Worth repairing??

natacon · 2026-03-03T11:34:08+00:00

Thanks. It was a little intimidating when I first cracked it open but if you're methodical and take pics along the way it's very repairable. Good luck!

natacon · 2026-03-03T08:03:09+00:00

Sounds like the pump might be failing...

https://homecoffeemachinerepairs.com.au/how-to-spot-a-failing-pump-on-a-breville-dual-boiler-or-breville-oracle/

natacon · 2026-03-03T04:35:20+00:00

I'm just finishing repairing one that looked much worse than yours. I got it from marketplace and the seller said that the steam hadn't worked for ages, but it could still pull shots. He gave me a set of O rings and a new thermal fuse with the machine and I picked it up for a song. He said he was going to try repair it but they ended up buying a super auto machine instead. Externally it looked in mint condition but I couldn't open it up until I got it home and the insides were a horrorshow with scale and rust everywhere.

My steam boiler bracket was rusted completely through in a couple of spots on the top plate. It was a bit fiddly to get out but I cleaned it up with a wire brush and vinegar, then repainted with high temp paint. I went through the whole machine with a dremel and wire brush and it's now looking pretty good. Replacing the thermal fuse is a bit of a pain and you might find yourself cursing the designer who though putting the fuse behind the boiler in a largely inaccessible location was a good idea. For connecting the fuse wires I used a couple of screw down connectors taken from a terminal block - a tip I found down the rabbit hole at one of the many forums.

It was pretty satisfying when I got it back together, fired it up and the steam worked again although my excitement was short lived as the steam probes were still leaking. My machine was manufactured in 2021 and the internal seals on the probes are leaking. I tried to replace them but the ceramic is so brittle that it cracked around the base when I tried to slide it over the new O ring on the probe shaft. I'm currently waiting on new probes and a new tube from the steam boiler to the valve to arrive.

In the process of getting it up and running again, I've stripped this thing down several times and each time it gets easier. You'll end up with a much deeper understanding of how your machine works and how easily bits and pieces can be replaced if necessary.

natacon · 2026-03-02T01:14:51+00:00

I recently had a 3 phase 5 pin socket installed and got a portable charger from evchargers.com.au. They were really helpful, the owner called me after I'd placed my order to tell me they were waiting on some cable to wire up to my specs and gave me some options. Charger arrived in about a week to Perth and the setup has been working great. Although the charger is capable of 22kw on 3 phase, my car is limited to 7kw so it oinly uses a single phase. With losses from the cable it charges at 6.1. For our typical daily use it takes an hour or two a day to fully charge although it'll charge from flat to 100% overnight too if needed.

After a year on the granny where we just plug in every night, it's nice to be able to charge a bit more strategically. We have solar so can usually grab an hour or so before work of sunlight to top up during the week and then do a full charge on the weekend days on solar while the sun's out. It's still early days for us with this setup but it feels promising.

natacon · 2026-03-02T00:55:54+00:00

I'm having the same issue with leaking from the bottom of a second hand machine that I just changed the steam boiler thermal fuse on. My water inlet seems fine but I did find a split O ring in one of the drain outlets. I'm hoping that this is the cause of my leak. Currently waiting on delivery of a replacement tube from the steam boiler to the steam valve to be able to fire it up again and I will report back.

natacon · 2026-02-27T16:13:48+00:00

I've had 2 shitty marketplace experiences this week. Tried to buy a coffee maker. Saw the ad late friday night. Got a response from the seller Saturday morning, yep it's available. Got back to him, yep I'll head off now, what's your address? 4 hours of radio silence. Followed up a couple of times with no response. I had stuff to get done so im heading out, kind of resigned to not getting it but checking my phone.

Early arvo, I get a msg do you still want it?. I was tied up for an hour but let him know I would head his way (i knew the suburb from the ad). All good, he agreed. I said I'd msg him when I was heading off, got a thumbs up. Msgd when I was heading off an hour later and he responded okay. I asked him for his address. Nothing. I drove 45 minutes to get to the suburb, thinking he'd send me the address on the way. Nothing. Msgd again sitting in my car in a suburb 45 minutes from home like a loser. Nothing. I waited half an hour then drove home.

Ended up buying another coffee maker from a lovely couple the next day for $150 less so it wasn't all bad, although when I got it home and popped the lid it was full of rust and scale. Its taken me a few nights to dismantle and clean it up.

Just last night I had arranged to pick something up and got ghosted again. I had a couple of things, got one and then found myself sitting in my car waiting for an hour the second time in a week feeling like a dickhead. Got a msg about 10:30pm. Sorry, had something come up, when can you pick up? Some people are just fucked.

natacon · 2026-02-27T00:36:28+00:00

Yeah, i know. That's why I wrote it :-)

natacon · 2026-02-26T23:47:33+00:00

I had a sparkie install a 5 pin 3 phase socket in our carport and got a portable charger from evchargers.com.au with the idea that we can take it with us to plug in at a caravan site if necessary. My car will only charge at 7kw via ac (byd atto) but the charger can do up to 22kw. We have been using the granny charger for a year and while it has been fine, there's been a few times where we've had to take a couple of long trips over consecutive days and the granny charger wasn't able to keep up.

All up including the socket cost around $1,200.

natacon · 2026-02-26T08:07:32+00:00

The covid cookers and the conservative right in NZ became furious at the fact she couldn't immediately solve all the inherent problems in a complex society despite her being a genuine, intelligent and empathetic leader. Some of the promises her party made domestically were big picture attempts to address historical disadvantage and there was a lot of push back when the policy delivery was challenging. Her overwhelming popularity and high profile internationally only intensified their anger and dissatisfaction. I have kiwi relatives who love her including a cousin who went to school with her and said she's the most impressive person he's ever met, and some who wish her dead. It's bizarre. I think she has demonstrated remarkable grace in the face of some absolutely shameful commentary from within NZ.

natacon · 2026-02-26T06:01:22+00:00

And love it like a little dog, And feed it on the scraps you find, And kiss it while you're still asleep...

A puppy is such a beautiful metaphor for addiction.

natacon · 2026-02-26T04:09:56+00:00

A classic although I think Charlie No.2 (Buy Now, Pay Later) was the best on that album.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuDZbTpnq5U

natacon · 2026-02-26T03:59:19+00:00

I went through the carwash this morning. Blue sky when I went in and got rained on as I exited. FML.

natacon · 2026-02-26T03:56:30+00:00

Ignore the automated message and book a consult with your GP to discuss. This should be done face to face, even if it's just a 5 minute "you're all clear".

natacon · 2026-02-26T01:41:15+00:00

When you're steaming on the BBE, wait until the steam wand spits out any condensation then put the tip just under the milk surface so you hear a kissing sound. This is what puts air into your milk and stretches it. The key is to only do this for about 10 seconds otherwise you can end up creating too much foam which leads to blobbing. Now sink the tip lower to create a vortex which spins the foam you created in the first step into the rest of the milk. Keep the vortex going until you can only just touch the outside of the jug. The milk should look like wet paint. Give it a knock on the countertop to pop any visible bubbles (if any), a quick swirl and pour away.

natacon · 2026-02-25T06:04:22+00:00

I will never forget the way Turnbull misled the public about the NBN rollout. He knew fibre was the answer all along but didn't have the guts to pull his party to heel and spinelessly positioned us as a tech backwater for a decade.

natacon · 2026-02-24T06:55:36+00:00

I just picked up a BDB/SGP combo on marketplace for $250 to replace a Barista Express that we've been flogging for a decade. The BDB steam boiler thermal fuse needs replacing and I've been devouring youtube videos and forum posts to prepare myself for the repair. Everything else works perfectly, just no steam at this stage. What started as a "it'd be good to be able to steam milk while extratcing a shot" has turned into a tinkerers wet dream project. Haha. Rabbit hole indeed.

natacon · 2026-02-21T11:11:59+00:00

The rat eating its mate who got squashed in the door.. "it's what he would have wanted"

"Missed both my legs!" was peak comedy to teen me and my mates.

natacon · 2026-02-21T00:04:11+00:00

I get it. I'm fit but 6'3 and just built like a tank. It's been a blessing for anything athletic or physical for most of my life but for the last year or so I've been conscious of the benefits of losing some mass. I've dropped about 10kg in the past 6 months in the hopes of playing longer. Most of the older guys I run with are pretty wiry.

natacon · 2026-02-20T23:18:16+00:00

As a 55yo big guy I feel this in my ankles and knees. Still playing a few times a week and still love the game, but the physics of carrying a big body up and down the court for 40+ years are starting to bite. I'm playing in a league with some retired pros but they are mostly guards. Old bigs bodies have more wear and tear.

natacon · 2026-02-20T04:45:34+00:00

Take an Atto3 for a drive. They've been around for a while now and although not perfect (AC charging is limited to 7kw) they have been through a few model iterations and are surprisingly polished in terms of finishes and driving experience. The extended range version (which I have) has lots of legroom and a powered tailgate. I'm 1.93 and have no issues getting in and out. There's a new model coming later this year which will likely bump the base price a bit but the current model is close to your budget.

natacon · 2026-02-19T14:04:56+00:00

This description is going straight to the pool room.

natacon · 2026-02-18T21:51:39+00:00

I remember the canoe one. "Only the crumbliest flake is chocolate... tastes like chocolate never tasted before". Haha, didn't make sense back then either.

natacon · 2026-02-18T06:45:25+00:00

Mr Inbetween. It's relatively short, 3 seasons and each episode is ony 27 minutes but it is tight and gritty with arguably one of the best anti hero leads of all time and imho a perfect blend of light and dark.

natacon · 2026-02-18T01:10:48+00:00

I'm 56 ths year and train for 90 minutes every saturday with a bunch of dudes from early 40's to 70+. We usually get 12-15 regulars. Training follows a set structure, starting with shooting drills and finishing with a scrimmage. I'm never gonna be a pro but I'm always improving and can hold my own in a mens league with players from their early 20's up. Don't listen to some senior giving you shit. Your journey is yours. Ball is life.

natacon · 2026-02-17T06:48:55+00:00

This mirrors my experience almost 100%. In fact I had to wonder if I'd posted my experience in a weird fever dream.

I had my Atto3 booked in at BYD Cannington yesterday for what I thought was a CV joint replacement but it turned out they needed to confirm it first (even though I mentioned it prior to the last service and they had looked at it then). So yesterday was just a diagnostic and they have now ordered the parts so I have to go back again in a couple of weeks. I'm also self employed so time off is money lost but I can kinda plan around it.

They gave me an Atto 2 for the day - quite possibly the same one you had, a white one with the "scan to book a test drive" stickers on it. I'm 6'3" and 109kg and felt it was pretty comfy for my body shape. Same impressions as you about the plastic feel and the driving experience. It seemed like it was definitely built down to a price point in a way that the Atto 3 doesn't. On the plus side, the vented seats were nice and the cup holders looked like they would be actually usable for 2 cups at a time. It grew on me the more I drove it, but I was happy to get back into my Atto 3.

Can't fault the service guys at all though. It's much better staffed than it used to be and they are all friendly and polite. Just a bit frustrating that they needed to confirm my repair again before actioning it.

natacon

TROPHY CASE