Hey folks, I just upgraded to a Bullet R1 from a Quest M3S and have been struggling with A-01 errors. After searching this forum and recalibrating the fan, cleaning the impeller, etc. I think I got enough data points to suggest a root cause:
The blower motor will go into “limp mode” (<240 RPM) when the PCB temp exceeds 60 degC. It will exit limp mode when PCB temp falls below 55 degC.
Curious choice to do this since the exhaust fan removes heat from the system, especially in cool/shutdown mode. I hope this helps anyone else attempting to roast outside during a heat wave!
Thanks for the reply. As @braca19452f9m mentioned, the Bean Probe might be having connection issues. Additionally, the IBTS First Crack Temp was at around 190°C, indicating that the Bullet is overheating.
You can check this self-help guide:
Although your issue is unrelated to ErC 0001, this is what we generally suggest to solve the low crossover issue. The guide also explains how the Bullet generally preheats and charges, showing why maintaining the IBTS Lens is a crucial routine.
Please follow the self-help guide to do the following:
Clean the IBTS Lens.
Check the IBTS Module alignment.
Inspect your Bean Probe connection.
Circling back to the A-01 issue, it’s hard to tell if the overheating issue has caused the Exhaust Fan to stop spinning or if the Exhaust Fan Motor has worn out. We recommend addressing the overheating issue before inspecting the Exhaust Fan Motor further. If the Bean temp connection issue has been fixed, with the IBTS First Crack Temp going back to 195°C - 205°C, and the issue remains, we suggest you replace and recalibrate the Exhaust Fan Motor.
As previously suggested, if you’re unsure of how to do all of the above, you can always reach out to your reseller or [email protected]
I cleaned the IBTS and preheated the roaster to 446F. On a previous roast with this preheat temperature, the BT started at 325F. After cleaning, the BT stabilized at 293F with the same preheat temperature.
It is not a perfectly controlled experiment because ambient temps are about 10F cooler, so I am not sure what to think yet.
When roasting tomorrow I will be curious if FC happens at a higher IBT and if BT ROR still goes crazy during the roast.
That’s an expected behavior; since the IBTS Lens is no longer reading lower than it should, the Bullet is generally colder during preheating compared to before. Some users might even experience underdevelopment as they have gotten used to the way the Bullet was overheating before.
Depending on your batch size, you might have to raise the preheat temperature by 1 or 2 steps higher to achieve the desired results/developments.
I have finished three successful roasts since cleaning the IBTS and FC temperature seems more accurate at 390-395F. However, after dropping a 530g dark roast (1st roast of the day), the A-01 error appeared again until the PCB temp dropped below 50. It was hot and very humid: 87F and 72% RH. After dropping, the PCB temp and IBTS ambient exceeded 65. I had planned to do another roast afterwards but was prevented by this error.
Given the repeatable nature of correlating this error with PCB temp and IBTS ambient, I don’t feel like replacing the exhaust fan motor would result in different behavior. I feel forced to accept this as the reality of roasting outdoors in the summer in the Midwest US.
Separately, I think braca19452f9m is right that I need a new bean probe…
If this was the ambient temperature where you were roasting, then it’s normal to have these problems. A fan under the Bullet, blowing on PCB might help.
I’m sorry to bother you, but I wanted to ask this for a long time, and then kind of got used to the new thing and never did. Before, on 230 PH the BT would be around 161-163, now it goes from 151 to 154. I’ve always thought that this is due to the blower spinning during preheat which was introduced in some firmware, I don’t remember which one. Although, on my part, the roast seems to be moving a bit faster if I preheat to the before BT temp, and I have to intervene differently than before. I’ve had no trouble maintaining the consistency of my roasts, but I’d certainly like to hear an elaborate explanation about this. By the way, I’m a maintenance maniac, so my Bullet looks brand new, and I clean the IBTS regularly.
Assuming the Bullet has been regularly maintained, if the Bean Temp is considerably lower at Charge, the root cause is highly likely the newly introduced “F1 during Preheat” feature from previous Firmware Versions.
The following explanation is highly speculative, so we’re not certain if this applies to your case. We suggest viewing them as a reference.
As you have already found out, longer preheating time results in higher Bean Temp, and if the preheat time is long enough, the Bullet can overheat. We’ve introduced F1 during preheating to prevent the Bullet from overheating easily, but this also means that the ambient inside the Bullet is generally lower, since the heated air has been drawn out a bit.
You can still preheat the Bullet longer and wait for the Bean Temp to go back to where it used to be (in your case, 161°C). However, this means that the air inside the Drum needs to be way hotter than the older Firmware Versions. You’re essentially heating flowing air to 161°C compared to still air. This means that the Drum needs to be way hotter than before.
Based on the explanation above, we think that the temperature inside the Drum (accumulated energy, not readings) is generally higher even if you have preheated to the same Bean Temp as before. In that case, your roasts might be moving a little faster than you used to, giving you different roasting results.
Thank you very much for taking the time to explain thoroughly. It is along the lines of what I thought, but clarifies the situation further. What was a bit puzzling was that the roasts didn’t seem to slow down much, if at all, and I’ve noticed the difference in readings only after a couple of months or so. This has been going on for more than a year, so it really isn’t an issue so much as curiosity on my part. I was just interested to hear the exact reasons for this behaviour. Thank you once again.
Sorry a little late to the thread here. Ran into the same problems and put one of those stick fans under the bullet to give it some more air. Even on hot days, 95f+, I’ll get about 3 roasts in and then the error will occur .
Welcome to outdoor garage roasting. Even indoors having a fan on the PCB helps a ton!
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