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The machine is on and everything else is working fine, but when I turn the pump on, nothing comes out and I have no idea why.
If there is no espresso coming out of the machine, it is the result of either a lack of water in the reservoir, or a clogged pump. For the lack of water, simply refill the reservoir from any source of tap. To remove the reservoir, check out our easy to follow replacement guide. If the pump is clogged, descale the machine by using lemon juice. For instructions on how to descale the coffee-maker, check the user’s manual on page 10.
There are several things that can cause this. The most common is a clogged coffee basket; on this machine the basket can be disassembled for cleaning, do so and hold the metal screen up to a light to check for clogs. If the basket is clear, it’s possible that your coffee is ground too fine, you’re putting too much coffee in the basket or you’re tamping too hard. It’s also possible that the brew head screen has becomed clogged; you can remove this with a phillips head screwdriver and inspect it as you did the coffee basket screen. If you’ve done all of this and the issue persists then you probably having a failing pump; very common in this model as well as most other Delonghi semi-automatics.
It can also be the issue of descaling. I clean the filter, the boiler as indicated in the manual. But after 1 year (!gasp) the machine won’t deliver expresso anymore. I found that it is suggested to descale every 200 brews! So I descaled the machine and it’s back, working. Here’s what I did. Don’t load any filter. Take a container below the boiler. Plug the machine. Fill the water tank with 50% white vinegar and mix with 50% of tap water. Turn the knob for the red light, wait for the OK green light and turn to the most right option (the one that you usually make espresso with) Wait for hot water to drip, do this during the green lights for 1/4 of the water tank. From time to time, turn the top frothing knob and let the descaler go through. Repeat for another 3 times, and then do the steps again with a second tank with 25% white vinegar and 75% tap water. Finally, load a full tank of tap water to the tank. This is to wash off the descaler from steps mentioned above. Load another tank of water if the acid smell continues. Once done, unplug the plug. When the machine gets a bit cooler, unscrew the boiler and clean the boiler. Put it back. Clean the frother as well. That should be it. It took me about 2 hours. My machine was working as usual. Hope you have success too!
If the water is getting into the de Longhi coffee holder but not coming out and the holder’s round metal mesh is clear then the spring-loaded little valve in the middle of the round black plastic mesh-holder may be stuck. Take the mesh off its black plastic base and push hard on the little dimple in the middle of the base. It should give - this is what lets the coffee out of the holder and maintains the pressure to give a good crema. Clean it and reassemble.
I know it’s an old thread but just one more thing to add. The descaling works, I had this exact same issue and followed the vinegar steps above and yes it started pumping water again without the portafilter. The 2nd issue I had was the screen on the portafilter was completely blocked so when I added the portafilter, nothing was coming out still. To clear this, you need to burn the blockage away. Since the screen is blocked with dried coffee bits, they can be cleared by burning vs poking each hole out. I held mine with thongs and used a lighter for about 30 seconds a time and rinsed it under the sink after each time. As I held the filter to the light I could see more and more holes opening up. I repeated this until most of the holes were opened. After doing this with a combination of descaling, it’s like I have a brand new machine. Thank you to all who posted answers here, it really helped.
I just got the Lavazza Blue espresso maker and it brew the water into the waste dispenser and does not come out into the cup. The waste dispenser is where the kcups drop into. Anyone have any idea? It’s brand new out of the box.
I think I figured it out. I was also not getting any water but then I put the portafilter in and water came out no problem! The problem is the diagram in the quick start guide doesn’t show the portafilter so I was following the picture. I tried it on whim (why not, nothing else is working) and out came water.
My Problem: My espresso maker does not work. It makes some noise that starts to dial down and stops without any espresso coming out of the filter holder. Troubleshooting: Took off the filter holder and saw that the water was coming out fine. Then I tried using my single filter (that I dont usually use) and espresso came out fine. So the problem was with the double shot filter. Solution: A couple grains of coffee were stuck in the tiny hole on the bottom of the double shot filter. I removed them with the tip of a knife and everything works as normal again.
Simple thing to check first: is there coffee grinds between the portafilter (metal handle bit) and the rubber ring it seals into the machine with? if so, give it a good wipe with kitchen towel/ cloth. That will help the machine get enough pressure to pump the coffee through the filter.
I use the ECP4320. Not long after getting it, I noticed the espresso was coming out more and more slowly until it was only a slow drip that never amounted to a drinkable amount. It would just stop dripping and do nothing in the on position. I solved this issue like so: I took a safety pin and stuck the needle into the lone perforation in the bottom of each of my espresso grind holders. These are the little silver buckets that let you decide if you want to make a single or double shot and have the mesh filters that you snap into the bottom. If you take out the mesh filter and look at the bottom of the little buckets, there is a single tiny perforation that, in my case anyway, must have gotten clogged with almost invisible traces of coffee grinds. Once I pierced them a little bit with the tip of the satefy pin, the machine is now delivering a steady stream of espresso again in the on position. Hope you have similar luck if you have a similar machine model. I then thought about why this problem had happened and I figured it is likely due to how finely ground my espresso beans are, or else it is just something normal that will happen a lot if I don’t put the pin through during my cleaning process. As a final note, you will know the buckets need the safety pin treatment if you fill them with water and hold them over the sink and you don’t get any slow dripping from them. They need to be pin-open enough for just a slow drip of water over the sink if they are going to work for espresso to stream through.
I had the same issue. Water wouldn’t drain, but the steamer worked. In my case it was an air blockage. I turned the heating element on. Then after the light turned green on the cup/faucet symbol, I put a cup under the steamer nozzle, turned the selector to the cup/faucet symbol and immediately opened the steamer valve, fully opened. After water started running out of the steamer nozzle I turned it off. I then ran it as usual and it worked. Sorry if this is wordy or hard to follow :)
