Breville BES920 Dual Boiler - Owners thread

[GioDiCe]

Hi people, Supercheap Auto stocks a kit of 180 Viton o rings that seem suitable for our machine as they can withstand 180°C. I just got a kit and fixed the boiler leak on mine. They have different sizes so the kit will take you through a few services as well. 17 bucks.

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/ToolPRO-...-/223952228784

For all the people wanting a naked portafilter, it is not that hard, honestly. The Bes900 pf does not have a cut out on the handle to allow clearance of the group head. You only need to shave off 2-3 mm to make it fit.
If you are decent on hand tools, you can surely give it a crack.

[GioDiCe]

So i am on a maintenance run and i was going to ask if there is a good 3rd party dispersion screen that is not plastic, perhaps? Would that keep a bit more heat in the group head or at least not develop cracks eventually? I checked my group head condition today and i have not seen cracks, however the seal seems slightly tacky. Would that be time for it to be replaced?
I still have not fixed the small dripping from the steam wand, i honestly cannot be bothered right now. It annoys me but i'll wait until it drips more to tackle it.
Machine looks good inside and maybe it's placebo effect but my shot tastes better now that my steam boiler is not leaking anymore?

[BOR15]

So i am on a maintenance run and i was going to ask if there is a good 3rd party dispersion screen that is not plastic, perhaps? Would that keep a bit more heat in the group head or at least not develop cracks eventually? I checked my group head condition today and i have not seen cracks, however the seal seems slightly tacky. Would that be time for it to be replaced? I still have not fixed the small dripping from the steam wand, i honestly cannot be bothered right now. It annoys me but i'll wait until it drips more to tackle it. Machine looks good inside and maybe it's placebo effect but my shot tastes better now that my steam boiler is not leaking anymore?

Even though you had a leak at the boiler, the group head water travels through it to preheat the water. You would’ve been losing pressure during brew

[GioDiCe]

But that boiler is just for steam and not for coffee?

[Tupinamba]

My BES920 started to show some signs of tiredness a while ago (steam wand leaking, gurgling sounds, a tad too much coffee coming out after stopping the extraction). I have also seen cockroach activity around it so I put some baits and things seemed ok. About ten days ago I went to prepare my morning coffee and found out the machine was hot. I burned my hand in the group head! I switched off in the power point. Then I tried to proceed as usual but I switched everything off when the temperature reached 99 degrees.

I took the machine to Bravo Repair Centre in St Peters. They said 'roach infestations are common and somehow unavoidable. Cockroaches like eating the PCB control board and that might have cause the issue with the machine hot in the morning. I got a quote for them which includes a replacement of the electronic board. They also want to change the solenoid valve and the pressure release valve, which seems fair enough. However, they also want to replace the seal for the shower head (I replaced it only 10 months ago or so), the shower screen and even charge me $15.49 plus GST and labour for the water filter! I am waiting for a phone call from them now.

All in all the whole repair thing comes to $620, which after 5 years or so of loyal service might not be too bad. I imagine any other machine, including the ones built as a tank, will need replacement of valve and seals from time to time and if they have a PID it will get eaten by bugs. What should I do? Upgrade or repair after wrestling for the price a bit?

I’ve got the machine back from repair. It sounds and feels noticeably different. I am afraid I let decay too much. Good news is that the BDB seems reparable to good as new state. No need to upgrade.

[Seasport]

Hi all. Just wondering if it is still worth buying a 920? Mine has done me really well over the last 5 or 6 years, but now the element wire leading to the thermal fuse has detached from the steam boiler . (Yes - I've managed to get it all apart.) I'm not sure it is worth fixing given the price of the parts and the likelihood that something else may fail before long. It's been a great machine and I can still buy the 920 with grinder (Dynamic Duo) here in NZ for less than NZ$2,000. I sort of fancy having a second machine and keeping the original for parts (and because I can pretty much fix most things on the 920 by now) but I'm just wondering if this is still the machine to buy given how long it's been around. If not - what other machines should I look at?

[Tupinamba]

I have just got mine repaired after 5 years of good service. It seems good as new (fingers crossed). I paid about AUD$600 which is significantly less than a new BDB or much less than an upgrade. Importantly, a new machine would also need service every 3 years.

If you feel like spending some money just get rid of the Breville grinder and buy something serious, such as a Niche Zero. That WILL improve the quality of your coffee.

[mrpcs7]

DESCALE ALERT MESSAGE WON'T RESET

After the De-Scale message came on, I performed the descaling routine, following the printed instructions. Afterwards, the message continues to come on each time the machine is turned on. I contacted Breville and they said it is a known problem, and I'd have to send in the machine to fix the error. Does anyone know of a way to reset the De-Scale message without having to send it in for repairs?

**After posting, I saw a thread from andyskip from 19 Dec 2019 which solved this problem. I will check it out.

[cscs]

Good day BDB owners

What is the right Philips screwdriver size require to unscrew the two Phillips screws next to the group head, in order to open the upper case please ? or any trick to unscrew them with the standard Philip size screwdriver ? ta.