Problem & answerF-13
Bulk Bottle Feeder Conveyor Not Running
Also covers: Green cleated feeder · no bottles into the bowl
Likely causes
- A bottle stuck at the bottom of the bulk hopper where the belt picks up (main cause), or between cleats, at the chute or the drop into the bowl
- Bulk hopper overfilled, so bottles press on the belt and wedge
- Bowl level sensor dirty, misaligned or faulty (feeder thinks the bowl is full)
- Bulk hopper empty
- Feeder motor or inverter fault
- Emergency stop or guard open
How to fix it
- 1Check 1, stuck bottle (the main cause): stop and isolate the feeder. Look at the bottom of the bulk hopper where the green cleated belt picks bottles up; this is where bottles most often wedge against the belt or hopper wall. Remove the stuck bottle, then check along the belt, chute and drop point into the bowl. Once the jam is cleared the conveyor normally restarts automatically.
- 2Check 2, level sensor: if the conveyor still does not run, clean and test the bowl level sensor (F-12). A dirty or misaligned sensor can signal "bowl full" when it is not.
- 3Check the bulk hopper has bottles.
- 4Check the emergency stop, guards and HMI alarms.
- 5Check the feeder inverter for a fault code (E-01); contact Maintenance if the motor does not run.
Technical note
Operators should always check these two things first, in this order: a stuck bottle in the feeder, then the bowl level sensor. Together they cause almost every feeder stoppage.It is fixed when
Feeder runs, keeps the bowl supplied and stops correctly when the bowl is full.
Stop it coming back
- Do not overfill the bulk hopper; load bottles loosely below the rim.
- Remove damaged or deformed bottles from the bulk supply.
- Clean and test the level sensor at every start-up.
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