Brewtus II electronic failure - a common problem?

[Blackadder]

Hi all,

a few days ago I bought a shiny new Brewtus II and am completely
impressed with the quality of that machine, with respect to both the
build quality and the espresso it has delivered so far. A giant leap
beyond my former Gaggia CC.

Being German and pretty obsessed with espresso, I have become a
regular participant of the local espresso-related forums at
http://www.kaffee-netz.de/board/ . A few minutes ago another board
member posted a warning there about the Brewtus II. To read his
message, go to: http://www.kaffee-netz.de/board/viewtopic.php?t=13853
or, since it is written in German, pipe it through Babelfish.

In short, the fella says he had an elaborate chat with the head-in-
charge of BellaBarista.co.uk, who told him that she had witnessed a
high rate of defects of the Brewtus II lately due to failures of its
electronics module. The electronic failures are supposed to be heat-
related and emerge from the high temperature emanating from the dual-
boiler design combined with the small interior space of the Brewtus
II. The posting closes with the assertion that Expobar has as of today
not managed to tackle the issue properly.

On the whole net I did not find any mentioning of a high failure rate
of the Brewtus II or a specifically electronics-related issue of the
machine. Is it a hoax or has the word just not spread yet?

Best wishes,
Malte

[Andrey Akselrod]

I don't think this is accurate. While there are some reports of
failures, I don't see any overly alarming trends.
Many members on this list will tell you that they had their machines for
a couple of years without any major problems.
-a

[Aleksi Kallio]

> On the whole net I did not find any mentioning of a high failure rate
> of the Brewtus II or a specifically electronics-related issue of the
> machine. Is it a hoax or has the word just not spread yet?

It is common in new Brewtus machines. Operating temperature should be
the same as in older models, I don't know why it happens only in recent
ones. Maybe the AKO controller has changed.

[Blackadder]

> It is common in new Brewtus machines. Operating temperature should be
> the same as in older models, I don't know why it happens only in recent
> ones. Maybe the AKO controller has changed.

Now this is irritating. You're saying that I bought a 1.600 $ gadget
with an evidently faulty part in it. Nice...

[Alon]

Is this problem unique to the European (220V) models which run the two
boilers simultaneously, or are there high failure rates of the Brewtus
II electronics module in the US (110V) models as well?

Alon

[Todd Salzman]

I can't speak for the rest of the world but I can for Whole Latte Love.

The AKO digital control is not even close to being a problem part.

Todd Salzman
Whole Latte Love

[Neil Atwood]

I can't speak for Europe specifically, but the Australian (240v) models do
NOT run the boilers simultaneously.
I had a few issues with the controller initially (machine is now 18 months
old), but it was due to the small power transformer for the controller being
mounted where water can pool if the water tank was overfilled.
Converting to rotary pump has fixed it. ;-)

Neil A.
Sydney, Oz
http://ministrygrounds.net.au - A blog about selecting, roasting and
drinking fine coffee
__________________________

[Blackadder]

On 5 Apr., 21:46, "Todd Salzman" <t...@wholelattelove.com> wrote:

> The AKO digital control is not even close to being a problem part.

Dear Todd, thanks very much for answering. So as far as you're
concerned, the reported problems are, if ever existing, singular
cases? Or shall your answer be interpreted in the sense that it's just
not the AKO control which is the problem part?

Best wishes, Malte.

[Todd Salzman]

Hi Malte,

I have not done a big study on it but I went back to the service department and asked if there has been a problem with the AKO control and if
we had shipped out many of them. They gave me a funny look and wondered why I was asking because usually when I go back and ask a
question like that they seem to already know about a problem.

We have only had a few go bad over the length of time the Brewtus I and II have been around so I can say that the controller is fine and like
every other part in every other espresso machine every once in a while you have part that acts up.

Todd

[Blackadder]

On 7 Apr., 15:46, "Todd Salzman" <t...@wholelattelove.com> wrote:
> Hi Malte,
>
> [...]so I can say that the controller is fine and like

> every other part in every other espresso machine every once in a while you have part that acts up.

A million thanks again for answering, your help is greatly
appreciated. All in all, I'll file the reported failures as
irrepresentative or even incorrect.

Warm regards,
Malte

[Aleksi Kallio]

Hi,

European models do not run the boilers simultaneously. As far as I know
this (digital thermostat dying after some months of use) has happened
only with European models. It could be a batch of faulty controllers, or
just plain coincidence...