Water Not Flowing into K Cup

Photo of the bottom air tube that connects to the air pump

From:

Chuck.

Question:

Water does not flow into and through the pod. Water will flow through when there is no pod in the machine. I have cleaned and descaled the brewer.

Response:

Chuck writes to us with a problem that sounds like an air pump and / or solenoid failure. The purpose of the air pump is to build air pressure inside the boiler unit and when ready force this heated water through the top assembly, into the portion pack holder (where the K Cup is waiting) and then the coffee from the pod into your waiting coffee cup.

The role the solenoid plays is regulating this pressure and ensuring that enough pressure is built in the boiler unit to achieve what we described above, while also ensuring excessive pressure is not built up thereby causing damage to the brewer.

There are a couple of solutions available to Chuck (and this assuming the brewer is no longer covered by warranty):

The Keurig Burp and Slap

This approach provides a sharp jolt to the area of the air pump that may dislodge any contamination or blockage that may have built up in the pump. These problems can be caused by sediments in the water or rust from water contamination in the pump itself.

Our short guide covering this technique can be found here and we are surprised how many problems it does solve.

Air Pump and Solenoid Replacement

If the burp and slap has not worked then the best longer term approach is to replace both the solenoid and air pump. As you can see in the photo below of our B60 they are often co-located and so replacing one doesn’t take much more time compared to a single replacement.

Photo of the air pump detached from our B60

Our guide to the air pump replacement can be found here and the solenoid replacement here. The air pump is shown in the first photo below and the solenoid in the second. Both cost between $10 to $20 and can be purchased from amazon or ebay. Check out our replacement parts article that provides more details about each.

Photo of an air pump for a Keurig brewer Photo of a Keurig Solenoid

Don’t be deterred in having a go at trying to fix your Keurig brewer. We heard from Jean today (we wrote about the problems with her Keurig a few days ago) who let us know the burp and slap got the brewer working again. The slap helped to dislodge particles that had built up and the machine is up and running.

And the other week we heard from Terri who spent around $35 and got her B70 back working like new – three parts replaced (solenoid, water pump and air pump) and problem fixed. It certainly took some work, but a huge saving for a machine that retails around $130 or more.

If you get stuck along the way or we aren’t clear in our guidance material, drop us a line through Contact Us and we will be happy to help the best we can.