Lelit Mara X tripping house RCD

CafeNoir

Hi, just thought I’d share my little break in morning routine in case someone gets a laugh out of it….

Started morning coffee routine as normal, nice long preheat for machine.

Made two drinks which were both uncharacteristically sour, so set about making replacements and….nothing.

Machine lights out and the power outlet RCD on mains board tripping every time I attempted to power up the Mara.

Covers off, multimeter out, checked everything, tested element resistance….and… nothing. Find bandaids - you know, there are quite a few sharp edges on the Mara, and I found a couple - no coffee before I started, big mistake lol!!!

Gave it a bit of a brush and wipe to remove a little dust, verified it came new with OPV return to reservoir while I was in there. Hit it with gentle heat on the heat gun for about 5 minutes just in case.

OK, tried plugging in….all go..….deep breath, mostly relief…..my morning shot to pieces…

My theory is it was taking the piss until I started doing our cappas on the Elektra, lol (you are replaceable, btw…)

Gawd, don’t you love smart devices!

DavecUK

CafeNoir So it’s all OK? Was it a new machine?

CoyoteOldMan

CafeNoir Hit it with gentle heat on the heat gun for about 5 minutes just in case.

Condensing somewhere? I’ve had multimeter-untraceable RCD-tripping faults on multiple appliances that got cured (for a time - sometimes forever) by drying stuff carefully…

CafeNoir

DavecUK Year and a half or so old, I think CoyoteOldMan was on the right track, we’ve had rain of Biblical proportions here in Qld the past 2 weeks and consequent crazy high humidity.

Its within the realms of possibility as my wife only makes 2, perhaps 3 cups on any given day when I’m working away.

All seems well now thank you, just thought I’d share because it was so odd. Until now the Mara has behaved beautifully and predictably, having been used as recommended in one of those excellent videos you made.

Doram

CafeNoir DavecUK Year and a half or so old, I think CoyoteOldMan was on the right track, we’ve had rain of Biblical proportions here in Qld the past 2 weeks and consequent crazy high humidity.

Its within the realms of possibility as my wife only makes 2, perhaps 3 cups on any given day when I’m working away.

All seems well now thank you, just thought I’d share because it was so odd. Until now the Mara has behaved beautifully and predictably, having been used as recommended in one of those excellent videos you made.

Had a similar issue with a fridge years ago after cleaning it with too much enthusiasm. An electrician (!) suggested the following solution (kids, don’t try this at home!!): He said I should open the plug, disconnect the earth and run the fridge unearthed for a couple of hours (without touching the fridge so I don’t electrocute myself). With the earth disconnected the fridge didn’t trip the electricity, and running the motor created heat which dried everything. After a couple of hours I reconnected the earth wire and the tripping was gone. Never had the problem again. This was a good 30 years ago. I assume (and hope) no electrician would give such advice now, and they probably shouldn’t have back then either.

Just to be clear - I do not condone giving this a try, just sharing the information on how this might happen.

DavecUK

Perhaps even some water spillage when filling?

CafeNoir

DavecUK Yes. Good point thanks. We’re normally careful but human error truly is the biggest variable. Especially at 5am…..

May change how we refill going forward, one less opportunity for another impromptu learning session😆

CafeNoir

Doram Wow. Yes we were certainly a lot less risk-averse back then.. it’s inconceivable a sparkie offering that advice in Good Ol Oz these days….the lawyers would be salivating!!!

MediumRoastSteam

Contrast to a country like Brazil, where only very recently (past 10 years) plugs have an earth pin. But forget that, most of houses are not earthed… Electric showers (with metallic taps!) are very common! I remember getting a “tingle” on the shower tap when I lived there! 😱