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Breville Bambino Plus Flashing Lights: What Each One Means

Breville Bambino Plus flashing lights, decoded from Breville's manual: the 1 CUP/2 CUP clean alert, descale mode, blocked wand, low water and when to call.

By Maksud · Published Oct 3, 2026

Two streams of espresso pouring from a double spout into a white cup — A double shot pouring from a portafilter (illustrative, not a Bambino Plus). Photo: Osman Bas / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.

Breville Bambino Plus flashing lights each mean one thing, per Breville’s BES500 instruction book. 1 CUP and 2 CUP flashing alternately means a cleaning cycle is due after 200 extractions. 1 CUP + STEAM alternating with 2 CUP for 15 seconds means descale. MILK TEMP and MILK FOAM fully lit and flashing means a blocked steam wand. All three main buttons dark means low water.

The Bambino Plus is the BES500; Sage’s UK manual covers it as BES500/SES500. Breville’s manual describes no screen and no error codes, only button lights. Per the manual, you turn it on by pressing 1 CUP, 2 CUP or STEAM, and off by pressing 1 CUP and STEAM together. So the light pattern is the diagnosis.

Bambino Plus light patterns at a glance

Every row below is per Breville’s BES500 instruction book (US 2018 edition, ANZ 2023 edition and the Sage UK manual). The numbers are manufacturer figures, not measurements.

Light pattern	What it means	What to do	Source (manufacturer manual section)
All buttons lit, steady	Ready	Brew or steam	Per Breville BES500 instruction book, operation
Selected cup button flashing	Shot in progress	Wait, or press to stop	Per Breville BES500 instruction book, extraction
1 CUP and 2 CUP flash together after a 2 s hold	Shot-volume programming	Press 1 CUP (or 2 CUP) to start, press again to stop; the volume is saved	Per Breville BES500 instruction book, programming
1 CUP and 2 CUP alternate on their own	Cleaning due (200 extractions, manufacturer spec)	Run the cleaning cycle, or press STEAM to skip	Per Breville BES500 instruction book, cleaning alert
Lights alternate during cleaning	Cleaning cycle running	Wait until it stops	Per Breville BES500 instruction book, cleaning cycle
1 CUP + STEAM alternate with 2 CUP for 15 s	Descale due	Start descale mode later; any press dismisses it	Per Breville BES500 instruction book, descale alert
1 CUP and STEAM alternate	Descale running	Wait	Per Breville BES500 instruction book, descaling
Descale stops mid-cycle; 1 CUP and STEAM light once refilled	Descale paused, solution used up	Refill to MAX, empty the 2 L container, press 1 CUP or STEAM to resume	Per Breville BES500 instruction book, descaling
1 CUP and STEAM alternate, then standby	Descale finished	Nothing	Per Breville BES500 instruction book, descaling
MILK TEMP and MILK FOAM step downward	Wand left raised	Lower the wand	Per Breville BES500 instruction book, steam wand
MILK TEMP and MILK FOAM fully lit and flashing, STEAM off	Wand blocked	Purge 5 s, then clear the tip	Per Breville BES500 instruction book, steam wand
1 CUP, 2 CUP and STEAM dark	Low water	Refill and reseat the tank	Per Breville BES500 instruction book, water tank
One light flashes 3 times	Factory shot-volume reset done	Nothing	Per Breville BES500 instruction book, reset
Anything else, including all lights flashing	Not documented	Power off, unplug, cool, contact Breville	Not in the manual; steps borrowed from its thermal cut-out entry

1 CUP and 2 CUP flashing: alternating or together?

The search “bambino plus 1 cup 2 cup lights flashing” covers two different states. If the two buttons flash together right after you held them for 2 seconds, the manual says that is shot-volume programming, not a fault. If they take turns on their own, that is the cleaning alert.

The descale alert is easier to miss. Per the manual, it runs for only 15 seconds and pressing any of the flashing buttons cancels it. Coffee Fix Hub’s guide advises watching the pattern for the full 15 seconds before pressing anything, which follows from the manual: press too early and you dismiss the descale alert without seeing it.

1 CUP and 2 CUP lights flashing alternately: run the cleaning cycle

Per the manual, this is a flushing cycle for the group head and is separate from descaling. The steps from Breville’s US manual:

Put the cleaning disc in the filter basket and a cleaning tablet on top. The US manual lists dual-wall baskets only; the ANZ and Sage editions also list single-wall ones. Pressurized vs non-pressurized baskets explains the difference.
Lock the portafilter into the group head.
Empty the drip tray.
Put the drip tray back and place a 2 L (68 fl oz) container on it, under the portafilter and steam wand.
Fill the water tank to MAX.
Hold 1 CUP and 2 CUP for 5 seconds. Both stay lit.
Press either button to start. The lights alternate until the cycle finishes.

To skip it for now, press STEAM; per the manual, the alert returns at the next switch-on.

The 2023 ANZ booklet adds a note the US and Sage editions don’t have: you can enter cleaning mode before the alert appears by holding 2 CUP and STEAM for 5 seconds with the machine off (all lights off).

Step 6 of the same procedure uses 1 CUP and 2 CUP, and the booklet doesn’t explain the difference. Step 6 is the combination all three editions share.

Bambino Plus descale light: what it looks like

Per Breville’s manual, the descale alert is 1 CUP and STEAM flashing alternately with 2 CUP for 15 seconds, and pressing any of them dismisses it. All three editions say hard-water scale reduces brewing flow, brewing temperature, the machine’s power and the taste of the espresso.

None of the three editions gives a descale interval, so I won’t invent one. The Sage manual adds that replacing the supplied water filter after 3 months or 40 L (manufacturer guidance) reduces the need to descale; the US and ANZ editions don’t give that figure. Tom’s Guide notes Breville also prints descaling instructions inside the water reservoir.

How to enter Bambino Plus descale mode

Per Breville’s BES500 manual:

Empty the drip tray.
Fill the tank to the DESCALE line and add descaler. The 2023 ANZ edition says to remove the water filter from the tank first; the 2018 US and Sage editions don’t mention it.
Put a 2 L container under the portafilter and steam wand.
Turn the machine off (1 CUP and STEAM together) and let it cool completely.
With it off, hold 1 CUP and STEAM for 5 seconds. Both light up steady.
Press 1 CUP or STEAM to start. The two buttons alternate throughout.
When the solution runs out, the cycle pauses. Refill to MAX and empty the container; 1 CUP and STEAM light up when the machine is ready, and you press either to resume. The manual lists this pause as a normal step.
When it finishes, 1 CUP and STEAM alternate, then the machine goes to standby.

The manual warns never to remove or empty the tank mid-descale. For which descaler to use and why it matters, see how to descale an espresso machine.

Milk temp and milk foam lights flashing: lower or unblock the steam wand

The manual describes two different patterns on these two lights:

Lights stepping downward: the manual calls this the lower steam wand alert; the wand was left raised. Lower it and it purges automatically.
Lights fully on and flashing, STEAM off: the wand is blocked and the machine stops. Hold STEAM for 5 seconds with the wand lowered (manual purge). If it stays blocked, unscrew the steam tip and clear its holes with the cleaning tool stored under the water tank.

Breville’s wording is inconsistent. Both the US and ANZ editions say in one passage that the lights flash until “a manual steam purge” is done and in another until “a steam tip clean cycle” is complete. The cleaning section gives the order: purge first, then clean the tip if it stays blocked.

Coffee Blog UK’s unblocking guide describes the same tool-under-the-tank fix, but its purge step lifts the wand, while Breville’s manual purge is with the wand lowered; follow the manual.

To prevent it, the manual says to always lower the wand after steaming so it auto-purges. TechRadar’s review describes the same purge, which pumps hot water into the drip tray, so empty the tray often.

Why are no buttons lit? Low water or the thermal cut-out

Per the manual, low water turns off 1 CUP, 2 CUP and STEAM. Refill the tank, push it flush against the back, and the buttons light again once there is enough water.

A separate case: if the machine is on but stops working, the manual’s troubleshooting table says the safety thermal cut-out may have activated because the pump overheated. Turn it off, unplug it, let it cool for about 30 to 60 minutes, then call Breville support if it persists.

All lights flashing, or a pattern the manual doesn’t list

Breville’s manual does not document an all-lights-flashing pattern for the Bambino Plus. My Morning Espresso says all lights flashing six times in 3 seconds means an empty tank, but it lists that under the original Bambino, not the Plus, whose manual describes low water as the buttons going dark.

The safe steps below are borrowed from the manual’s troubleshooting table, which doesn’t cover this pattern:

Turn it off and unplug it.
Let it cool for 30 to 60 minutes.
Check the tank is filled and pushed fully into place, and the drip tray is pushed in.
If the pattern returns, contact Breville support; the machine may need service.

Resetting the Bambino Plus: what it does and doesn’t do

The manual documents only a factory espresso volume reset:

Turn the machine off (this section says hold 1 CUP and STEAM together for 5 seconds).
Hold 1 CUP and 2 CUP for 5 seconds.
Press 1 CUP or 2 CUP; a light flashes 3 times.

This restores the shot volumes only, about 30 ml and 60 ml per the manual. Breville never says it clears cleaning or descale alerts, so don’t use it to dismiss one.

This page covers only the BES500. The original Bambino (BES450) uses different alerts; My Morning Espresso, for one, describes a flashing 2 CUP button for its cleaning and descale alert. Bambino vs Bambino Plus covers how the two machines differ.

Sources: Breville BES500 instruction book (US 2018, ANZ 2023) and the Sage BES500 manual, read section by section. How I build pages like this: how we research.

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Frequently asked questions

Why are the 1 CUP and 2 CUP lights flashing on my Bambino Plus?

If they flash alternately on their own, the machine has counted 200 extractions since the last cleaning cycle and wants one, per Breville's BES500 instruction book. If both flash together right after you held them for 2 seconds, you are in shot-volume programming mode instead. Press STEAM to skip the cleaning alert until the next switch-on.

How do I turn off the descale light on the Breville Bambino Plus?

Press any of the flashing buttons. Per Breville's BES500 manual, the descale alert shows as 1 CUP plus STEAM flashing alternately with 2 CUP for 15 seconds, and pressing any of them cancels it. That only dismisses the alert. To descale, start descale mode by holding 1 CUP and STEAM for 5 seconds with the machine off.

Why are the milk temperature and milk foam lights flashing?

The steam wand is either raised or blocked, per Breville's BES500 manual. Lights stepping downward mean the wand was left up; lower it and it purges. Lights fully on and flashing with STEAM off mean a blockage; hold STEAM for 5 seconds with the wand lowered, and clear the tip with the tool under the water tank if needed.

Why are none of the buttons lit on my Bambino Plus?

Low water. Breville's BES500 manual says the 1 CUP, 2 CUP and STEAM buttons go dark when the tank runs low and light again once there is enough water. Refill the tank and push it flush against the back. If the machine stops mid-use instead, the pump's thermal cut-out may have tripped; unplug it and let it cool 30 to 60 minutes.

Does a factory reset clear the cleaning or descale alert?

Not as far as Breville documents. The only reset in the BES500 manual restores the factory espresso shot volumes: with the machine off, hold 1 CUP and 2 CUP for 5 seconds, then press either, and a light flashes 3 times. The manual never says this clears a cleaning or descale alert, so run the actual cycle instead.