DISCONTINUED Lelit PL62S Mara Espresso Machine with Heat Exchanger & Vibration Pump

Sorry, there are no upgrades that we offer except the brew pressure gauge kit by Lelit and their flow control kit. Sorry, there are no better feet. The Mara X water reservoir system can not be changed. As far as the vibating, please check the pump and make sure it is not hitting any metal inside. Otherwise, you may need to test different removable components to see where the noises are coming from.

It can be the OPV, safety valve, bleeder valve, boiler solenoid valve, and pump is allowing back-flow of steam pressure coming from the boiler or heat exchange pipe. It is probably best for a local professional to look for the potential combination of parts that have failed - usually fail from corrosion from the water.

Please check the diagrams on our web site.

Sorry, this is difficult to determine without seeing the machine. Based on the age of the machine. ee suggest you take it to a local professional to determine the issue caused by backflushing. It just may be coincidental as well.

This is not a dual boiler machine, so the programmed temp is higher like other HX machines.  When water enters the boiler and HX pipe, it is normal for the colder water to lower the temperature.

The machine should be evaluated to see if it needs a descaling.

As for leaking, you may need a new portafilter gasket, or a new basket.

This can be a clogged water softener (take off and test), or an electrical problem, or a grind fineness problem (test with blind filter and if it does not happen, then probably a grind problem)

Sorry, it does take time to learn. However, it should happen in 3-4 months.

~Ideal PID Temp? This really depends upon your espresso blend.

a) Ideally, the gauge for steam pressure should be between 0.9 and 1.2

~How long to flush water before pulling a shot?

a) Until the steam dissipates form the grouphead.

~Should the shot be pulled immediately after flush or wait a period of time?

a) Immediately.

~Grams of coffee for single and double basket?

a) Always use the double and fill basket to rim. Then tamp with leveler only. Then only thing to change is the grind fineness.


~Starting point on William Grinder?

It is not always the fault of the machine that trips the GFIC. Read more....

It looks like your top gauge is going past 1.5 where the safety valve opens up and make this noise. This is caused by limescale, which means your water is too hard. 

You can try to descale the machine yourself. After descaling, the pressurestat will need to be replaced or if there is a PID, it will need to be cleaned.

A repair company can be searched for in our database and then contacted to see if they are willing to work on your machine. Or, the machine can be sent in for repair to us. Unfortunately, we can not provide an estimate until the machine is evaluated.

More information can be reviewed on our Espresso Machine Tripping the Ground Fault Interrupt Circuit page.

We test over 95% of prosumer machines with water only before packaging for shipping. In many cases, a 'new' faint smell can sometimes be noticed - it may seem like plastic, but it is usually the metal. The most important thing is there are no leaks inside or below the machine as which point the machine needs to be unplugged from the electrical outlet and contacting us for further steps.

We do bench test every Lelit Mara espresso machine with water only immediately prior to shipping. Upon warm, only a few droplets may exit the grouphead or manual valve ont he botton.

The lever needs to be in the completely down position when warming up. If the lever is completely in the down position, and it still leaks:

a) from the grouphead, the upper gasket inside the grouphead may have dislodged or damaged from freezing water, or
b) from the manual valve on the bottom of the grouphead, the two lower gaskets may have dislodged or damaged from freezing water.

It can also be one of the cams sticking inside the bottom or top, or it can be the cam for the lever is out of alignment.

It is really difficult to state which problem it could without taking the grouphead apart in a cold state.

Thanks for the post. As discussed over the phone, the problem can be purified water, such as distilled or reverse osmosis. The other problems can be a wire disconnected in shipping on the refill valve for the boiler or some water from our bench testing dried in one of the pin hole gicleurs in the solenoid valves.

If purified water is being used, add a pinch of salt to the water.

If still overfilling, power down and unplug the machine from the wall outlet. Remove the top cover and screws. Check the wires on the black rectangular boxes, known as solenoid valves and make sure there are no loose wires.

Lastly, if still overfilling, remove any filter from the longer intake hose. Make sure it has a V cut. Remove the water from the reservoir and add 4 about 4 cups of white vinegar and run the vinegar through the grouphead. Power off machine immediately and allow to sit for one hour. Repeat. Remove the reservoir, drain the white vinegar, rinse and refill with fresh water. If the overfill persists, proceed with the white vinegar process for 24-48 hours. This is to clear any blockage that may occur in the refill valve.

If the overfilling continues, the espresso machine will probably need to be evaluated for a loose wire at the brain unit or other part of the machine..

Sorry, the PID can not be retrofitted as there are many components to be changed. We have a great bottomless/naked portafilter for the Lelit Mara espresso machine.

Hi,

One of the pieces of the knob is a c-clip (9400001).  Is that piece bent at all?  It should be flat.

Sorry to hear about this issue. This is a first on the Mara without the steam tip being clogged.

Please always review the diagram. The instructions below are for the steam valve. On the hot water valve, the issues below can happen as well as a clog of the hot water wand pipe on the bottom of the boiler.

On page 6, there is the diagram of the wand. There is a small chance the c-clip underneath the knob cap broke. In this case, turning the knob can not turn the stem to open the knob. If it broke, email us a picture and we will send out free of charge for machines under warranty.

In a very rare case, the end closing gasket may have dislodged off the stem and into the valve. This happens when the knobs are turned to tight on non-compression steam and hot water valves. This gasket can be re-inserted inside out after the stem is removed on a COLD espresso machine unplugged from the outlet. The steam knob cover, c-clip and washers need to be removed before the knob can be backed out. Then the stem needs to be backed out from the valve.

Lastly, and very unlikely, the no-burn tubing inside the wand could be clogged. On a COLD espresso machine unplugged from the electrical outlet, the nut attaching the wand to the valve can be removed. Be careful as the spring can go flying. Blow some air through the tube from one side to see if it is clear. Be careful that the wand is not hot, or everyone will call you HOT LIPS!

In most cases, one needs to find the spot where the lever on the side does not engage the switch, but does open the valve to allow water out. But first, you need to make sure your heat exchanger has some water in it by running water through the grouphead without coffee until a flow without steam occurs. Within 30 seconds of completing, lift the lever to preinfuse.

If you need to move the switch, it is best to unpug the machine and allow to fully cool. All the screws on the top panel and respective body screws on AND holding the bottom panel need to be removed. The little nut holding the switch on the outside needs to be loosened, and the nut on the inside (more difficult to access) needs to be tightened against the body panel. Usually 1-2 full nut rotations is satisfactory.

Lastly, as most do not know... vibration pumps have built in preinfusion as it takes between 7-9 seconds to get to full pump pressure. This is a preinfusion in it itself.

Thank you for your inquiry. The problem is not adjusting the steam. The problem is limescale build up that is not allowing the proper temperature to be measured. Please run a descaler through the machine following these instructions. After this descaling and allowing the machine unplugged from the electrical outlet to get to a completely cold state, you will need to remove this part from the top of the boiler. BE CAREFUL TO NOT TWIST THE WIRE IN ANY WAY AS IT WILL DAMAGE!!!! Once removed, wire brush clean the probe.

Reassemble the machine and test. Great if it works! Bad thing is that you need to treat the water with an in-tank water softener to minimize the limescale build up.

There are many touch points where an espresso machine can leak. The top cover will need to be removed and determined where the leak is occurring. Please note most leaks occur because of limescale or oxidation inside the machine.

If it is the vacuum/bleeder valve part #9700015 is leaking, it can be replaced. Please review the diagram. However, since limescale usually affects this part first on this machine, the machine should be descaled and the water needs to be treated better with a Lelit water softener.

If the boiler safety valve is triggering steam, it will need to be replaced and the machine descaled and the pressurstat replaced. The water needs to be treated as well.

If other parts are leaking, they will need to be replaced searching our web site for the part numbers in our diagrams.

It is best to short backflush without detergent every day. Short backflush with detergent every 50 espresso extractions. Remove the dispersion screen every 6-12 months for repalcement. We do not recommend constant removal for cleaning as removal can damage the screen's housing.

Please review the diagrams for the Lelit Mara PL62S espresso machine.

Please note that in most espresso heat exchanger espresso machines, the water enters the bottom of the boiler.  The reason is that if cold water lands on top of the heating element, it most likely will damage the heating element. Therefore, the valve that is leaking, is not a one way check valve.

The part in question is the boiler safety valve. This part leaks for mostly one of two reasons:

a) limescale build up is holding the valve open, or
b) The pressurstat has limescale (from calcium or magnesium in the water) or oxidation (too pure corrosive water) and is constantly sending electricity to the heating element which in turn overheats the boiler and the safety valve opens so the boiler does not explode.

If you look at the video closely, there is a green or bluish discoloration on the top of the boiler. The video shows the machine has limescale or oxidation. This effect can be seen on many heat exchanger and double boiler espresso machines.

The machine can be sent in for repair. If you wish to repair yourself, you will need to descale the machine and descale the safety valve.

Although the safety valve is usually not compromised, the pressurestat (steam pressure controller) is usually compromised and has needed replacement in 90% of cases of limescale build up.

We recommend descaling the machine before the pressurstat replacement to avoid the contaminants from ruining the new pressurstat.

Lastly, the water problem needs to be resolved. We strongly recommend the Lelit water softener. It needs to be recharged 1-4x/month depending upon water hardness and replaced once per year.

Questions:

1. Are there any additional components I should replace during this service?

Grouphead gasket part# F15 and dispersion screen part# F277 should be replaced.

2. How do I order the correct replacement silicon tubing?

No need to replace this.

3. Question: Should I continue to use the BILT bags along with the Lelit softener filters?

Yes.

It is only held by friction and usually will slide off with a good tug. Unfortunately, manufacturers normally do not give size specifications on their parts because they do not ant the competition to copy.

If it breaks, its best to take the current silicon hose to your local hardware store as it will be significantly cheaper than from Italy.

Set to have the minimum at 0.9 bar pressure for better espresso, or set to 1.3 bar maximum to optimize the steam capacity for lattes. Otherwise somewhere in between for doing both.

Thank you for your inquiry. The best protocol is to look at the diagrams for your machine and then search by part number using the search box on our web site. It looks like you need MC532 and MC005.