Breville Barista Express No Water Coming Out – 6 Steps Solution

Breville Barista Express is a genuine compact espresso master at home. It will help you by providing excellent coffee if laziness impedes you from starting your day.

Espresso is a superb drink to begin a fresh day. The caffeine in it quickly boosts your mood by activating your brain cells. Thus, it inspires your body to go ahead involuntarily.

But, what to do if no water is coming out from your Breville Barista Express?

It happens due to two common reasons. Perhaps, the group head of your Breville Barista is blocked. The other possibility is its valve is not working as usual.

In this article, we will discuss in detail the water blockage issue. We will also share possible DIY solutions to try at home. Let’s go through it.

Why is your Breville Barista Express Machine not performing?

Breville Barista Express is one of the best-selling espresso machines. It is a semi-automatic machine with multiple handy features. Barista Express is well constructed for smooth brewing. However, it can stop working due to plenty of reasons. We are covering two common causes among them.

Jammed Group Head

Your Breville Barista can stop working due to a jammed group head. Sometimes, coffee grounds and dried milk create a blockage. In that case, your espresso machine will malfunction since the water cannot pass through the group head.

It seems to be annoying because it happens without any warning. Fortunately, backflushing is the quickest solution to this issue. Backflush can be done with or without chemicals. If you are using Breville Barista for a commercial purpose, we suggest you backflush after every workday.

In the case of home use, you can apply it once a week without chemicals. However, the best practice is to clean the group head with chemicals after every 200 shots.

Brewing Issues

Espresso machines like Breville Barista Express are designed for processing fine grind. But, a super-fine grind can fetch the opposite outcome. The size of the coffee grind is sorted from 1 to 16. Grind-1 signifies very fine, and grind-16 points to coarse grind.

Your espresso machine will fail to brew the ground properly if you put the wrong size of grind into it. In general, the ideal grind size for an espresso machine is five. So, you must ensure the grind size for better brewing.

Putting too much grind in the basket will force the machine to malfunction. In addition, it can prevent typical water flow in the machine. So, measuring your grind is the best practice to avoid overloading the basket with an excessive grind.

Read: Best Breville Espresso Machine 2023

Reasons for Breville Espresso Machine Not Pumping Water

In an espresso machine, two main parts are directly involved with proper water flowing. They are the group head and the group valve. So, if you experience the water not coming out of Breville Barista Express, the problem is undoubtedly occurring due to one of these parts. Your machine is not releasing any water, possibly for these two reasons.

• The group head has been clogged
• Group valve is not working well

A clogged group head is a typical case that prevents water from coming out. It happens due to a lack of thorough cleaning. Espresso machine owners understand the importance of regular cleaning and descaling.

But, unfortunately, most of them are tool lazy to maintain the cleaning frequency. Regularly backflushing the espresso machine can solve all problems like these.

How to Fix Breville Barista’s No Water Flowing Issues

We have already mentioned the backflush technique. Espresso machine backflushing includes washing the brewing group, valve, and shower screen. You can backflush your Breville Barista Express at home by following these steps described below.

You will need:

• Backflush disc (a basket with no hole)
• Backflush cleaner

Step 1:Turn your machine off and let it cool down.

Step 2: Take the filter basket away from the portafilter of the machine. Now put the backflush disk in the place of the filter basket.

Step 3: Fill the disc with some backflush cleaner and set the portafilter again to the brewing group.

Step 4: Turn the pump on and wait for about 30 seconds. It will create abundant pressure inside, and the pump will be silent as a result of it.

Step 5: The extreme pressure will make the pump entirely quiet. In that time, turn the pump off.

Step 6: The backflush cleaner will be detonated inside the brewing group and unclog it. You need to repeat the process until the machine release clean water.

Read More: Breville Barista Express Under Extraction – Solved!

Breville Barista Express Pump Runs Quietly

If you ever notice the pump of Breville Barista Express runs silently, perhaps there is a jam in the thermoblock. It occurs when a blockage appears in the solenoid valve of an espresso machine.

As a result, the water flows to the drip tray instead of the right place, and the brewing force goes to the steam wand. The malfunction prevents accurate water flow inside your espresso machine.

Sometimes, a leakage in the steam wand also causes low pressure on the pump. So, you need to inspect the machine carefully and find out the actual reasons.

What to Do before Repairing Breville Barista Express

An espresso machine should be repaired by a professional. However, you can also fix the issue if you have sound technical knowledge.

You must understand how to detach each part of the machine sequentially and reassemble them after repairing. We are sharing the exact order of detaching Breville Barista Express below:

1. You will find screws at the back of the water tank and close to the adhesive holder and the water exit. The first thing to do is unscrew them in sequence.
2. In the second step, you have to gradually remove the grinder plate, the cover under the water tank, and the bean hopper.

If you follow the exact order, you should successfully disengage all the parts of your espresso machine. Now, it is ready to be repaired or upgraded.

How Can I Unblock My Breville Barista Express?

The parts of an espresso machine, including the water reservoir, filter, steam wand, and nozzle are involved in making and extracting espresso. All of these parts must function equally well.

But, clogging is an annoying issue every espresso machine owner often faces. So, cleaning and descaling your machine frequently is the only way to overcome this complexity.

The process of unclogging is effortless. But, you must understand what the actual issue is. Then you have to take off the filter holder to remove coffee ground waste and clean the filter basket.

Next, unscrew the steam valve and remove the wrapped sleeve. If it is not washed for a long time, the steam valve can be found covered by dried milk and debris. You can use foamy water and a scrub sponge to remove these wastes from the steam valve.

A Guide to Unblock the Breville Barista Express Machine

After you clean the filter basket and the steam wand, you need to follow the steps below:

Run the Steam

The trick is simple but very effective in unclogging your espresso machine. Take a cup of water and dip the steam wand into the frother. Select “Steam” from the steam selector knob and let the water bubble for a few seconds.

If you notice that the nozzle is not working, switch off the steam selector. There is a possibility that the nozzle is blocked by dried milk. In that case, use a long and straight pin to remove the debris. Finally, cover the steam valve with the sleeve and screw it well.

Clean the Filter and Brew Unit

Remember to keep all kinds of liquid dishwashers away from the cleaning process. It can bring the opposite outcome. You will need nothing else but warm water and a scrub sponge.

Push the release button to detach the brew unit. Clean it patiently using warm water and the sponge. Next, clean the permanent filter remaining inside the funnel. You can discover coffee ground sludge here. Remove all the debris from this part with the wet sponge.

Descale the Machine

Cleaning and descaling often create confusion among users. We want to clarify two of these things in short. Cleaning is the process of removing ground dirt and oil from the machine. However, descaling is the method of pulling out the mineral scale from the espresso machine.

You will need a good descaler like citric acid for a better outcome. Mix it with water and pour it into the water tank of the espresso machine. Make sure that the mixture reaches the steam wand. Then, the descaling process will begin. After a little while, wash out your machine several times.

Wash the Steam Nozzle

You have to wash the steam nozzle during the descaling. Take a pitcher filled with cold water and dip the steam nozzle into it. Now turn on “Steam” from the steam selector at the time of the descaling process.

Let the steam run for 30 seconds, and repeat it at least three times. Thus, the nozzle will be descaled.

How to Reset Breville Barista Express Machine

The no water coming out issue of Breville Barista Express usually occurs due to blockage in the group head. In that case, the above tricks should solve the issue within a few minutes. However, if the water flow still seems insufficient, you need to reset or reprogram the machine.

The instruction manual of Breville Barista explains the possible reasons for too much or too little espresso delivery. Perhaps, the wrong grind size is put, or you have set an inaccurate grind amount.

To reset the Breville Barista Express, push and hold the Program button and wait to hear the beep three times. After hearing three beeps, leave the Program button.

Now, your machine will go to the default setting. It is set at the default 1, and 2 cups shot volume and the average temperature.

Final thought

So, we have understood the common reasons behind the no water coming out issue. Since blockage in the group head is liable for it, cleaning and proper maintenance of your espresso machine are crucial.

Backflush is the easiest solution in case of blockage in the group head. But, you may need to contact a technician in case of a malfunctioning valve.

Breville Barista Express may not perform for many other reasons. However, most of them are related to the internal jamming caused by coffee ground.

So, routine cleaning and descaling are essential to keep everything running. If you still notice insufficient water delivery after all of these efforts, you should reset or reprogram the machine.

Read More: Fixing Breville Barista Express’s Won’t Enter Descale Mode