Nespresso Vertuo Pop Flashing Lights (What They All Mean)

We’ve all been there.

In a hurry – wanting to grab a quick morning coffee before we rush out the door.

And out of nowhere, your Nespresso machine starts flashing like a Dalek.

Now you have to solve the Da Vinci code before you can get your day back on track (without caffeine may I add!)

And reading the Nespresso manual is like reading War And Peace (if you still have it..)

Quick Summary

So here is the cheatsheet to what the flashing lights on your Vertuo Pop machine means, and what you need to do to fix it.

1. Steady White Light
   The machine is heated up and ready to use
2. White Light Blinking Every 1 Second
   Coffee is being prepared
3. Orange light Blinks Twice A Second
   Machine Is In Cleaning Mode
4. Orange Light Blinking 3 Times A Second
   Machine Is In Descaling Mode
5. White Light Pulsing Up:
   The machine is heating up and will be ready shortly
6. Red Light Pulsing Down (Fading down to off, then on again)
   Machine error,
7. Red Light Blinking Fast Twice, Then Long Off
   The water tank is empty
8. Red Light On For 1.5 Seconds, Then Off For 0.5 Seconds.
   Descaling Alert
9. Orange Light Blinking 3 Times, Then Steady White
   The machine has adapted it’s coffee extraction for milk recipes.

1. Steady White Light

Message: The machine is heated up and ready to use

Once heated up the Vertuo Pop will stay on for 9 minutes before automatically turning off due to it’s power-saving feature. The light will go out and the Pop will need to be woken up and go through the heatup process again.

2. White Light Blinking Every 1 Second

Message: Coffee is being prepared

The Vertuo Pop will flash white every 1 second off and on while it dispenses a coffee. Obviosuly this brewing process will take longer for large format pods like the 230ml mug, and dispense quickly for smaller pods like the espresso.

3. Orange light Blinks Twice A Second:

Message: Machine Is In Cleaning Mode

Cleaning mode is an awesome feature on the Nespresso Vertuo Pop but it is annoying because you can accidentally enter into this mode without realising.

Cleaning mode is activated by pressing the button 3 times within 3 seconds

Fix: To exit cleaning mode simply press the button again. Alternatively, you could turn the machine off and on again at the wall.

Read More: You can learn more about how to clean your vertuo pop and how to best run a cleaning cycle in this article here.

4. Orange Light Blinking 3 Times A Second

Message: Machine Is In Descaling Mode

Descaling mode is an awesome feature on the Nespresso Vertuo Pop but it is annoying because you can accidentally enter into this mode without realising.

Descaling mode is activated by holding down the button for 7 seconds twice in a row.

Fix: To exit descaling mode simply hold down the button for 3 seconds. Alternatively, you could turn the machine off and on again at the wall.

Read More: You can learn more about how to descale your vertuo pop and what the best descaler to use is in this article here

5. Red Light Pulsing Down (Fading down to off, then on again)

Error: The machine has overheated.

Fix: Wait for the machine to cool down.

Tip, if your machine is sitting in direct sunlight or its a hot day, consider moving it somewhere cooler. The black plastic tends to get quite hot in the sun

6. Red Light Blinking Fast Twice, Then Long Off

Error: Machine error,
Fix: check your manual to diagnose the problem.

7. Red Light On For 1.5 Seconds, Then Off For 0.5 Seconds.

Error: Water tank is empty.

Fix: Replenish the water tank. either disconnect it and refil, making sure to fully insert it into the base or replenish with a jug of water in situ.

Tip: Sometimes the water tank doesn’t quite click into place, meaning the machine tries to suck in water but cant. Ensure the reservoir is full interted and the error message may clear.

8. Orange Light Blinking 3 Times, Then Steady White

Error: Descaling Alert

Fix: You need to run a descaling cycle. Grab some Eco Descaler from Amazon and then follow the step by step instructions in this article here.

9. Turquoise Light Blinking

Message: The machine has adapted it’s coffee extraction for milk recipes.

Fix: The good thing is there’s nothing to do here.

Final Recommendations

Most of the information above can be found in the Vertuo Pops manual but without a bit of context can be a bit confusing, especially when you’re in a rush.

Hopefully, the info presented here helps resolve your issues with understanding what the flashing light on your Vertuo Pop means.

Please let me know in the comments below what message you were facing and if this solution helped!