My adventure fixing a Jura Impressa F50 Espresso Machine
My friend Vince gave me this (very) broken Espresso Machine last Saturday.
The machine - looks alright on the surface, huh?
He said he believed it to be dropped at his work and whoever did it wouldn't own up to it. I gave it a test and sure enough... coffee leaked out of everywhere else but the nozzle.
When removing top cover, I noticed a couple of floating bits of plastic inside that should latch onto the chassis were broken off (the black plastic had turned white from sheering) coffee had spilled out into the machine and was sitting on the circuit boards (including the 240v power in) I quickly turned to removing these boards, cleaning, drying out and coating in a moisture protecting spray.
The hoses for both the steam wand and the espresso were blocked and had caused them to rupture under pressure.
The machine is: http://www.jura.com/home_x/products_home_use/f_line/impressa_f50n.htm
The following set of pictures document my fixing of the machine.
though close up you can see there has been a big dilemma... coffee... everywhere.
and inside the machine...
And I suppose when it was dropped, the coffee that was already ground exploded inside the machine in a cloud
Pretty sure there shouldn't be a pool of coffee sitting around inside the machine 
A shot from above
I initially tried cleaning out the compartment where the coffee goes before it hits the nozzle... slightly better but it's dribbling and going sideways with inconsistent pressure and still leaking out all over
Opening it up a bit further i find that there is coffee all over the circuit boards and wires..
including the 240v input source - coated in a corrosive... coffee and getting wet with all the leakage going on...
I decided to give the nozzle head a good clean as i had to remove it to get to the electronics anyway...
actually i cleaned half the machine
After all that cleaning i got to tracing the problems in the machine... i got a bit bored of taking photos.. essentially the problems had stemmed from kinks in the hoses that grab water and espresso. The kinks caused the hoses to rupture, meaning pressure drops at end or hose and the ruptures caused coffee and water to leak out inside the machine. Managed to cut the hoses a bit shorter and it still had enough hose left 
- you'll also note i've added the steam/water nozzle holders on the right hand side of the machine.
first test after fixing. 2 x 30ml doses of espresso in this mug
On Sunday afternoon I had my friend and Coffee Aficionado, Matt over for his professional opinion on the machine now it has been restored to working condition... his response:
"The F50 is basically a suped-up home espresso machine with some serious advantages. It has an internal conical burr grinder (way better than the blades on a spice-mill), total one-button operation for espresso, no messy grinds coating your benchtop, and no portafilter to tamp or empty wet grounds out of. The steam production is what you'd expect from any thermoblock machine. It includes an auto-frother attachment which completes the super-automatic package. All in all it's a great machine for someone who has no budget for making great coffee at home and would rather drink freshly-ground over instant shit."
The steam wand also works now too - stretched half a cup of milk and finished off... - hey presto - a working Super Automatic Espresso Machine - though it's pretty evident that i suck at Latte Art
Overall i'm pretty pleased with this little machine The down side (debatable) is i'm going to be drinking a lot more coffee now!
Future upgrade ideas:
- Planning on making an adapter for the steam wand to pump milk into it automatically.
- Once the above works, do a CNC-style etcher that runs on GCode.
Any more ideas?
May 14th, 2011 - 02:18
Hi Aerofade;
How easy is it to get into the machine to remove the brewgroup assembly for home DIY cleaning of coffee oils and grinds ?
I’m looking at buying an F50 to replace my Bosch B30. The Bosch has a side compartment which opens to reveal the brewgroup, really easy to unlock, remove, wash, dry and replace. It’s not documented in the user manual but was easy to figure out.
The Jura looks quite complicated ? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Cheers
Sven
May 14th, 2011 - 02:24
Hi,
It’s actually pretty easy.
Once you have the lid off the top the brewgroup is on a track and all the screws holding it in place are easily accessible.
May 14th, 2011 - 02:27
Though i annex this with: If you have a warranty it’ll void it
– Regular descaling tablets run through and cleaning solution run through it should keep it clean enough – or put a vinegar/water solution through the system and make a few cups of coffee.
May 14th, 2011 - 07:06
Thanks !
Great post by the way. Think I might just give the F50 a try. Can get a 2nd hand “relaunch 2010″ model for a good price.
July 27th, 2011 - 02:10
sorry I just now saw your post. I have had an F50 for about 5 years now. Before I moved into my current apt and transported the unit I forgot to empty the grounds tray and got expresso grounds all over the inside of my unit. I attempted a tear down to see what was up and clean it out, but for the life of me I couldn’t find hardly any of the screws to take the unit apart. I got to the point of taking the top cover off, but to even do this I ended up breaking a plastic piece on the rear and glued that broken joint back together when I assembled it.
I guess my question is what tools did you use to disassemble the unit? I figured all I need was a screw driver.
After I popped the top off I could find really any other screws that would let me go further in taking off the sides — any ideas as to what I’m missing or what I’m not seeing (if you can recall from your tear down)?
August 28th, 2011 - 23:42
Hi there,
I have since onsold this unit, so i can’t have a look and post pictures for you – but from memory i had to get into the back panel from underneath the unit and unscrew there.
Hope that helps,
Cheer