Water is leaking from beneath the portafilter

The problem

If you have water leaking between the grouphead and the portafilter, as signalled by the arrow in the photo, the solution below will help solve this problem.

The solution

A leak between the upper boiler and the portafilter is most likely to be a result of the portafilter not being turned quite far enough to achieve a full seal. The portafilter seals at the point where the two handles sit at 90 degrees to each other, or even a little further. The exact position will vary a little between machines.

When the machine is new, it may take some extra force to get the handles to this point; it’s fine to be a little more forceful than normal at this stage. After a few uses the machine will have bedded-in, and it will be much easier to turn the handles to this sealing point.

The photo below shows the point at which the portafilter seals: