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Machines Problems Guides Ingredients

Machines Problems Guides Ingredients

Search real manufacturing machine problems and get clear, step-by-step answers: causes, fixes, checks and prevention for capsule filling, blending, bottling and more.

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Answers here are general guidance. Always follow your own site procedures, the machine manual and your safety rules — isolate and lock out before working on any machine.

© 2026 Dhanushka Kariyawasam. All rights reserved.

Bottles Entering the Capper Without Caps or Moving Too Slowly — Bottling Line · Ask Dhanu

Machines Bottling Line Capping

Problem & answerK-18

Bottles Entering the Capper Without Caps or Moving Too Slowly

Also covers: Capper infeed (stop) wheel

Likely causes

Infeed wheel not stopping when the cap sensor signals no caps (sensor or wheel fault), so bottles pass uncapped
Infeed wheel speed set too slow: bottles crawl through the capper and output drops
Infeed wheel speed too fast for the cap feed: caps missed
Wheel surface worn or dirty, so it slips on the bottles
Wheel height or position not set for the bottle

How to fix it

1Stop the capper and segregate any bottles that left without caps.
2Test the stop function: let the cap chute run empty. The cap sensor must signal no caps and the infeed wheel must stop and hold the bottles back (K-10).
3If the wheel does not stop, check the cap sensor first, then the wheel drive; contact Maintenance if needed.
4

Points to inspect

Stop function
Wheel speed
Wheel height
Wheel surface

More in Capping

K-01Caps Not Feeding
K-02Caps Crooked or Cross-Threaded
K-03Loose Caps / Torque Too Low
K-04Caps Over-Tight, Stripped or Cracked
K-05Bottles Jamming at the Capper
K-06Scuffed or Marked Caps
K-07Cap Elevator Not Running or Caps Not Lifting

Check the infeed wheel speed: it must feed bottles into the capper at a steady rate matched to the capper conveyor and cap feed (reference bottle separation delay 0.3 s).

5Increase the wheel speed if bottles spend a long time crossing the capper; reduce it if caps are missed.

6Set the wheel height and position to contact the bottle body; clean or replace a worn wheel surface.

7Run test bottles and confirm every bottle is capped and flow is steady.

Technical note

The infeed wheel in front of the capper controls bottles entering the capping machine. When caps stop coming down, the cap sensor stops this wheel so no bottle goes through without a cap. Its speed also sets how fast bottles cross the capper: too slow and they take a long time to pass through.

It is fixed when

Wheel stops whenever caps run out; bottles cross the capper at a steady rate and every bottle is capped.

Stop it coming back

Test the cap-out stop at every start-up.
Record the infeed wheel speed for each bottle.

Did this solve the problem?

K-08

Caps Jamming in the Elevator or Selector

K-09Caps Blocking or Dropping Out at the Chute Guard

K-10Bottles Leaving the Capper Without Caps

K-11Caps Stuck in the Curved Cap Chute

K-12Bottles Not Held Straight at the Capping Head

K-13Caps Not Placed on the Bottle

K-14Caps Blocked at the Bottom of the Chute

K-15Cap Pusher Not Working

K-16Caps Not Tightened Evenly by the Capping Wheels

K-17Caps Not Fully Seated After Capping

K-19High or Crooked Caps Not Rejected (or Good Bottles Rejected)

General guidance only. Follow your site procedures and the machine manual, and isolate the machine before any work on it.