Why Is My Nespresso Frother Not Working And How To Fix It?

Just realized your Nespresso frother isn’t working right as you were getting ready for your morning latte?

What a bugger.

But before you start panicking, you should know that we at Fluent in Coffee know these frothers inside out.

So, we can tell you that, in most cases, it’s an easy fix.

Today, I’ll share with you:

• all the possible reasons for your Nespresso frother not working
• how to fix it (quickly and painlessly)
• how to reset your Nespresso frother (when you mess up the settings)

Let’s jump in!

7 Reasons Why Nespresso Frother Is Not Working

There are plenty of reasons why is your Nespresso frother not working properly.

Some of them are rather simple and are solved within seconds. Others require a bit more input from your side.

So before you decide your frother is done for, check out if any of these reasons might be the case for its malfunctioning.

Dirt On the Electrical Contacts

As you already know, the Aeroccino is powered through its base station that’s plugged into the wall outlet. The canister itself features a “female connector” that needs to be placed onto the “male connector” on the base to connect electrically.

Well, these two connectors can get dirty. And too much dirt on them can prevent the power supply from reaching the frother.

In most cases, the dirt is a combination of dust and milk residue. Mixed together, they create a firm that traps moisture around the actual electrical contacts.

We all know what happens in that case, right?

Corrosion.

If your frother doesn’t turn on, this can be a potential cause.

Luckily, this isn’t an irreversible problem.

In most cases, you can just clean the contacts, and your Aeroccino will work as before.

To do that, you’ll need a few things:

• Soapy water
• Small brush
• Alcohol (isopropyl, not tequila)
• Wipe or towel
• Wire brush (in case of corrosion)
• Contact cleaner spray

Got everything?

Alright, follow these steps:

1. Before you start doing anything, make sure your frother is unplugged from the wall. In contact with water, you can create a short circuit – even start a fire.
2. Grab a small bowl with soapy water, as you’ll use it to dip in the brush. 
3. Start scrubbing the dirt on your electric contacts. 
4. Once clean, rinse off the soapy water. 
5. Dry the contacts completely before doing the same thing – but this time, you’re using alcohol. 

NOTE
In case the contacts have rust on them, you should use a wire brush instead of a regular one. Don’t worry, you won’t damage the contacts.

Broken Magnetic Whisk

If your frother seems to be heating up, but you don’t actually see the whisk shipping, it’s possibly broken.

This probably happened because it wasn’t positioned correctly in the first place.

But don’t beat yourself up about it. These things are finicky, and they might even break due to normal wear and tear.

There isn’t actually a lot you can do here except buy a new one.

Luckily, you can find replacement parts easily, both online and in stores.

Gunk On the Magnetic Whisk

Guilty of not cleaning your milk frother after each use?

Well, there’s a good chance your Aeroccino milk frother isn’t working because there’s too much milk residue buildup on the magnetic whisk. 

What’s great is that, while the frothing whisk gets dirty pretty quickly, it’s also rather easy to clean. 

For this, you’ll need:

• Vinegar
• Salt
• Small brush
• Wire brush (for stubborn dirt)

Once you have everything you need, here’s what you should do:

1. Add about a tablespoon of salt to a cup of vinegar, then put the whisk inside. 
2. Let it sit for up to a whole day. The majority of the dirt should be gone by that time. 
3. If there’s any remaining buildup, use the brush to scrub it out.
4. Rinse it with warm water.

And that’s pretty much all! 

TIP
Remember to rinse it under the tap and dry it thoroughly before putting the whisk back in place.

The Heating Element Burned Out

This is a slightly more difficult issue to fix, mainly because it requires dealing with electricity.

If you’re good at that stuff, then, by all means, try to fix your machine by following the steps below. But if you’re not, it’s always better to let the professional do it and contact Nespresso customer service.

The Aeroccino milk frother uses copper traces on a printed circuit board as a heating element.

Now, these things easily break down, so don’t be too surprised if that happens. What’s more, they’re an easy and affordable fix. 

Basically, you need to open your Aeroccino frother and look at the printed circuit board for any burned patches. Then, scrape off a bit of enamel and solder that part with a thin strip of copper.

The Thermocouple Is Damaged

A thermocouple is a built-in sensor that measures the temperature of steamed milk.

When your frother is in use, this sensor monitors how hot milk will get. And as soon as it reaches the desired temperature, it turns the frother off, preventing burnt milk.

Unfortunately, thermocouples aren’t unbreakable. They can wear out from too much use, as well as burn out from short circuits or any other electrical issues.

Now, there isn’t a lot you can do with a faulty thermocouple – aside from replacing it.

Luckily, that’s an easy task. 

A thermocouple is attached to the printed circuit board via a slip connector that’s simple to remove. So take it out, and put a new one in. 

NOTE
Remember to add a thin layer of thermal paste to ensure your new thermocouple is properly conducting heat.  

There Is Too Much Milk In The Frother

You might be crazy about milk, but your Aeroccino isn’t.

So if you add too much cold milk, your frother might start spilling it everywhere. Alternatively, it might just decide not to do anything.

Open the Aeroccino milk frother. See the two indicator lines on the walls inside the frother? 

Those lines indicate the maximum capacity. The bottom one marks 4 ounces, and it’s your top limit for preparing milk froth. The top line marks 8 ounces, and it shows the amount of milk you can add if you’re not frothing. 

As long as you stick to these amounts, you shouldn’t have any milk-related issues.

You Are Using An Unsuitable Type of Milk

Not all types of milk are frothing the same way.

Surprised?

Well, I definitely was.

But in my defense, I only drink one type of milk, so I never gave this a second thought.

But it actually makes sense. Proteins, sugars, and fats inside milk are the ones most responsible for creating creamy foam. Without these compounds, there’s nothing to hold the bubbles, and foam will dissipate pretty fast.

Whole dairy milk (cows milk) is arguably the best option for creating rich hot milk froth.

As for the plant-based alternatives, almond milk and oat milk give you similar frothy milk.

Surprisingly enough, skim milk also works, although with more bubbly milk foam instead of creamy textured froth. 

Unfortunately, that’s about it when it comes to frothing milk.

Most plant-based milk options, such as coconut, macadamia, rice, and soy milk, simply don’t work. You might get a few bubbles here and there, but they’ll dissipate as fast as they formed, and you will not get frothed milk.

Nespresso Aeroccino Troubleshooting

Alright, we covered different reasons why is your Nespresso milk frother not frothing. 

But how do you actually notice something is wrong?

There are four different situations that indicate something is amiss:

• The frother doesn’t start.
• Milk doesn’t froth or taste burnt.
• The red light is blinking rapidly on all four buttons.
• Milk is overflowing.

Whichever of these issues you might be experiencing, there are different possible reasons for that. Check for each of them before you set on fixing anything.

How to Reset Nespresso Milk Frother

The Nespresso Aeroccino milk frother is a pretty simple-operating machine. Without much programming involved, there’s actually no need for a reset option.

With a Nespresso Barista Bluetooth milk frother, things are slightly different. With so many options available to personalize your drink, it’s easy to mess up the settings. And when that happens, the simplest fix is often the one that works best – which is the factory reset.

Resetting a Barista milk frother is quick and easy.

Here’s how:

1. Press both arrows simultaneously for three seconds. This will bring you to the hidden menu. 
2. Now press the center button, which will confirm that factory settings have been restored.

That’s all.

I told you it’s easy!

Final Thoughts

And there you have it.

In most cases, the reason why your Nespresso frother is not working is an easy fix. You should probably just clean it, or you need to adjust the amount or type of milk.

However, if the problem persists, it’s probably something electrical. In that case, unless you are a professional electrician, it’s better to contact Nespresso customer care for support.

Have issues with your Nespresso machine? Check out our troubleshooting article to find out what’s wrong and how to fix your Nespresso coffee machine.