Mr. Coffee One-Touch CoffeeHouse Not Working? 7 Fixes (EM6701)

Two Machines Share the One-Touch CoffeeHouse Name

A Mr. Coffee One-Touch CoffeeHouse not working is usually waiting for something: water, a finished warm-up or a cleaning cycle. The One-Touch CoffeeHouse (BVMC-EM6701 series, sold as BVMC-EM6701SS) shows ready with two heater lights that blink, then go solid. The One-Touch CoffeeHouse + (BVMC-ECM-PMPAT series) uses a progress bar instead. On both, flashing panel lights mean an empty water tank or a button pressed too early.

Both have six buttons, including manual Espresso, manual Froth and Clean. Neither manual lists an error code or a reset, so every fix below is a check you can see or a cycle you run. The series name is on the manual's cover.

If your machine has only three buttons (Espresso, Cappuccino, Latte/Clean), it's the older Café Barista. Its buttons work differently, so use our Café Barista guide instead.

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Try This First

• Look at the ready signal. Both heater lights must be solid on the CoffeeHouse; the progress bar must be fully lit and steady on the CoffeeHouse +. A drink button pressed sooner makes the panel lights flash.
• Check the water tank. Flashing lights are also the sign of an empty reservoir. Fill it below MAX and push it in tightly.
• Check the switch. The I/O power switch is on the right side of the machine, not on the panel.
• New machine? A red plug in the bottom of the water reservoir has to come out before first use (Fix 1).

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Fix 1: Remove the Red Plug and Prime It (Works About 30% of the Time)

Both manuals put two jobs before the first drink: take the red plug out of the bottom of the water reservoir, and prime the unit. Priming runs water through the espresso side and then the frother. If a new machine switches on but gives no water, do both jobs first.

1. Switch the machine off at the I/O switch and unplug it.
2. Lift out the water reservoir and remove the red plug from its base.
3. Fill the reservoir to MAX with cold water. Seat it tightly and close the lid.
4. Fill the milk reservoir with water to MAX and slide it in until it locks.
5. Fit either filter in the porta-filter and lock it into the brew head. Put a large cup under it, with the frothed milk tube pointing into the cup.
6. Plug in, switch on, and wait for the ready signal.
7. Press the manual Espresso button and let water run into the cup. Empty the cup and put it back.
8. Press the manual Froth button and let water run into the cup again.

CoffeeHouse (BVMC-EM6701): the water flows and stops by itself in steps 7 and 8.

CoffeeHouse + (BVMC-ECM-PMPAT): let it fill a cup, then press the same button again to stop.

Time: 5 minutes
Cost: Free
Success Rate: About 30%
Difficulty: Easy

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Fix 2: Refill and Wait for the Ready Signal (Works About 20% of the Time)

Flashing control panel lights have two causes in both manuals: the water reservoir is out of water, or a brewing button was pressed before the machine finished heating. The CoffeeHouse manual describes the lights as flashing "alternatively".

1. Fill the water reservoir below MAX. The manuals say never to use warm or hot water.
2. Push the reservoir back in tightly.
3. Wait. The CoffeeHouse's two heater lights blink while heating, then go solid. The CoffeeHouse + progress bar fills and stays lit.
4. Press the drink button once for a single shot or small drink, twice for a double or large one.

Blinking during a brew is normal. On the CoffeeHouse the chosen size light blinks until the drink is done. On the CoffeeHouse + the progress bar cycles. To stop an espresso early, press its button again.

Time: 2-3 minutes
Cost: Free
Success Rate: About 20%
Difficulty: Easy

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Fix 3: Ease the Grind, Dose and Tamp If No Coffee Flows (Works About 15% of the Time)

When the machine is ready and has water but no espresso comes out, look at the coffee in the filter. Both troubleshooting tables list three causes there: the grind is too fine, there's too much coffee in the filter, or it was tamped too hard.

1. Never unlock the porta-filter during a brew cycle. Wait, then let the filter cool before you take it out.
2. Empty the filter. Refill it to about 1/8 inch (3 mm) below the rim. Don't overfill.
3. Use a grind that looks like table salt. Coffee that looks like powder and feels like flour is too fine for water to pass.
4. Tamp, then wipe loose grounds off the rim.
5. Turn the porta-filter handle right until it lines up with the closed-lock symbol, and brew again.

The manuals disagree with themselves here. The brewing pages ask for a fine grind pushed down as far as the tamper will go. The troubleshooting table's cures are "medium ground coffee" and "TAMP GENTLY". When nothing comes out, follow the table.

Using E.S.E. pods: they go in the single-shot filter. Fold any loose paper inside the filter so it seals.

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

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Fix 4: Fix Milk That Won't Froth or Come Out (Works About 15% of the Time)

A One-Touch CoffeeHouse not frothing has three causes in both tables: it ran out of steam, the milk isn't cold enough, or the frothing tube is blocked. The cure for "ran out of steam" is more water in the water reservoir. The CoffeeHouse + table adds a fourth: check the froth control position.

1. Check the knob. Right is more foam (cappuccino), left is less foam (latte). Turned counter-clockwise to the clean icon, it is set for cleaning.
2. Check the water tank and top it up.
3. Use cold milk, filled below the MAX line.
4. Reseat the milk reservoir. Lift the release button, slide it out, then slide it back until it locks.
5. Run the clean cycle to clear the tube: put a cup of at least 11 oz (325 ml) under the dispensing tube, turn the froth knob counter-clockwise to Clean, and press Clean. It stops by itself.
6. Still blocked? Wash the milk reservoir and lid in warm soapy water, refill it with water, and run the clean cycle again.

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

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Fix 5: Hold Clean for 5 Seconds to Clear the Clean Light (Works About 10% of the Time)

The Clean light comes on after 200 cycles and stays until the cleaning procedure has run. It goes out while the machine is off or asleep, and it flashes after a drink. The manuals give one way to clear it, and it isn't the quick rinse in Fix 4.

1. Fill the water tank with half white vinegar and half clean water. Stir it.
2. Turn the milk reservoir knob to the Clean position and put a large cup under the dispensing tube.
3. Hold the Clean button for 5 seconds.
4. Let it run. The pump turns on and off many times, and the Clean light goes out when the cycle is finished.
5. Pour out what's left and fill the tank with clean water to MAX.
6. Press manual Espresso and run water into a cup.
7. With the knob at Clean, press Clean once for a normal clean cycle.
8. Finish as both manuals say: "Press the espresso button and then the steam function to flush the system out." They don't name a steam button; manual Froth is the closest match.

CoffeeHouse (BVMC-EM6701): the light pulses slowly and the pump turns on and off for about 12 minutes. In step 6, let the water run until it stops.

CoffeeHouse + (BVMC-ECM-PMPAT): the manual calls this deep clean mode. The progress bar cycles and the pump turns on and off for about 7.5 minutes. In step 6, fill a cup, then press the button again to stop.

Time: 20-25 minutes
Cost: White vinegar
Success Rate: About 10%
Difficulty: Easy

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Fix 6: Delime When Brewing Slows Down (Works About 5% of the Time)

The manuals' signs of mineral deposits are espresso that takes longer to brew, excessive steaming and white deposits on the brew head. Mr. Coffee's interval is every 80 brew cycles with soft or filtered water and every 40 with hard tap water. This job is separate from the Clean-light cycle and uses undiluted vinegar. The CoffeeHouse + manual calls it descaling.

1. Fill the water reservoir with undiluted white household vinegar and leave it overnight. Pour it out and rinse the reservoir twice.
2. With the machine off and unplugged, fill the reservoir with undiluted white vinegar again.
3. Lock in the porta-filter with a filter and no coffee. Put a large cup under it.
4. Plug in, switch on, and wait for the ready signal. Press the automatic Espresso button twice.
5. Fill the milk reservoir with water. Put an 11 oz or larger cup under the milk tube, turn the knob to Clean and press Clean.
6. Repeat the steps with plain tap water until no vinegar is left.

In step 4, the vinegar stops flowing by itself on the CoffeeHouse. On the CoffeeHouse +, fill a cup and press the button again to stop.

Time: Overnight, plus 20 minutes
Cost: White vinegar
Success Rate: About 5%
Difficulty: Easy

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Fix 7: Stop Coffee Leaking Around the Porta-Filter (Works About 5% of the Time)

Coffee coming out around the edge of the porta-filter has three causes in both tables: it isn't turned to the full lock position, there are grounds on the filter rim, or there's too much coffee in the filter.

1. Let the brew finish and the parts cool.
2. Wipe the grounds off the filter rim.
3. Refill with less coffee, about 1/8 inch below the rim.
4. Start with the handle at the open-lock icon, then turn it right until it lines up with the closed-lock symbol.

Don't store the porta-filter in the brew head. Both manuals say this can harm the seal between them.

The tables have no row for water under the machine. The manuals do ask you to put the water tank back tightly and to empty the drip tray as soon as its red level indicator shows through the grid.

Time: 3 minutes
Cost: Free
Success Rate: About 5%
Difficulty: Easy

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CoffeeHouse vs CoffeeHouse +: What Differs

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When DIY Won't Work

Stop using the machine and unplug it if:

• You smell burning, or the outlet feels warm
• Water is pooling under the machine and you can't trace it to the drip tray or the water tank
• The cord or plug is damaged
• Sugar-roasted coffee went through it. Both manuals say it clogs the filter, and to stop and call customer care.

Both manuals say the machine has no user-serviceable parts. The 1-year limited warranty from Sunbeam Products needs the sales receipt and excludes disassembly or repair by anyone but Sunbeam or an authorized service center, so don't open the housing. In the U.S., call Mr. Coffee Consumer Service at 1-800-672-6333.

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Keeping a One-Touch CoffeeHouse Working

• Press Clean after every milk drink, with the knob at the Clean position, so milk doesn't block the frothing tube.
• Empty the water reservoir between uses and wash it by hand. Neither the reservoir nor its lid goes in the dishwasher.
• Wash the porta-filter and filters by hand.
• Deep clean the filters every 90 days: rotate each filter's bottom cover counter-clockwise toward the unlock icon, wash the pieces in warm soapy water, and rotate the cover clockwise until it clicks.
• Delime every 40 to 80 brew cycles, depending on your water.

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FAQ

Why are the lights flashing on my Mr. Coffee One-Touch CoffeeHouse?

The water reservoir is empty, or a drink button was pressed before the machine was ready. Those are the only two causes in either manual. A Clean light that flashes after a drink is the cleaning reminder in Fix 5 instead.

Can I use Nespresso or K-Cup pods in the One-Touch CoffeeHouse?

No, not according to the manuals. They list only ground coffee and 45 mm E.S.E. (Easy Serving Espresso) pods. The CoffeeHouse manual adds that the pod filter is designed to work only with those.

Is the Clean cycle the same as descaling?

No. A single press of Clean rinses the milk tube. Holding Clean for 5 seconds answers the Clean light with a half-vinegar mix. Deliming is a third routine, with undiluted vinegar, every 40 to 80 brew cycles.

Why is my One-Touch CoffeeHouse espresso weak?

The manuals give two causes: the single filter was used for a double shot, or the coffee is ground too coarsely. Coffee that comes out too quickly has a related cure: a finer grind and more coffee in the filter.

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Related Mr. Coffee Guides

• Mr. Coffee Café Barista Not Working?: the three-button machine with hold-to-prime buttons
• Mr. Coffee Steam Espresso Maker Not Working?: the ECM160, which has a knob and no pump
• Mr. Coffee Error Codes and Lights: the lights on the drip machines and the Café Barista
• How to Descale a Mr. Coffee: the methods for other models

Sources: Mr. Coffee One-Touch CoffeeHouse Instruction Manual, BVMC-EM6701 Series (P.N. 193989); Mr. Coffee One-Touch CoffeeHouse + User Manual, BVMC-ECM-PMPAT Series (P.N. NWL0001370467).