Breville OPV Mod: BETTER Espresso With Lower Pressure (how to open a Breville Barista Express)
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- Опубликовано: 7 июл 2024
- Full details: craftcoffeespot.com/espresso/...
The Over-Pressure Valve (OPV) modification improves the espresso on the Breville Barista Express. I go through the steps to open up the machine and unscrew the OPV to reduce the pressure from 14-15 bars to 12 bars. It takes about 20-30 minutes to do, and with one fix, your espresso will taste a lot more balanced.
The OPV mod makes the Breville Barista Express easier to use. It's easier to dial in grind size at a lower pressure, as the espresso flows slower at coarse grind sizes, but faster at fine grind sizes. My prior criticism of the 16 grind sizes now looks overrated.
Also, please get a magnetic screwdriver, which will make your life much easier. Open the back panel slowly, as I broke some clips.
Also, this mod can be done on other Breville models, since they all have the same T-design for the OPV. I’d recommend this for older models like the Duo Temp and Infuser. I doubt it’s necessary for newer Brevilles as the Barista Pro and Bambino run at 10 bars, while the Barista Express Impress* runs at 9 bars.
*Actually, the Impress is even better because the pressure drops over time, compensating for the degrading puck.
Chapters
0:00 Introduction/Disclaimer
0:44 Opening the Barista Express
3:05 Inside of espresso machine
3:30 Over-pressure valve (OPV)
5:49 Testing modified Barista Express
6:25 How espresso changes post-OPV mod
8:14 Other Breville machines?
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Tried all methods to fix the right pressure--- tamping, grind size, cleaning and descaling, tight locking ... but this only finally worked. Thanks
Fixed it. Bars are so perfect now. Thank you
Its so much easier to just hold the double shot button down when you pull a shot, it will go to about 9 bar and you just double tap to stop the manual shot mode when you get to your desired yield.
Thanks, Marco. Excellent instructions. I was able to perform the mod easily, with no problems. I find that pulls are much smoother, sweeter, and have more body at the lower pressure. The only downside is, as you mentioned, the fact that the drip try fills up faster. But overall, I’m glad I did it. Thanks again.
Glad it helped!
Nice tip, I might try this. I’ve been doing the ‘pre-infusion only’ extraction where I hold the button in for the whole shot. This way the pump doesn’t ramp up and I grind to a setting which extracts at 6 bar. The taste difference is huge, it’s so much smoother and balanced. Might be a bit low in reality but it’s the easiest option I found without having to open the machine up.
Smart idea with pre infusion. I didn’t realize how bad 14-15 bars was until I fixed it.
Great video, I was going to do the dimmer mod on my BBE, but bought a BE Pro for better steaming power and give my BBE to my daughter for Xmas, but I really like the Menu for set up much nicer than flashing buttons and now the industry is looking at heating options like ThermoJet for less power usage, my best upgrade for better coffee I think was a stand alone grinder ( Eureka Mignon Facile) and now there are so many good grinder at $400 and under like the DF64 Gen 2 $399 it has so many burr opion and with my Eureka Mignon Facile grinder I can the coffee notes much cleaner, but after say that I still think the BBE when on sale is the best machine to learn on and now with so many tools available for 54mm and breville it is a Plus Plus :)
Your daughter will appreciate the OPV mod for the BBE :). It's "one-and-done" so no need to worry about the dimmer.
I agree with you on the grinders - LOTS of good options
Well her husband is the barista in there house. But with the dimmer mod not only can you control pressure but also flow allowing more profiling your shot, just my thoughts, happy coffee making :)@@craftcoffeespot
@@topjets5616 enjoy the dimmer mod
- maybe that’s the next video. Enjoy your coffee making :).
I’ve had a BBE for a while now and just didn’t want to open it out of fear of braking (as it’s all plastic), but today I thought what the hell. After I unscrewed all the screws (based on the wiki guide) I couldn’t get the back panel out and your video helped me understand how to do that, so thank you. After the mod I brewed a single shot and it was delicious, even though I use normal Lavazza beans, it still didn’t had that harsh of a bitter flavour nor any harsh acidity, so imo it’s a must. Al though I am a bit sceptical of how long it can survive with the opv valve barely holding on, as I went down to 3 turns and was leaking, so I had to return it down to 2.5 turns. Let’s hope it keeps up and thank you for the informative guide
Glad this helps! Even a small change makes so much difference.
I have the opposite problem. I can only get about one bar. Is this a pump issue filter issue? Any suggestions will be helpful.
Most likely you need to grind finer.
I just did this modification for my Barista Express. I was able to get the max pressure down to 10 bars. I am slightly concerned as the pressure valve may only be hanging on by a half or quarter of a thread; I hope that routine use doesn't cause it to blow out and get water inside the unit. I tugged on it quite firmly, so I don't think it will but am still considering that custom spring people are discussing here, if it means a safer result. In theory one could probably just shorten the spring to reduce the pressure, but this is obviously irreversible.
I think I'll give it a try it looks very interesting thanks
does this affect the steam wand in any way?
No
Could you not just replace the opv spring with a later machine version? Anyone tried this mod?
Are there any espressos machines without plastic?
With this mod to the OPV, how long does it take to pull a proper shot? In stock form, somewhere in the low 20s range seemed ideal once the pre-infusion completed... Does this lower pressure mod make for a longer pull? I always knew if I tamped too much as the pressure was really high and the the pull took over 30 seconds
The shot time hasn’t really changed - it’s easier to get that optimal zone of 25-30 seconds. Before it felt really hard to get the exact dose of grind size for that. Now it’s more forgiving.
You probably could shorten the pressure valve internal spring or replace the spring with a shorter one instead of unscrewing the pressure valve.
Sincerely Robert
Good recommendation - there is another link in the comments for the proper 9-bar spring.
How much pressure does barista express extract 9bar or 15 ?
Awesome video! I have been repairing an old Breville Oracle BES980XL over the past month.
I have scoured the internet for answers but cannot find a solution to my problem anywhere, Maybe you could help?
Everything works well on my machine - BUT when the machine heats up to temperature, steam is coming out of the water tank/container valve :/ The water in the water tank actually boiled and the spring loaded valve in the water container has actually melted.
I have taken apart both the steam solenoid and the hot water solenoid and couldn't find any obvious signs why they shouldn't work. I've also tried adjusting both Over Pressure Valves. Would you have any advice or tips on how i can stop the steam returning to the water tank? Many thanks.
Sorry, but I don’t know. I’ve never used an Oracle or encountered that issue.
I assume you are turning the screw away from yourself (anti-clockwise) could you clear that up? I certainly intend to try this mod but I’d like to be certain before I give it a go.
Yes, counterclockwise. Turn away from yourself to the left. It’ll be obvious that it’s “unscrewing” as you turn. Good question
Once apart I noticed buildup on that valve you took apart. Also the reason I opened it is that the machine trips the cgfi circuit when pressing the brew button. Any ideas what is going on? Also over the last 6-12 months seemed that pressure was getting higher with same grind.
Descale your machine? Sounds like a water quality issue, but first time I’ve heard this.
@craftcoffeespot yes I do that. I also use filtered water before putting it in the machine (filtered before it hits the breville filter). Anyway the build up is on the outside of the part not the inside. Thanks though.
Hi, thanks for the video. I'm a newb to all of this and have owned an Impress for 6months.
I thought i had an issue with my unit as it wasnt getting up to max pressure no matter what i did. Came across OPV and now this post. I see that breville might've done that for ease of use for Impress? As an engineer i'm not that impressed 😅 as i'd like to have access to that maz pressure.
Even when i block the portafilter with the cleaning puck, it won't go past the overall mid point on the gauge...
I have a case open with Breville and will update if anyone cares.
But until then, sounds like my unit is fine and it was a intended to it to not go high pressure from factory?
It makes good shots but somehow i like the shots that i pull with a duo boiler more... Same coffee, different grinder.
Watch my video on the Impress! It has lower pressure by design, which is a GOOD thing. Here is the video -> ruclips.net/video/ElpOx2aeWEc/видео.html
You can read our article on bars of pressure for espresso too: craftcoffeespot.com/espresso/bars-of-pressure-for-espresso/
You don't typically want the pressure to be above 9 bars anyway, since it starts to over-compress the coffee, resulting in poor flow or sudden channeling. The old models were flawed, and the lower pressure on the Impress is a correction.
I ended up buying a calibrated spring for around $6 to replace the one that was in there and can easily adjust it (just like in the video) to get it to anywhere between 6 and 10 bars now.
any link of that or how to search it?
What spring did you use? Noticed the spring under the OPV screw.
Link the spring?
Here is the best source for 9-bar spring: www.mcmaster.com/8969T349/
PLease let me know if you try this one. I ordered it and will give it try.
@@craftcoffeespotI'll be waiting patiently for this video
Does the Infuser (840XL) have the same OPV as the express? It is currently impossible to pull a shot with a bottomless portafilter without it spraying everywhere.
I think so. Not 100%, but pretty sure. I think Breville lowered it for the Thermojet machines and then again for the Impress, so older Express, Infuser, and Duo Temp run at 14 bars.
The internals appear the same on every model too, so you should be able to do this mod on the Infuser as well.
the same method just adjusted mine it is pretty straightforward.. I always wondered why I had high pressure I sometimes would do the manual shot and brew at pre-infusion... glad this worked out.
do you get higher temp on the water due to lower bars? I've read that in some forum
Nothing noticeable on my end.
The drip tray fills faster as more water is let out of the OPV.
If anything, at lower pressures temperature would potentially decrease, not increase. However, the temperatures for brewing are all below boiling thus any pressure adjustment shouldn't affect these temps.
Do you know if the steam pump can be changed out from the berville barista express to the Breville barista touch??? I have used the Breville touch abd the steamer is much stronger than the express, if it can you should do a video on that I'm sure everyone will love it!
Thanks fkr this one ill have to give it a go!
It cannot. The steamer is driven by the heating system and they are very different on the two models - thermojet vs thermocoil. Different sizes and everything.
Is possible increase the quality os the streamer in breville express pro (machine selling in Brazil) a or make a mod?
With I make the mod dimmer, I need change this opv?
Or the dimmer will fix the bar?
@@craftcoffeespot
Would anyone understand why machine pressure changes drastically to extremely low 30 after when left on after my first shot?
Because the hot water has burned through the puck. Over time, the puck gets extracted and crumbles. Hence the flow rate increase over time and my guess is yours degraded enough that the water went through and pressure dropped….This is just a guess though.
I'm not really sure how this would work. It's not like the hole changes size when you screw it in or out. It seems more that it is either on securely or not. Where did you hear about this?
There’s a spring inside that releases water at a certain pressure. As you unscrew the valve, the spring has more leeway and releases water at a lower pressure, hence lower pressure shot. Try and see - it works.
I heard about this for the Gaggia Classic Pro, where it’s an extremely common mod to replace the OPV spring. I changed mine and noticed an impact on espresso taste. Then, I noticed the Barista Express Impress runs at a lower pressure and tastes way better. So I change the Express and it had a dramatic impact.
I've tried to lower the pressure but when i pull a shot the extraction time seems to fast 😢
It actually flows a little faster at lower pressure. It’s counter intuitive as high pressure actually “clogs” the puck at fine grinds. You can actually grind finer which will extend extraction time and taste a little richer.
Anybody know where to buy gasket for water tank?
Check the Breville site - go on the product page for Barista Express and they have a list of accessories. Also, contact support as ask; they reply within a few days.
Ive seen this mod where they fed th excess water back into the water lines so it doesnt fill the drip tray.
Kinda seems like something that should be part of the basic design.
Can I do this with the barista pro as well?
Yes, you can as the internal design is the same. But, the Pro is harder to open, and it runs at 10 bars already.
Any feedback? I'd love to hear if anyone else has done the OPV mod (or any other tweaking). The pressure change made a nice difference for my Breville Barista Express.
Also, I highly recommend using a magnetic screwdriver!! It'll make the job much easier.
Would you screw the other way if your pressure is too low? And no it’s not grind size.
@@TheGlassEyeTV Have you adjusted your inner burr? That's a common issue in this case. See this video, tip 1: ruclips.net/video/A7_6QX4GD6E/видео.html
@@craftcoffeespot will do, thanks!
there has to be a better way to adjust that lol
there is a standard tolerance for how many threads need to be threaded into something. different applications have different minimum tolerances. you're running that machine at 12 bar of pressure with that fitting barely threaded in, as well as it not being locked or having any thread lock on it.
this is not a modification that should be done and you're advocating for something with a perceived inherent knowledge while sharing terrible and potentially unsafe information.
This has worked great for me and others. And I clearly say this is at your own risk. But if you’re into espresso, you’re into tinkering already, so most viewers are already opening their machines as is.
lmfao @@somaxusa
@@somaxusa so true! Not to mention this was designed over ten years ago, before modern espresso science. The newer models have had successive pressure decreases.
@justinbouchard is actually speaking to a legitimate concern. If the thread is only screwed on a quarter or a half turn, it could slip off. 10 bars is quite a lot of force, and the only thing holding it back if the thread slips here is the rubber gasket. If that happens you will have water near your electronics and wires.
When I did this mod I stood there for a long time trying to deduce a way to secure the stem better, in case of thread slip. I think glue would work or some creative zap-strapping. But ultimately best solution is to get a weaker spring for the valve, so you can screw it in furthur.
@@craftcoffeespot dude you're an absolute joke teaching people one step away from f****** burning their house down or destroying their $2,000 machine You're ridiculous