Pressure issues with my Delonghi La Specialista

Last Updated on October 2, 2023 by Pablo Barrantes

Pressure loss is a common failure in automatic coffee makers, and the Delonghi La Specialista is no exception. When this happens, we usually associate it with a malfunction in the water pump. However, this does not always turn out to be the cause.

In high-quality coffee makers such as the Delonghi La Specialista, the internal components are apt to remain in good condition for a long time if you properly maintain the machine.

Diagnosis of pressure problems in the Delonghi La Specialista

Try to rule out causes other than malfunctions before disassembling the brewer to look for damaged parts inside. Remember that the pressure may also decrease due to the accumulation of lime scale and water sediments in the pipes.

Performing one or two decalcifications, as indicated in the Delonghi La Specialista user manual, can solve many problems of lack of pressure in the coffee machine. If limescale buildup is not the cause, we can narrow down the problem to the following:

• If your coffee maker lacks broad pressure, you should disassemble the coffee maker and check each valve and pipe to verify that everything is in order.
• If, on the other hand, the pressure of your machine is very high, this could be due to clogging of the pipes; the smaller the section through which the water circulates, the higher the pressure will be.

The pressure gauge of my Delonghi La Specialista does not work

A very common problem is related to the gauge needle. Each situation is due to a different cause and is also solved differently.

• The needle barely goes up.
• The needle goes up too much.
• The needle does not go up or down.

The first problem: When brewing coffee, you may notice that the pressure gauge needle remains static; it does not move in any direction.

The first cause: The pressure gauge is damaged, which is not very common. There are a few reasons why a pressure gauge may be damaged, such as a blow, dirt accumulation, or factory defect.

The first solution: Disassemble the pressure gauge and replace it with a new one, but not before ruling out other possible causes for this problem. If something does not allow water to reach the gauge, the needle will not move, so check the O-ring of the small tube in the gauge.

The second and third problem: When brewing your regular coffee, the needle rises too high or hardly rises.

The second and third cause: If the needle moves, either a little or a lot, we will rule out any damage to the pressure gauge, which means that the pressure does reach it. But if we observe excess or lack of pressure in the coffee group, it will mean a general failure of the machine and not the pressure gauge.

The second and third solution: Remember that descaling the coffee maker will help solve problems generated by accumulating limescale in the internal ducts.

Conclusion:

Limescale buildup in the components and ducts of the Delonghi La Specialista is one of the main causes of pressure problems in the coffee maker. Normally these problems will be due to a lack of pressure.

Less common problems with limescale buildup are those related to malfunction or breakage of internal components. Once the former has been ruled out, you should disassemble your coffee maker to inspect the interior.