Removing and Cleaning Group Head Screens

Below we will explore the removal of the different kinds of screens, cleaning and reinstalling. This includes La Spaziale, La Marzocco and Slayer espresso machines.

Below are instructions for the removal and cleaning of group head screens. However, it's important to know how to maintain these parts with backflushing.

Please note that the images below may not match your machine, but depict the same process.

Remove the screen

Central hex screw:

Machines hold their dispersion screen in place in different ways. Some espresso machines like the A53 and Vivaldi have a hex screw in the center of the screen, holding it in place. With those machines, you can loosen the nut with the correct size wrench, 8mm in the case of La Spaziale machines, and once it is loosened it will unthread the rest of the way by hand, removing the screen with it.

Central flat head:

Other machines like the La Marzoccos and Slayers have a flat head screw that holds their screens in place and requires the use of a short flat head to begin unthreading the screen. Once it has been loosened you can also unthread it the rest of the way by hand and the screen will come out with the screw.

Scrub the screen

Once you’ve removed your screen you can scrub all the built-up grime out of the inside of your group head and screen. To get all the unwanted build-up out of your group we recommend a warm, wet rag and a Pallo brush. The rag will help to loosen up any hardened coffee grounds and debris inside the group head and screen. After you’ve scrubbed the screen and group with a rag give them a good scrubbing with a brush and use the rag again to clean out the leftovers.

We definitely recommend watching out to not use a brush with hard bristles on the screen as it can cause inconsistencies in how it disperses the water and give you channeling every time you pull shots with that screen in place.

Some machines have an internal dispersion plate that is removable as well as an external dispersion screen, these plates are removable and also will need to be cleaned as they can have coffee grind build up over time.

After somewhere between one and two years we recommend a new screen entirely for your machine as even with concise cleaning they wear and need replacing. The one exception to this is the dual screens on the La Spaziale A53 and Vivaldi; so long as they are correctly cleaned with a soft brush and not bent when reinserting to the group they are known to evenly disperse water for years.