Brasilia Del-2 Compact Restore/Rebuild
I'm going to start working on my first restore/rebuild. It's a Brasilia Portofino Del-2 Compact. I wanted to start this thread to post pictures of my progress and what I'm learning as I go. If you have input or suggestions I would extremely appreciate them as I am new to this process.
First, from what I was told when I got this machine the main issue was the heating element. There is also corrosion that needs to be cleaned. I have a workshop that has power that I will be working on the machine.
CHALLENGE 1: Getting water setup. I do not have a water line available so I need a good way to get water to the machine.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Brady on
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Really looking forward to seeing your progress.
If you have a cold water line anywhere nearby, you should be able to tap into it pretty easily. Might be an even better idea to buy a Flojet bottled water pump setup though - you could run it anywhere you had power and use it offsite as well.
Step 1: first pass clean the parts you can reach.
Step 2: take as many pictures as you can of all areas of the machine from multiple angles. I can't tell you how many hours of work they've saved me. Electrical schematics are great for diagnostics, but the wiring harness rarely even comes close so they are almost useless when it comes to hooking wires back up.
Step 3: Trace the flow of water to see what's going on. If you can find a hydraulic diagram, great!
Step 4: Disassemble, photograph, label, document, and clean. Work on a clear surface so you can find the little bits that fall off.
Step 5: Reassemble, replace bits as needed.
Good luck!
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Permalink Reply by Scott on
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I got a full size version of this I'm rebuilding.
I would put "ohm out element" first on the list. Since that is a reported issue.
As for water, you can pull water from a bucket if need be. It's not ideal, or a long term solution, but it will work.
Good luck. Post any questions you have.
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Permalink Reply by Benjamin Curfman on
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What would you recommend using to clean the corrosion? I've seen people use Scotch-Brite or a Wire Brush. What about chemicals?
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I used scotch bite and a wire brush. Simple Green on external components, like the outside of the boiler - it's plated and pretty tough. I soaked the groupheads in Purocafe. The one I have came from Seattle, the outside looked like hell, but the inside of the boiler was fine. Clean all the fittings real well, you don't want any binding of the threads or you'll be fighting a leaks everywhere.
I cleaned the bare frame with a pressure washer, worked really well. Then sanded any rust off and painted.
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Ok, I finally got some time to start playing with this thing. I got the side panels off and took a good look. Unfortunately I don't have all the tools I need (Christmas is coming!), so I wasn't able to do much. I did notice a serious rust problem near the steam wand valve. I'm guessing the rust is from the steam. Short of grinding the bolts off I'm not sure what to do about this problem. There is extensive corrosion at different parts of the machine. I tried some Scotch-Brite and it was very effective. I'm thinking I need to check the boiler for scale. Also, supposedly the machine had a bad heating element. How do I test this?
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Any ideas for dealing with the serious rust?
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If just surface rust, I've had good luck with removing loose bits with a bristle brush and then spraying with that Rust Oleum "rust converter" spray paint.
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Pic 1: Won't that hole be covered by the side panel? I would just clean and paint and not worry about the hole. Cut or grind the bolt head off and drill it out. Use some PB Blaster on the sheet metal and separate it. Clean with a wire cup brush or sander. Coat with Jasco Metal Prep and Prime. Paint with something like Rustoleum or ZeroRust.
Pic 2: Yeah, either a deep socket or that cup is probably rusted at the bottom or will bend and you can get a wrench on it. I got rid of the one on the machine I have. Never liked those things.
Pic 3: Same as pic 1.
Good luck!
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I think overall the plumbing is good. I'm mainly wanting to check the boiler for scale and see if the heating element is working.
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Ok, after working on this and getting some help from a friend I am learning more about this machine. I'm thinking the heating element screws in on this thing. I never actually bench-tested the machine, so I'm wondering if I should check the heating element before I take it how. How exactly do I do that with a meter? I've placed some more pictures below. Good news is when I drained the water from the boiler it was perfectly clear with no odor, which I found encouraging.
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Mark, then disconnect the heater leads. You should find continuity between two adjacent pairs of terminals and the resistance should match. If there's water in there, you should not get continuity between any terminal and the boiler. If any of those aren't true, the heater is bad.
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Great! I'll report back after I test.
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