La Cimbali · bean to cup
La Cimbali S30 — PSSR examination & servicing
S30 machines are used in offices, showrooms and staff kitchens where the machine is bought outright and forgotten nationwide. The engineer carries out the statutory PSSR examination, the front-end service and the water treatment on this model — a standalone examination is £265 + VAT, or £405 + VAT with the service included.
Quick answer
Does a La Cimbali S30 need a PSSR examination?
Yes, if it operates in a workplace. It carries a single steam boiler with its own protective devices, which is the pressure system in scope. Steam is a relevant fluid under PSSR 2000 and steam systems are covered at any pressure and any volume, so the boiler must have a Written Scheme of Examination and be examined periodically by a competent person.
- Examination only
- £265
- With service
- £405
The machine
Why the S30 matters to the La Cimbali owner
A compact sealed-boiler bean-to-cup, and the most numerous automatic in our own examination records at 12 machines.
In practice you will find it in offices, showrooms and staff kitchens where the machine is bought outright and forgotten — which shapes what the examination looks like on site: how the machine is accessed, how long it can be offline, and how much scale it has accumulated.
On the day
- The steam boiler is located and examined. On a sealed stainless vessel the examination is external — wall thickness, corrosion at fittings, and the condition of every connection — with internal inspection by borescope only where the vessel design allows access.
- The safety valve, expansion valve, pressure sensor and thermal cut-outs are identified, checked and function tested.
- The pressure gauge is verified against our calibrated test gauge, not against itself.
- The vessel is small and sealed, so there is no drain-down and refill to wait for. The time goes on getting to it, which is why the brew unit and panels come off.
- The Written Scheme of Examination records the vessel as sealed and sets out the external examination and the protective devices it relies on.
Typical rates for this model
- Standalone PSSR examination
- £265
- Service + PSSR bundle
- £405
- Certified safety valve, if it fails
- Quoted per machine
- Water filter, fitted on a visit
- from £107
- Grinder calibration & deep clean
- £89
- If it does not pass
- Explained in writing
All prices exclude VAT. A single steam boiler with one set of protective devices to examine. We confirm the exact figure on the call.
Filters are fitted on site by an engineer and are not posted out. The filter price applies when ordered with a PSSR examination, service, call-out or water test; booked alone it is charged at the standard call-out.
What we see on this model
- The boiler is sealed steel of around 1.2 litres at a 2.5 bar design rating — small, but a higher-rated vessel than most traditional machines on this list.
- Because it is sealed, the examination is external: wall thickness and corrosion at the fittings, plus a full test of the safety valve, expansion valve and thermal cut-outs.
- Fully automatic with two boilers: 0.7 L coffee boiler plus 1.25 L hot-water/steam boiler, 4800-5700 W, 79 kg, up to 300 cups/day, Turbo Steam Cold Touch. The steam/triac failure is the only S30-specific fault found; the rest are dealer cleaning-level fixes.
Verified boiler data
What is actually inside this machine
| Configuration | Steam boiler |
|---|---|
| bean to cup | 1.2 L |
Manufacturer's published boiler capacities. Where a maker publishes no figure we say so rather than estimate. Two boilers: 0.7 litres for coffee and 1.25 litres for hot water and steam.
Service interval. Dealer cleaning schedule: complete wash cycle about 15 minutes and milk-wash parts, both daily depending on volume. No published engineer service interval was found.
Source: La Cimbali S30 technical data
Fault finder
What actually goes wrong on a La Cimbali S30
Owners usually call us with a symptom, not a diagnosis. This is what that symptom most often turns out to be on this machine, and what putting it right involves.
| Symptom | Usual cause | What fixes it |
|---|---|---|
| Machine stops mid-service, screen shows a message, cycle blocked | S30 diagnostic 003 “chamber out of position” — the FC2 photocell was blocked during the dispensing phase. | Clear the brew chamber and check the photocell. The full numeric diagnostics table exists in the engineer's manual but we have only part of it. |
| Coffee dispensed slowly or only in drops | Brew unit and coffee spout fouled; dosing or grind out of adjustment. | Run the automatic wash, then check grind and dose. |
| Milk not dispensing or not frothing | Milk circuit blockage, or the milk-clean cycle not run. | Run the milk-clean cycle and clear the circuit. |
| Chocolate or soluble side leaking or not working | Blocked soluble bowl or pipe. | Clean and clear the bowl and pipe. |
| Machine will not dispense coffee at all | Grounds bin full — the machine refuses to brew. | Empty the grounds bin and drip tray. |
| Steam escaping from the drip tray; boiler pressure does not stop at 1.4 bar and climbs past 2.0 bar, destroying the pressure sensor. | Triac board fault keeps the heating element powered. Replacing the safety valve and the pressure sensor did not cure it in the documented case. | Replace the triac board; remove the pressure sensor kit quickly if steam appears so it is not damaged. |
| Coffee dispensed slowly or only in drops. | Dirty brewing circuit / group. | Run the automatic wash cycle. |
| Milk not dispensing or not frothing. | Milk circuit dirty or blocked. | Run the milk-clean cycle and clean the milk parts. |
| Machine will not dispense coffee. | Grounds bin full (dealer FAQ). | Empty the grounds bin. |
| Chocolate not working or leaking. | Chocolate bowl or pipe blocked. | Remove, clean and refill the bowl and pipe. |
These are faults documented for this model, not a generic list.
Common parts
Common parts for the La Cimbali S30
The components most often replaced on this machine, listed by reference number, as a reference for engineers and owners identifying a part.
| Part no. | Description |
|---|---|
| #0227 | Pump Fitting 3/8 X 3/8 |
| #22752 | Parker 2 Way Solenoid Valve 24v |
| #18625 | PARKER 3 WAY SOLENOID VALVE 24V |
| #2102 | Parker 3 Way Grp Solenoid Valve 24v (Plus 3 housings in) |
| #2841 | Element Protection Thermostat - Original |
| #0398 | Lucifer 3 Way Grp Solenoid Valve 230v (Ruby) |
| #18281 | Parker 3 Way Solenoid Valve 24v |
| #0450 | PARKER 3 WAY GRP SOLENOID VALVE 230V (RUBY) |
| #23371 | PARKER 2 WAY INLET SOLENOID VALVE 230V |
| #29950 | PARKER 3 WAY SOLENOID VALVE 24V |
| #26335 | Cimbali / Faema Pipe Fitting |
| #27876 | 14m Elbow Fitting |
Parts most often needed on this model
| Part | Number | What it fixes |
|---|---|---|
| Triac board | — | Steam overpressure / element permanently powered (documented S30 failure) |
| Gicar flowmeter | — | Dose faults; listed on the S30 parts page |
| Rotary vane pump, 180 L/h | — | No pressure / weak delivery; Cimbali/Faema pump |
| Safety-valve protection sleeve | — | Routes vented steam/water to drain instead of into the machine |
Questions
S30 questions, answered
How a boiler of this size is examined, how often, and who carries the duty — see the complete PSSR guide.
0208 037 9340
How much does a PSSR examination cost on a La Cimbali S30?
A standalone examination is £265 + VAT, because a single steam boiler with one set of protective devices to examine. Combined with a front-end service it is £405 + VAT, which is what most offices, showrooms and staff kitchens where the machine is bought outright and forgotten choose, since the boiler has to be drained for the examination either way. We confirm the exact figure on the call.
How often does a La Cimbali S30 need examining?
The Written Scheme of Examination sets the interval, and for a commercial machine used in offices, showrooms and staff kitchens where the machine is bought outright and forgotten it is typically 12 to 14 months. A single boiler on this duty normally sits at the middle of that range unless the water is hard, which we test on the day and report with the certificate.
How long does a La Cimbali S30 examination take, and what happens on the day?
The vessel is small and sealed, so there is no drain-down and refill to wait for. The time goes on getting to it, which is why the brew unit and panels come off. The visit runs: the steam boiler is located and examined. on a sealed stainless vessel the examination is external — wall thickness, corrosion at fittings, and the condition of every connection — with internal inspection by borescope only where the vessel design allows access. the safety valve, expansion valve, pressure sensor and thermal cut-outs are identified, checked and function tested. The gauge is then verified against our calibrated test gauge, the system is pressure tested and held, and the machine is re-assembled, refilled, heated and function tested. The Written Scheme of Examination, signed report and asset record follow within 48 hours.
Other La Cimbali machines covered
Call and we'll price your S30 on the spot.
Same-week appointments nationwide, the Written Scheme of Examination issued within 48 hours of the visit, and a fixed price agreed before we travel.