Gaggia boiler corrosion proofing

by **Dan** » Sat Sep 10, 2011 12:07 pm

Hi all,

First post for a long while....

It's time to replace my Gaggia coffee boiler. After 8 years of service it has seen better days and is suffering from bad galvanic corrosion.

Does anyone here know anything about metallurgy? Aluminium is often used as a sacrificial anode, is there a metal that I could use inside the new boiler to act as a more susceptible anode to protect the boiler a bit ( and would I want to drink the results? )

Alternatively, does anyone know of an aftermarket brass boiler that I could fit?

Dan

by **lukas** » Sun Sep 11, 2011 11:34 am

Haven't seen non-aluminium boilers for Gaggia machines, sorry. These boilers seem to have a lifetime of around 10-15 years, if handled properly.

by **Aadje** » Mon Sep 12, 2011 6:41 am

Rancilio Sylvia boilers are made of brass, but you'll need to modify an awful lot when trying to cramp one of those into the gaggia . . .

by **phil2spill** » Mon Sep 12, 2011 12:26 pm

Dan wrote:After 8 years of service it has seen better days and is suffering from bad galvanic corrosion.

Had you been using Brita-filtered water, Dan? As mentioned in another thread, it's apparently best avoided with Gaggias. Anyway, I hope your next one lasts longer

by **misalda** » Wed Sep 14, 2011 6:38 pm

Could you give me some more info on the Gaggia/Brita thing?
I've got a well used Classic about 8 yrs old and use Brita from a jug most of the time just to avoid the Chlorine, I live in Newcastle and hard water is not an issue.
I've tried to search the site but I'm in a Travelodge room with limited internet from my dongle!

by **phil2spill** » Thu Sep 15, 2011 1:13 pm

Hi, Jim Schulman's insanely long water FAQ was the source for this info:

http://www.big-rick.com/coffee/waterfaq.html

HTH

by **misalda** » Thu Sep 15, 2011 4:45 pm

Thanks for the reply,

I've dissected the relevent bits I think :shock:

and I'm ordering one of these from our friends at Happy Donkey..

http://www.happydonkey.co.uk/domfilter-in-tank-water-filter.html

and I will just revert to tap water unless I've missunderstood anything?

by **realdoctor** » Sat Sep 17, 2011 6:30 pm

If I recall correctly, half the boiler is clad and half is raw aluminum. It used to be possible to buy just the aluminum half for periodic replacements. I know of no practical way to avoid corrosion in a boiler that is copper clad on one side, aluminum on the other, and filled with hot water.

If you really felt like modifying the gaggia, you probably could squeeze a boiler from a Lelit/Junior into it. However, you might be better off just switching to the Lelit.

by **phil2spill** » Sat Sep 24, 2011 10:40 am

misalda wrote:Thanks for the reply,

I've dissected the relevent bits I think and I'm ordering one of these from our friends at Happy Donkey..

http://www.happydonkey.co.uk/domfilter-in-tank-water-filter.html

and I will just revert to tap water unless I've missunderstood anything?

Hi misalda, sorry for the late reply. How has your in-tank filter been? It certainly looks like the type Jim S says is okay but I don't know if it's the salt-regenerated type, but maybe the shop can help on that. Either way, I don't think it'll remove chlorine, though.

Since your tap water is already soft and you only want to remove the chlorine, you could fit one of those sub-£100 'under-sink' filter systems you see in DIY places, Screwfix, etc with an extra little tap on your sink/worktop.

They're fairly easy to fit for a DIYer. All the ones I've seen just contain carbon (either carbon-block or granular activated charcoal) which will remove smells and tastes without affecting the hardness or acidity. I don't know if any jug filters are carbon-only, but might also be worth a check.

Or you could pre-boil water to get rid of the chlorine and let it cool down again. But that's starting to be a bit too much hassle

Tesco's cheap Ashbeck mineral water is another option and should be fine since it's a little alkaline and not too hard. But it seems a shame to have to buy-in if your tap water is already soft enough...