour and it looked blonde immediately. Crema texture was weird. I can't seem to get decent steam. If I go immediately from pour to steam, I get 10 seconds or so of steam, then have to switch back to pour again if I want more. Is this normal for a single thermoblock? Shouldn't it engage the pump intermittently while steaming to keep the block producing steam?

UNM

AngerManagement wrote:

I have lots of EM4800C parts about ;D 1: In steam mode it should be Pumping and Steaming.. But never pour a shot straight after Steam, as the GH is too hot and you will destroy even the best beans... Flush a few times and then do your shot. 2: If the pump is not working when in steam mode, then one of the sensors or switches is not behaving correctly.. How close to me are you ?

Not very , SE Melbourne. I'll have a play around and see if I can work out what it's wrong. Knowing how it should work is half the battle.

Tango

I've got an EM4800 too and I've found with unpressurised baskets and a decent grinder (BCG 800) that I can get some decent shots. Need to purge a fair bit of water through it though, as often the first bit of water coming out is waay too hot. Having said that though, mine just went bung over the weekend! There's a crack in the black plastic group head lock which causes water and coffee to go spurting out when pressure builds up. AM - you wouldn't happen to have a spare group head lock lying around would you??? It's either replace the group head or upgrade......hmmmm.

Tango

AM, You're a legend!!!! PM on the way!

Tango

AngerManagement wrote:

Will be posted to day.

Thanks AM - any chance you could please send it express? I'll of course reimburse you the full cost!

UNM

After a (not so) brief hiatus, spent a short while working on my pair of 4800C's yesterday. I now have Tango's old one as well as the other. Two machines, two problems. Machine 1: when steaming, pump doesn't operate at all Machine2: group seal not sealing well. So this SHOULD let me troubleshoot and end up with two good machines relatively easily. First up is to fix machine1. I suspected the circuit board as switches and thermostats all tested OK. Swapped 'suspect' circuit board into machine2. Everything worked - pump pulses while steam switch engaged. Swapped board back to machine2 - no pump. Swapped out steam microswitch, even though it seemed OK - no change. Tested thermostats again, all seems well. Not sure what to check next. Will give it some thought, but any ideas are welcome. Oh yes, machine1 circuit board has date of 2001, machine2 has date 2004, but same connections on each.

askthecoffeeguy

UNM wrote:

After a (not so) brief hiatus, spent a short while working on my pair of 4800C's yesterday. I now have Tango's old one as well as the other. Two machines, two problems. Machine 1: when steaming, pump doesn't operate at all Machine2: group seal not sealing well. So this SHOULD let me troubleshoot and end up with two good machines relatively easily. First up is to fix machine1. I suspected the circuit board as switches and thermostats all tested OK. Swapped 'suspect' circuit board into machine2. Everything worked - pump pulses while steam switch engaged. Swapped board back to machine2 - no pump. Swapped out steam microswitch, even though it seemed OK - no change. Tested thermostats again, all seems well. Not sure what to check next. Will give it some thought, but any ideas are welcome. Oh yes, machine1 circuit board has date of 2001, machine2 has date 2004, but same connections on each.

could be a descale problem as a build-up of calcium deposits can inhibit water flow have you tried removing the shower screen and having a good go with either pipe cleaner or pressurised water to clean the water line out?

UNM

Surely the pump would still try to operate? Also water flow when pulling a shot is fine. Don't know if the water path for steam is different to brew. Worth descaling anyway. Is citric acid ok if rinsed thoroughly? Dont have anything else to hand.

Kelsey

Sorry to barge in (mods, feel free to move to a new thread if this derails the original) but I'm also having a problem with my 4800. As mentioned on a previous post today, my group seal gave out. It's been replaced, but I'm still getting the odd spurt of water over the top of the portafilter and a fair amount of additional dripping which wasn't happening before. I'm hard-locking the handle to the right and I don't think I'm overdosing.... Any ideas?

Brett_H

The collar sounds like it might be scored or cracked Kelsey. Why not try some sort of gasket/spacer or one of Chris' Bezzeras as a quick fix. Umn, despite the warnings I've used citric (10ml/l dissolved in a cup of hot water first) for years. I was also recommended it by a staff member at Di Bella recently. The only issue is that the 'sand' doesn't completely dissolve and may cause hassles further up the line if there are restrictions.

Kelsey

Thanks Brett, I think the Bezzera fix sounds like a solid plan. 😉 I'll take a look at the collar while I'm at it tho....

Kelsey

Hi AM - was this directed at me? I wouldn't want to presume, given I've barged in on this thread... 😉

UNM

Kelsey wrote:

Hi AM - was this directed at me? I wouldn't want to presume, given I've barged in on this thread... 😉

Barge away. I got no problem with others troubleshooting their 4800C's. I might even learn something about the two I currently have. Not made any time to work on them again yet.

Kelsey

So not so lucky after all. 🙁 Replaced the seal and steam/water mist still blew out the top of the portafilter. I removed the showerscreen and inspected the seal - looked fine, so I removed what I *think* is the collar (sunbeam calls it the 'brew head lock') - the black plastic thing that has 'Insert ----> lock' (or something similar) printed on it. Took that off - found that the base of it that should be flush with the machine was absolutely impacted with grinds from the explosion, so cleaned that thoroughly. I couldn't see any cracking or obvious damage to the collar itself. So I'm now wondering if we're installing the seal wrongly.... surely there should only be one obvious way?