Is my Gaggia Baby Dose dead? Help!

ArcticFox

Help required -

My Gaggia Baby Dose has just stopped working! The only light that remains on is the temperature light - all the other buttons remain unlit and do not function.

I can't imagine what has gone wrong....we were on good terms, I gave her plenty of compliments and daily use.

Any help would be helpful,

Thanks in advance,
ArcticFox

dominiquecruz

Nothing to add except this title scared the bejaysus outta me.

xoxyx

Me too. Jesus Christ OP!!!!

gizmo555

ArcticFox wrote: »

Help required -

My Gaggia Baby Dose has just stopped working! The only light that remains on is the temperature light - all the other buttons remain unlit and do not function.

I can't imagine what has gone wrong....we were on good terms, I gave her plenty of compliments and daily use.

Any help would be helpful,

Thanks in advance,
ArcticFox

Kenilworth Electrical are official Irish service agents for Gaggia - give them a shout: http://www.kenilworthelectrical.ie/

freeze4real

dominiquecruz wrote: »

Nothing to add except this title scared the bejaysus outta me.

hahaha you're gas.

if someone's baby is dead ( it wont happen to anyone) whats the first thing that pop's up in that person's mind, umm i'll go on boards and ask is my baby dead ? lol

Ciaran500

freeze4real wrote: »

if someone's baby is dead ( it wont happen to anyone) whats the first thing that pop's up in that person's mind, umm i'll go on boards and ask is my baby dead ? lol

You'd be surprised.

mikemac

Was just in the parenting forum, came back to the front page and saw this thread title

If you ever have an emergency OP, never mind 999. Log onto boards and we'll sort you out

ArcticFox

It's a coffee forum! And I had to grab your attention - this is a very serious matter.

Thanks gizmo...will check that out

RE*AC*TOR

it is an unfortunate thread title in fairness

Das Kitty

ArcticFox wrote: »

It's a coffee forum! And I had to grab your attention - this is a very serious matter.

Thanks gizmo...will check that out

Phew, was just scrolling through my subscribed forums and food and drink comes right before Parenting, I clicked even before looking at where it was. I have seen a thread with this very title on another site and it wasn't about a coffee machine, unfortunately..

On the coffee machine, it could be a short or a lose wire. Have you any sparky pals?

ArcticFox

No, no sparky pals unfortunately

ArcticFox

Update: I rang House of Fraser (where I bought it in Mar 09) and they told me that they only offer a one year guarantee and that the two year warranty has to be dealt with with the manufacturer directly.
So I rang Gaggia in Italy and they told me to contact their agent in Ireland: Watermark (gaggia.ie).
.....so I rang Watermark and they told me that they only deal with products within one year of purchase and that I would have to pay between €50-€60 to have it repaired (plus the cost of any parts).
So what's with the two year Gaggia warranty if nobody will honour it!?

Prisoner6409

This is typical, I have also come across this, ppl that state the 2 year warrenty but do not actually live up to it. Apparently it's an EU directive so I'm not sure it's an actual law that can be enforced. This is a link to the info: http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/bargains-and-rip-offs/tips-and-guides/article.html?in_article_id=487339&in_page_id=53954&in_advicepage_id. You could probably get back on to Gaggia/Watermark quoating this directive, might be worth a try.

Other than that I had my old Gaggia baby serviced in Kenilworth Electrical so they would probably be able to help although it would cost.

ArcticFox

Latest update....after many many more phone calls, all roads led to Kenilworth electrical! (I spoke to a number of people in Philips who directed me there). Who knew that Gaggia is owned by Philips!
Thanks to Gizmo555 for the initial heads up. I dropped my Baby dose into them on Friday (one day before the end of the two year guarantee) and they are now working on it! Phew.
I will update further as things progress.

jezzag

Sorry to ressurrect an old thread but my Baby Dose is currently sitting in the corner of my kitchen looking sad. Its been giving me problems for the last few years on and off (leaking around one of the valves originally. Fixed that myself thankfully via help from the Yahoo Gaggia forum). But now its shorting and not pumping so I think it needs some professional tlc. I'd tried contacting Watermark in the past but tbh their poor communications skills give me little confidence in their repair abilities.

Grateful for your experiences with Kenilworth before I box it up and post it to them.

ArcticFox

jezzag wrote: »

Sorry to ressurrect an old thread but my Baby Dose is currently sitting in the corner of my kitchen looking sad. Its been giving me problems for the last few years on and off (leaking around one of the valves originally. Fixed that myself thankfully via help from the Yahoo Gaggia forum). But now its shorting and not pumping so I think it needs some professional tlc. I'd tried contacting Watermark in the past but tbh their poor communications skills give me little confidence in their repair abilities.

Grateful for your experiences with Kenilworth before I box it up and post it to them.

Highly recommended - professional and genuinely friendly service!

jezzag

Great. Thanks for that. How much was the service? Did it take long to fix?

ArcticFox

jezzag wrote: »

Great. Thanks for that. How much was the service? Did it take long to fix?

Mine was within the 2 year guarantee period so it was free.

Drop it into them and they'll let you know how much it will cost before they fix it.

jezzag

Great. Thanks again.

The Hill Billy

Thread given a more appropriate title.

tHB

gizmo555

ArcticFox wrote: »

Highly recommended - professional and genuinely friendly service!

+1

They recently repaired my out-of-warranty De Longhi bean-to-cup machine, turning the repair around in two days.

Steoob

Was looking to get a Baby Gaggia soon, are they worth it?

jezzag

Despite my problems, yes undoubtably if you like good coffee. You'll make better than you can get in 90% of shops with a little practice. Check out youtube and the Yahoo gaggia group.

bionic.laura

I just bought a Gaggia baby dose second hand and have a bit of a problem with it so thought someone in this thread might be able to help. I unscrewed the shower head and metal disk behind it and gave them a clean in just plain water and I cleaned the group head and edges with a cloth. I haven't done more than that yet since i just got it but I have ordered some cafiza cleaner to give it a real clean.
The problem is that there is a trickle of water coming from above the group head when you run the machine. It is there even when the portafilter is off. When I try to make a coffee it gets worse. I know there is a seal where the shower screen and metal disk are, does it sound like it needs to be replaced? Or does this sound like it is something more serious? Would a service help? Or should I return it as its not in the working order it was supposed to be?

PPC

bionic.laura wrote: »

I just bought a Gaggia baby dose second hand and have a bit of a problem with it so thought someone in this thread might be able to help. I unscrewed the shower head and metal disk behind it and gave them a clean in just plain water and I cleaned the group head and edges with a cloth. I haven't done more than that yet since i just got it but I have ordered some cafiza cleaner to give it a real clean.
The problem is that there is a trickle of water coming from above the group head when you run the machine. It is there even when the portafilter is off. When I try to make a coffee it gets worse. I know there is a seal where the shower screen and metal disk are, does it sound like it needs to be replaced? Or does this sound like it is something more serious? Would a service help? Or should I return it as its not in the working order it was supposed to be?

Sounds like the seal is gone, its happened mine twice so far.
I picked up a 9mm seal from http://www.espressoservices.co.uk/gaggia_parts_and_accessories.html
You just remove the shower screen, remove the group head and remove the seal.
If its a bit tough to get out, you can screw a small wood screw into the old seal and pull it out with a pliers (make sure to remove the grouphead first, i forgot last time and spend an hour removing it bit by bit).
Pop in the new seal, put back in the grouphead and shower screen and you should be done.

If you are ordering from there, pickup some Puly Caff and descaling crystals from http://www.espressoservices.co.uk/coffee_machine_cleaner.html too, they'll give your machine a good clean.

bionic.laura

Many thanks PPC. I'll try that. Makes sense that if the seal is dodgy water could leak there. It still makes coffee so there's not too much wrong with it I hope.

jezzag

As PPC says, this is a very easy repair. Good luck! Love my Baby Dose and cant wait to get it fixed.

Murtapalooza

Jezzag - did you get back up and running? My GBD is shorting my electricity and Watermark have quoted me €70 for a "general service" but said it may cost more.

How much did it cost you in the end if you don't mind me asking?

jezzag

Funny you should ask! I got my box down from the attic earlier in the week to send it off finally. I have two young twins to look after at home so hardly have the time to enjoy a coffee at the moment, let alone make it, but I have relatives coming for christmas who demand that its working before they arrive.

Kenilworth quoted me €72-98 for repair, including the new solenoid valve. Will let you know how I get on.

Murtapalooza

Thanks for the update. Just one baby here but that also kept the Gaggia in the box for the last year!

What I was offered by Water Mark was:

"A general service including replacing seals & discs normally works out about €70, I have no details on how old the machine is or if it has been serviced before so it’s hard to give an exact price, Normally the above price covers most issues. However if it needs a more expensive part we can take a contact number from you and call you with the quote for same prior to replacing."

Kenilworth would be much handier location wise for me though.

donnacha

The lads in Kenilworth know their stuff and aren't going to rip you off- I wouldn't have any reservations about leaving your machine in with them for a service.

jezzag

Tbh, I have grave reservations doing business with any company that advertises an email address but then fails to respond to any email enquiries. So I'd rather not send it to Watermark, for all their flashy website. Kenilworth here we come!

blobbie

Just wanted to +1 the folk in Kenilworth Electrical for bringing my Gaggia back to life.

jezzag

Sad to say that my experience of Kenilworth was nothing worse than terrible! I shipped it up to them having first discussed its history (a previous repair done locally) and agreeing a price to fix.

I waited a week and a bit before enquiring how the repair was going on. I was told that the machine had yet to arrive. Luckily I had checked the courier so knew it had been with them for over a week. They then promised to look into it the next day.

A few days later I got a call to say there was a problem. Where the machine had been repaired before, the allen bolts had rounded and they couldn't unscrew them nor did they wish to take the risk of attempting anything too drastic. If the bolts could be removed it would be an easy repair I was told, one I could do myself. I'm an old hand at getting out rounded allen bolts from years of bike repairing so that didn't phase me but I asked that, if I could get the bolts out, could I send it back up to them as I'm not *that* mechanically minded. No problem, I was told, but you really won't need to do that because the repair is so easy once the bolts are off. So I agreed to arrange a courier the next day to get the box back down to me in Kerry

That evening, I happened to notice that the Gaggia Classic was on offer on Amazon, down to £160. I realised that I hadn't asked about the overall general condition of my New Baby and that, given the problems I have had getting it repaired, it might be worth considering a new machine with warranty for 2/3 the price of the repair of the old one.

So the next day I rang Kenilwortht to ask. I spoke to a different person than the previous day. This second person told me, in no uncertain terms, that Kenilworth never touch a machine that has previously been repaired by someone else for *public liability reasons* and that they wouldn't touch my machine with a bargepole (his actual words..). I told him that that wasnt the tenor of the conversation the previous day nor had this policy been pointed out to me at the time I was booking in the machine for repair and shelling out cash to send the machine to them. I said I had informed Kenilworth of the machine's previous repair history and nothing had been said at the time. This person replied that he had been standing next to the person I had spoken to on the previous day and it had been made clear to me that they wouldn't repair the machine (! - not true) and that was that.

To say I was perplexed is an understatement. I decided to email Kenilworth again (my previous main method of communication with them) to get some clarification, pointing out again that I had explained the machine's history to them before sending it. I got back a terse reply "we don't repair machines that have previously been tampered with".

I tried, and failed, several times to get a further response from them, pointing out that I was out of pocket and they hadn't even apologised for that. Nothing, not a word from them.

Exasperated, I emailed them to ask if it was ok to arrange for a relative, who happens to live nearby, to pick it up and bring it back down to Kerry over christmas. I heard nothing, zilch. I waited a few days then sent Kenilworth and my relative a message explaining that the email authorised him to pick the machine up. Still nothing.

A few days later he popped in and they handed him the machine without checking who he was or asking to see the message, telling him it was an uneconomic repair.

In the meantime I treated myself to a shiny new Classic. The new baby is still in his flat in Dublin. When it comes down to Kerry, I'll get the bolts out, buy a new OPV (not from Kenilworth) and sell it. Its a perfectly good machine but needs some tlc.

So, all in all I am extremely disappointed. I had high hopes, especially after hearing so many recommendations on here, and told them so. But I really couldn't recommend them to anybody after my experience.