Braun Coffee Maker Not Working? 6 Fixes (BrewSense, MultiServe)

A Braun Usually Needs One More Press, Not a Repair

A Braun coffee maker that is not working is usually waiting for a second step. On a BrewSense, the On/Off button only readies the machine, and BREW starts it. A PureFlavor starts when you pick fast, regular or bold. A MultiServe won't brew with its lever at "Drip Stop", its reservoir cover open or no brew mode pressed.

Under "Coffee is not brewing", Braun's BrewSense books list four causes and the MultiServe book lists eight. None is a failed part. Every one is power, water, a button or a position.

Two things are outside this page. If the display shows an E code or the word "Lid", start with our Braun error codes guide. If the CLEAN light is the complaint, the Braun clean light guide has the descaling program for each model.

The steps come from Braun's North American instruction books for the BrewSense, MultiServe and PureFlavor. The model numbers are in the table further down.

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Try This First

• Look at the display. Blank means no power at the machine. A flashing 2:00 AM (12:00 AM on a PureFlavor) is what Braun shows at first plug-in or after a power interruption, so set the clock and check any timed brew (Fix 3).
• BrewSense: press On/Off, then BREW. The green light above BREW should flash while it brews (Fix 1).
• MultiServe: check the lever. If the On/Off button flashes when you switch on, the lever is at "Drip Stop" (Fix 2).
• Open the reservoir. "There is no water" is on every Braun not-brewing list.
• Note what the coffee did. Overflow is Fix 4, slow is Fix 5, cold is Fix 6.

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Fix 1: Switch On, Then Start the Brew (Works About 30% of the Time)

On these Brauns, switching on and starting a brew are two separate presses. The BrewSense troubleshooting table says so in one line: when the green light above BREW doesn't come on, the fix is "Press the ON/OFF button, followed by BREW". The first press only puts the machine in what Braun calls "ready" mode.

Signs it's this one: the clock is showing, and the machine sits there silently with water in the tank.

1. If the display is blank, push the plug fully in and make sure the outlet is live.
2. Fill the reservoir with fresh cold water.
3. Press On/Off. On a BrewSense or MultiServe the green indicator lights to show "ready" mode. With the light off, the machine is in "stand by".
4. Start the brew for your model:
   • BrewSense: press BREW. The light above it flashes continuously while it brews. The 1-4 button isn't a start button: press 1-4, then BREW.
   • PureFlavor: press FAST, REGULAR or BOLD. Braun's table lists "fast, regular or bold was not selected" as a cause of no brew.
   • MultiServe: put the lever at "Coffee", choose a size on the dial, then press Light, Gold or Bold. The book says brewing "starts immediately" once a mode is selected.

Time: 2 minutes
Cost: Free
Success Rate: About 30%
Difficulty: Easy

MultiServe note: if you press On/Off and choose nothing within 60 seconds, the machine goes back to stand-by and the On/Off light goes out. Press On/Off again and pick the brew mode straight away.

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Fix 2: Set the MultiServe Lever, Cover and Water (Works About 25% of the Time)

A MultiServe adds two checks a BrewSense doesn't have: where its lever is, and whether the reservoir cover is shut. The lever has three positions, "Coffee", "Drip Stop" and "Hot Water", and coffee only brews at "Coffee".

There's a trap in Braun's own instructions. Step 11 of the book's brewing steps, after the beep, is to place the lever at "Drip Stop". Follow the book, and the lever is still there when you start the next pot.

Signs it's this one: the On/Off button flashes when you switch on, the display shows "Lid", or a brew stopped partway.

1. Move the lever to Coffee. A flashing On/Off button at switch-on is Braun's signal that it was at "Drip Stop".
2. Close the water reservoir cover. If the display shows "Lid", the lid of the reservoir is open.
3. Fill the reservoir, and push the tank fully into place.
4. Press On/Off, choose the size, then press Light, Gold or Bold.
5. If a brew stops with the brew mode button flashing, it's paused, because the lever was moved to "Drip Stop". Move it back to "Coffee" within 2 minutes. After that, the book says the brew is ended with a beep, and Braun's US support FAQ adds that the machine resets itself to stand-by.

Time: 2 minutes
Cost: Free
Success Rate: About 25%
Difficulty: Easy

If it shows E21 instead: that's the MultiServe's water message. Braun's remedy is to fill the reservoir and switch off and on again. The tank-reseating steps, and the other E codes, are in the error codes guide.

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Fix 3: Set the Clock and Arm AUTO ON (Works About 15% of the Time)

A timed brew needs three things in place: the clock, an AUTO ON time, and AUTO ON switched on. Setting the time doesn't arm it. Every book says the function can only be activated once the AUTO ON time and the time of day have been set, and every troubleshooting table lists an unset clock as a reason the AUTO ON time can't be set.

Signs it's this one: the pot brews when you start it by hand, but not at the set time. Or the clock is flashing.

1. Set the clock if it's flashing. The BrewSense and MultiServe books describe a 60-second power back-up, so a longer interruption brings back the flashing 2:00 AM. The clock steps are in Fix 4 of the error codes guide.
2. Switch the machine on. The BrewSense books say, "Before programming, always switch on the coffee maker."
3. Store the time. On a BrewSense, hold AUTO ON for at least 3 seconds until the hours flash, hold SET to run through them, press AUTO ON to move to the minutes, set those, and press AUTO ON again to save. A MultiServe is the same with a 2-second hold, and its table adds that the lever must be at "Coffee". The BrewSense books' hour step also says to press CLOCK for 3 seconds before using SET, so do that if the hours won't change. The PureFlavor book shows its steps as pictures without hold times: On/Off, then auto on, then the time.
4. Arm it:
   • BrewSense: press AUTO ON once more. The green light above the button comes on.
   • MultiServe: put the lever at "Coffee", choose the size, and place the carafe or cup. Press AUTO ON, then select the taste (Light, Gold or Bold). AUTO ON stays lit.
   • PureFlavor: after setting the time, select a brew mode to activate the function.

Time: 5 minutes
Cost: Free
Success Rate: About 15%
Difficulty: Easy

Check the light the night before. The BrewSense books say the AUTO ON light turns off when the timed brew starts, so don't assume yesterday's setting is still armed.

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Fix 4: Stop the Basket Overflowing (Works About 15% of the Time)

Braun's overflow list is mostly about the basket, the carafe and the coffee. The BrewSense books say the anti drip system halts the flow of coffee from the filter basket when the carafe is removed, and that the carafe should go back within 20 seconds "to prevent the filter basket from overflowing". The PureFlavor book says the same of its Brew and Pause feature.

Signs it's this one: grounds and coffee over the rim of the basket, or coffee on the plate.

Switch off, unplug and let the machine cool before you handle the basket. Then check, in Braun's order:

1. Seat the filter basket. "The filter basket is not properly inserted" is the first cause in every book.
2. Center the carafe under the basket, with its lid on. The BrewSense and PureFlavor tables list both.
3. Use less coffee. The limits Braun prints are 15 scoops or tablespoons for the glass BrewSense, 10 for the thermal BrewSense and the MultiServe, and 14 measuring spoons for the PureFlavor.
4. Use a drip grind. Coffee that is too finely ground is a listed cause on all of them.
5. Use one filter. Paper or the gold tone permanent filter, "never both at the same time".
6. Thermal BrewSense and MultiServe: clear the carafe lid. If the coffee flow through the lid is blocked, remove the insert from the middle of the lid and rinse the lid under running water.

Time: 5-10 minutes
Cost: Free
Success Rate: About 15%
Difficulty: Easy

Coffee running out with no carafe in place? The BrewSense and PureFlavor tables give one cause, that the filter basket spring popped out during cleaning, and the remedy is to reattach the spring to the basket. The MultiServe book lists the same spring under overflowing.

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Fix 5: Descale a Slow Brew (Works About 10% of the Time)

Scale is the cause Braun's BrewSense and PureFlavor books connect with slow brewing. The BrewSense books tell owners to repeat descaling "as many times as necessary in order to reduce the brewing time per cup to a normal level". The PureFlavor table lists "Brewing process takes too long" with the cause "Coffee maker is calcified".

Signs it's this one: brewing has slowed over weeks, the CLEAN light is showing, or a PureFlavor sounds its signal before the water tank is empty.

1. Take out the charcoal water filter and the gold tone permanent filter.
2. Run the descaling program for your model with a descaler. Each family starts and ends it differently, so follow the steps in the Braun clean light guide linked above.
3. Flush as Braun describes for your model. On a BrewSense, repeat the program if a pot still takes too long.
4. Check that the water hardness setting (h1, h2, h3) matches your water.

Time: 30-45 minutes
Cost: The price of a descaler
Success Rate: About 10%
Difficulty: Easy

PureFlavor: the same table row has a second cause, "Different brewing mode selected". Braun notes that the brewing modes have different preparation times, so a slower pot after changing modes isn't a fault.

MultiServe at altitude: the MultiServe table has no row for slow brewing, but the book has a setting the BrewSense and PureFlavor books don't. Braun says to enable the altitude setting so the coffee maker "works properly at higher altitudes", and that it keeps the machine from developing steam instead of boiling normally. Switch on, hold SET for 2 seconds until "A 1" flashes, press SET to choose a level, and hold SET for 2 seconds to save. A 1, the default, covers up to 1,637 ft, and A 5 is for 6,559 ft (2,000 m) and above. The book's table gives the three steps between.

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Fix 6: Check Keep Warm and Auto Off (Works About 5% of the Time)

When the coffee brewed but isn't hot, Braun's tables point at the keep warm timer, not the heater. The glass BrewSense books give two causes for "Coffee is not hot": a power outage, or "Auto off was activated". The PureFlavor table says "Keep warm mode has stopped".

Glass BrewSense (KF 7150, KF 7170, KF6050, KF7000, KF7030, KF7070):

1. Look at the BREW light. Solid green after brewing means keep warm is on.
2. Check the auto off time. The machine switches off 2 hours after brewing unless the AUTO OFF function is active, and that function can be set from 15 minutes to 5 hours. Hold AUTO OFF for at least 3 seconds to see the stored time, change it with SET, and press AUTO OFF to save. A green light above AUTO OFF means your stored time is in use.
3. On the KF 7150 and KF 7170, press TEMP to choose low, med or high for the keep warm plate.

Time: 2 minutes
Cost: Free
Success Rate: About 5%
Difficulty: Easy

Thermal BrewSense (KF 7155, KF 7175): there's no keep warm plate. The BREW light turns off when brewing ends, and the machine switches itself off 1 minute later. That's normal on this model.

MultiServe: the keep warm plate only comes on for the half carafe and full carafe sizes. After 2 hours the coffee maker switches off.

PureFlavor: the plate has HIGH, MED and LOW settings (default MED), and an auto off time from 0 to 4 hours (default 2). One thing to avoid: Braun notes that pressing the brew mode button you selected, or On/Off, deactivates keep warm.

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How the Three Braun Families Differ

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When DIY Won't Work

• No lights and no display on an outlet you know is live. Braun's tables offer nothing beyond plugging in and pressing On/Off, so this one goes to Braun.
• E01, E02 or E03 on a BrewSense, or E1 or E2 on a PureFlavor. Braun's only instruction is to contact Customer Service.
• A burning smell, a tripped breaker, a damaged cord or water under the base: unplug the machine and stop using it. Braun's safeguards say not to operate the appliance if it's damaged "or after the appliance malfunctions", and to call Braun Customer Service.

Braun's US support line is 1-888-977-3578. Braun's FAQs give the hours as 9 am to 8 pm Eastern on weekdays, and one of them adds Saturday, 9 am to 5 pm.

Don't open the machine to look for a fuse or a switch. Every book carries the warning "Do not remove the base panel. No user serviceable parts are inside." None of the books we read prints a warranty length, so check the warranty leaflet from the box.

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Prevention

• Finish the start sequence every time: On/Off, then BREW or a brew mode.
• MultiServe: move the lever back to "Coffee" before you start a new pot, and shut the reservoir cover.
• After any power cut, set the clock and check that AUTO ON is still armed.
• Descale when CLEAN first signals, before brewing slows down.

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FAQ

Is there a reset button on a Braun coffee maker?

No. None of the BrewSense, MultiServe or PureFlavor books describes a reset button or a button combination that resets the machine. The only reset Braun prints is for MultiServe error codes: unplug the coffee maker, wait 5 minutes and plug it in again. Holding CLEAN opens the water hardness setting on a BrewSense or MultiServe, not a reset.

Why are there coffee grounds in my Braun carafe?

The filter wasn't seated, or a paper filter collapsed. Braun's remedy is to rinse the filter basket, set the filter in properly and restart the brew, with a new paper filter if the old one folded over. The MultiServe book adds coffee that is too finely ground as a third cause.

Will a Braun coffee maker brew without the charcoal water filter?

Yes. The BrewSense, MultiServe and PureFlavor books all say the charcoal water filter is optional and that the coffee maker "will operate normally without it". Braun recommends it for chlorine, bad tastes and odors. A missing filter isn't a reason for a machine not to brew.

Do these fixes apply to the MultiServe KF9250, KF9270 or KF9370?

Not necessarily. The MultiServe book behind this page names the KF 9050, KF 9070, KF 9150, KF 9170 and KF 9072 on its cover, and not the KF9250, KF9270 or KF9370. We haven't read the book for those three models, so their buttons and messages may differ from the steps here. Use the book that came with the machine, or call Braun on 1-888-977-3578.

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Related Guides

• Braun coffee maker error codes: E01 to E21, "Lid" and the flashing clock
• Braun clean light won't turn off: the descaling program for each model
• Coffee maker descaling guide: what each brand's manual asks for
• Coffee maker thermal fuse guide: fuses and thermostats in drip machines, explained

Sources: Braun instruction books for the BrewSense KF 7150/KF 7170, KF6050/KF7000/KF7030/KF7070 and KF 7155/KF 7175, the MultiServe KF 9050/KF 9070/KF 9150/KF 9170 and the PureFlavor KF 5650 (North American editions); Braun US support FAQs on interrupted MultiServe brewing, E21 and E01-E03.