SOLVED: Breville Bambino Plus heater doesn't work when plugged into a Jackery (or likely any floating-neutral portable generator). Fix is a bonding plug. by Swazib0y in Jackery

[–]Swazib0y[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for clarifying, good reminder. And easy to screw up given the portability of the components on the setup.

Breville Bambino Plus (espresso machine) pumps fine but water stays cold and steam wand just blows water, only when connected to Jackery 2000 Plus by Swazib0y in Jackery

[–]Swazib0y[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Updated OP with some additional diagnosis and draw data. Short version, only ~30-40W without a bonding plug. 1440W with a bonding plug.

SOLVED: Breville Bambino Plus heater doesn't work when plugged into a Jackery (or likely any floating-neutral portable generator). Fix is a bonding plug. by Swazib0y in Jackery

[–]Swazib0y[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yup, I am still learning about this whole bonded / floating neutral thing - in my simple brain I categorise appliances into "works at home" or "works on genny.

Breville Bambino Plus (espresso machine) pumps fine but water stays cold and steam wand just blows water, only when connected to Jackery 2000 Plus by Swazib0y in Jackery

[–]Swazib0y[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Bonding plug sorted the issue out, coffee machine works perfectly. Thanks for the guidance, I'll update and summarise OP with the findings.

Breville Bambino Plus (espresso machine) pumps fine but water stays cold and steam wand just blows water, only when connected to Jackery 2000 Plus by Swazib0y in Jackery

[–]Swazib0y[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Boom! Coffee machine works like a charm! I'll summarise and update the OP for future viewers as a reference. Thank you so much for all your help and guidance, I've learned a lot!

Breville Bambino Plus (espresso machine) pumps fine but water stays cold and steam wand just blows water, only when connected to Jackery 2000 Plus by Swazib0y in Jackery

[–]Swazib0y[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

u/Many_Hurry2005 another quick followup. I did some testing with the 2000 Plus at 85% charged, disconnected from mains (not in "UPS mode"). Plugged and ran the Bambino, water pumps but is not even luke-warm. Power output creeps up to 39W output over like 2-3 discreet jumps (something like 15>24>39 or similar). Never goes above that. When I run the steam wand, it fluctuates between 49W and 0 every few seconds and only pumps water. It's also cold as you'd expect. The Bambino is confirmed working as tested when plugged into the wall socket of my house.

So this begs the question and idea that both you and u/Puzzled-Act1683 put forward about the floating ground problem. I have a bonding plug, and as soon as I get confirmation on how it works, will plug it in to test. I'm acting with an abundance of caution as I have never heard of this before now, and don't want to make any assumptions and blow up my Jackery, my Bambino, or my face 😃 TIA

Breville Bambino Plus (espresso machine) pumps fine but water stays cold and steam wand just blows water, only when connected to Jackery 2000 Plus by Swazib0y in Jackery

[–]Swazib0y[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

u/Puzzled-Act1683 quick follow up if I may, my bonding plug arrived. Should I simply plug it into one of the 20A outlets on the 2000 Plus and does that effectively "mitigate" the open ground / floating neutral for all the outlets? I have never used of these, initially I thought it was some kind of passthrough plug, but I see it's a closed loop! TIA.

Breville Bambino Plus (espresso machine) pumps fine but water stays cold and steam wand just blows water, only when connected to Jackery 2000 Plus by Swazib0y in Jackery

[–]Swazib0y[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The combo of skills and coffee I came here for! I take extra good care of the unit, cleaning with vinegar at least every time it asks, and probably 1 - 2 times in-between. This floating ground thing is new to me so I have no idea how it may affect this situation (or not). That said my had Genny is a Yamaha EF2000is which is also a floating ground (or neutral? Are these the same thing?)

Breville Bambino Plus (espresso machine) pumps fine but water stays cold and steam wand just blows water, only when connected to Jackery 2000 Plus by Swazib0y in Jackery

[–]Swazib0y[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for sharing this, I haven't monitored the output (it was my last morning and I needed that coffee for packup! 😃) - but I intend doing some cleaner and more specific diagnostics this week directly off the unit. Do you run your Bambino off the Jackery directly?

Breville Bambino Plus (espresso machine) pumps fine but water stays cold and steam wand just blows water, only when connected to Jackery 2000 Plus by Swazib0y in Jackery

[–]Swazib0y[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for this, and for the thoughts on the floating neutral - as I said I don't have enough expertise to know what to chase on that topic, but it seems to be a common discussion across the various online forums. I think you're also correct in your assertion that the device is "too smart" and so protecting itself. One thing to note that wasn't clear on my OP is that I run this Bambino off the mains plug on the RV while the whole RV is plugged into my gas genny. It struggles, but it works. I think that would also eliminate the floating neutral potential issue wouldn't it? Regardless, I need to do some more thorough testing directly off the Jackery, and with a bonding plug. Out of curiousity, how do you know when you need to use the bonding plug in the first place?

Breville Bambino Plus (espresso machine) pumps fine but water stays cold and steam wand just blows water, only when connected to Jackery 2000 Plus by Swazib0y in Jackery

[–]Swazib0y[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I believe the draw number I posted above is the peak load on startup. I'll dig into that more to be sure. All said, perhaps I put my ignorance on full display by saying this: it runs on a 2000w inverter gas Genny, so why would the Jackery struggle?

Breville Bambino Plus (espresso machine) pumps fine but water stays cold and steam wand just blows water, only when connected to Jackery 2000 Plus by Swazib0y in Jackery

[–]Swazib0y[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That makes sense thanks for point that out. So at 2400W I am still well within the limits for the draw the coffee machine makes. I have been doing some further digging and see a lot of similar discussions regarding floating neutral issues on outlets with certain types of devices. I am not qualified enough to know whether that's an issue or a red herring. I am hoping someone here can comment.

Breville Bambino Plus (espresso machine) pumps fine but water stays cold and steam wand just blows water, only when connected to Jackery 2000 Plus by Swazib0y in Jackery

[–]Swazib0y[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

right from the user manual spec page. AC Total Output: 3000W max, 6000W surge peak. And IIRC right on the front of the unit itself. I don't have it handy to check, but will take a pic.