How to Install a Dimmer on a Delonghi Dedica EC680, EC685, EC885

Have you ever heard of the dimmer mode in a vibratory pump espresso machine? What does it do, how does it work, and why do it? In this video, I show you how I installed a hardware store light dimmer in my Delonghi Dedica EC685. We talk about the theory behind dimmers, I show the re-assembly of the espresso machine, and finally test out the water flow later in the video. I close out by measuring the current in the pump circuit.

The current in the pump circuit seems to range between 130mA and 270mA, meaning that this dimmer cannot ever get truly down to 0% of the pump performance. The dimmer seems control the pump circuit within 50% and 100% of its performance. It also seems to be non-linear, with the current increasing slowly from the left part of the dial, and rising more quickly only upon reaching the opposite end of the dial. More expensive dimmers may have more linear control, I'm not sure though.

Finally, not all dimmers are created equal. I first tried an expensive Busch and Jaeger dimmer, which has a microprocessor inside. That didn't work. The pump never started, as the dimmer controller inside was looking for a load to calibrate itself. The dimmer is first however provided with voltage once the pump circuit is activated, and I think that's why the fancy dimmer didn't work.

One more thing, a voltage regulator should also do the trick, and may be more linear, although I haven't tried one. Here's a video in German on that:    • Barista-Feeling zu Hause: Modifikation der...  

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Machine source: private purchase

Chapters:
0:00 Intro
1:12 Theory of a Dimmer
6:00 Assembly
12:13 Test
13:13 Current Test

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