▷ Delonghi Magnifica Troubleshooting ☕

It can be quite frustrating to buy a great coffee maker, such as the Delonghi Magnifica, and suddenly realize it presents problems without knowing what to do. With this in mind, we have designed this complete guide to cover the most common faults of the Delonghi Magnifica and their solutions.

Do not forget to check Delonghi’s coffee machine instruction manuals!

My Delonghi Magnifica S coffee maker doesn’t grind coffee

Many users complain that the grinder of their Delonghi Magnifica coffee maker stops working; this problem is a consequence of using the wrong coffee beans in the coffee maker. We refer to all those beans that have not undergone natural roasting.

Problem 1: The grinder of the Delonghi Magnifica gradually grinds less and less coffee to the point of completely stopping grinding.

Cause: This is due to clogged grinding wheels. In many cases, this problem can be solved, but the grinder must be completely replaced in some cases.

The sugar that comes mixed with the «torrefacto» roasted coffee (crystallized in the coffee bean during roasting) passes to the grinding wheels of the grinder, where little by little, it accumulates until it impedes grinding. For this reason, it is always recommended to use natural coffee with these coffee makers.

Solution:

Disassemble the coffee maker.
Locate and disassemble the entire motor that grinds the coffee.

Remove the coffee residues that are adhered to the inside of the motor, and check each part very well, including the grinding wheels that are clogged and obstructed; there should not be any coffee residue left in the grinder.
Once you have removed all the coffee residue from the motor, try to rotate the grinding wheels, and with this, you will know if they can still work; if they rotate, you will have solved the problem. Otherwise, you will have to replace the entire grinder with a new one.
Put the motor back in its place, either the one you repaired or the new one.

Assemble the coffee maker.

Grinder blocked by black coffee beans (torrefacto)

Problem 2: The Delonghi Magnífica does not grind enough coffee, and the coffee it does grind is not optimal; that is to say, when it grinds the coffee, instead of making a consistent grind, it leaves a very small and flimsy grind, which easily breaks; the grind does not come out well.

Cause: Coffee and other residues accumulate inside the coffee maker and can cause some parts to become obstructed; in this case, the dirt in the infuser does not allow the grind to come out as it should.

Solution:

Open the front cover of the coffee maker.
Remove the trays and the infuser.

Disassemble the infuser until the piston inside this part is extracted; normally, the infuser fills up with coffee and other residues, which prevents the piston from sliding upwards and, in the end, throws all the grind out.
Clean the piston very well until there is no coffee or other residues in it so that it finally circulates well, and replace the gaskets of this part if required because they are worn or damaged.
With the help of a screwdriver, remove the filter located at one end of the piston and clean it very well; once clean, put this part back in its place.

With a brush, put a little grease on the moving parts and gaskets of the piston once it is completely clean.
Mount the piston to the infuser; raise and lower, a couple of times, the piece where the piston goes until verifying that it already slides without a problem and the grease has been well distributed.
Finally, mount the infuser and the trays inside the coffee maker.

The Delonghi Magnifica coffee maker makes a lot of noise

While it is true that automatic coffee makers with an integrated grinder usually make noise, sometimes this noise becomes much louder for no reason. You have to pay attention because it may be failing some part of the coffee maker.

Problem: When starting the Delonghi Magnifica, a loud and uncomfortable noise is produced, different from that produced by the normal grinding function.

Cause: Coffee residues and dirt accumulate inside the auger where the shaft moves the brewer cylinder up and down slides. As the auger is clogged, the machine must make a great effort to move this part up and down and, consequently, it makes much more noise.

Solution:

Open the front cover of the coffee maker.
Remove the trays, the brewer and the brewer support until the auger is visible.

Clean the brewer, the auger and the entire inside of the brewer very well, making sure that there are no coffee residues or other residues.
With the help of a brush, apply a little bit of grease to the auger to facilitate the sliding of the shaft.
Reinsert the removed parts back into the brewer.

Apply a little bit of grease to the auger

Water leaks in the Delonghi Magnifica S coffee maker

It is common to see this type of failure in the Delonghi Magnifica and many other coffee makers due to water leaks. Although it is not a very common failure, over time, it can happen. Here are the causes and solutions to the problem.

Problem: When you try to prepare a coffee, you start to see water leaking from the bottom of the Delonghi Magnifica coffee maker. When you stop the coffee maker, the water stops dripping, but when you try to brew a coffee again, you see water leaking out of the bottom of the machine.

Cause: Like other automatic coffee makers, the Delonghi Magnifica has many pipes, valves, and connecting parts. The connections of the pipes with the pump and the heating element are two of the most sensitive points to breaks, cracks, or leaks. If one of these connecting pieces or valves breaks, we will have water everywhere.

Solution:

Disassemble the coffee maker.
Check the entire water line to identify where the water is leaking.

Once the leak has been identified, check for bad, worn or broken joints, hoses, connectors or other parts and replace the part if necessary; if it is not damaged, make sure it is very well sealed and put in place. In the image below, we find a broken connector.
Reassemble the brewer lids.

Raccord hose connection for the heating element is broken — The raccord hose connection for the heating element is broken

The water pump of the Delonghi Magnifica does not work

One of the most probable causes, why a coffee maker stops pouring water is because the water pump has stopped working. In short, the pump is in charge of pushing the water through all the circuits and making the coffee reach our cup.

Problem: When trying to prepare a coffee, no water comes out of the machine, all the lights come on, but no sound is heard inside the coffee maker, and no coffee is prepared.

Cause: Let’s not forget those coffee makers are electrical appliances with water circulating inside them. And although the water circulates through pipes and valves, leakage of the liquid near any of its components can cause it to stop working. If the pump has had a nearby water leak and has been continuously wet, it can cause it to fail suddenly.

Solution:

Disassemble the coffee maker.
Identify the leak that caused the failure. In case it is a gasket, replace it.
Replace the damaged pump with a new one.

Reassemble the coffee maker.
Turn on the machine and put the vaporizer on so the air comes out and the new pump is purged; after this, you can make your coffee.

Delonghi Magnifica water pump damaged by dripping water

The infuser of my Delonghi Magnifica S coffee maker is clogged

De’Longhi Bean to Cup coffee machines automatically doses, tamp and extract the coffee through an internal infuser (brewing unit). Occasionally it happens that this part gets stuck and stops working.

Problem: The Delonghi Magnifica S coffee maker automatically resets the brewer after brewing each coffee, but during this procedure, for some reason, the brewer gets stuck in an unusual position.

Cause: If the power supply to the coffee maker is interrupted, for whatever reason, during the procedure the machine does to reset the infuser, it can cause this part to fail to settle properly into place and get stuck in the wrong position.

Solution:

If the coffee maker is on, turn it off and unplug it.
With the service door closed and the water tank securely in place, connect the machine to the mains and turn it on at the switch on the back of the machine.
Once turned on, the brewer will automatically attempt to re-align itself; wait while this happens.

Then turn the machine off and wait until this process is complete, as indicated by the lights going out.
The infuser will now be in its correct position and can be removed if required.

The Delonghi Magnifica coffee maker does not brew coffee

A common problem with these coffee makers is that they suddenly stop brewing coffee. Although we attribute the failure to a fault in the water pump, other causes may be much easier to solve.

Problem: When turning on the machine and preparing a coffee, it starts working because of the sound it emits (a loud buzzing sound), but finally, no coffee comes out; it does not dispense water. The three lights adjacent to the power button blink in sequence, or the water tank light does not stop blinking.

Cause: If you let the water tank run out of water while the machine is running, air will enter the water system and obstruct the water flow, not allowing the machine to brew coffee. In case of this problem, you will have to prime the pump to expel the air it contains; follow the steps below.

Solution:

Turn on the coffee maker.
Verify that the water tank is full.
Place a glass under the nozzle of the steamer.

Turn the steam knob, and water will come out instead of steam; this will allow the air contained in the system that conducts the water to come out; after a few seconds, close the knob.
Now you can prepare your coffee.

If the above does not work, you may need to check the water pump inside the machine.

Low water pressure in the Delonghi Magnifica

The quality of the coffee and the agility of the machine to prepare it will depend on the water arriving with good pressure on the coffee. A correct pressure depends, at the same time, that the whole system through which the water circulates is working well.

Problem: The quality of the coffee has decreased after the water no longer comes out of the machine with sufficient pressure; not only has the taste of the coffee changed, but also it is necessary to wait much longer for it to finish brewing.

Cause: With each use, the machine gradually wears out its parts. The gaskets, for example, wear out or get damaged more easily and are everywhere inside the coffee maker, even in parts where they are not noticeable to the naked eye, as is the case of the valve in the boiler, a fundamental part for the water to flow normally and where there can also be leaks due to wear of gaskets that will end up decreasing the pressure in the flow and exit of the water.

Solution:

Disassemble the coffee maker.
Locate the boiler and remove it from the coffee maker very carefully; it comes with the valve attached.

With a screwdriver, separate the valve from the boiler and disassemble it until the yellow cover is removed.
Locate the damaged O-rings inside the valve and replace them.
Reassemble the valve and reassemble it to the boiler.

Finally, reassemble the brewer.

Meaning of the lights on the Delonghi Magnifica

Sometimes understanding each light on an automatic coffee maker such as the Delonghi Magnifica means can be complicated, as sometimes they light up steady, and sometimes they blink. Sometimes even, several lights flash at the same time.