New Bullet user here. I got it all set up, read the whole manual, and some other helpful websites, did the seasoning roasts, and have run in to one annoying issue. Throughout the roast chaff will be ejected out the front of the roaster, getting everywhere. Very little chaff actually ends up in the collector. Anyone else experienced this? Have I done something wrong?
It’s normal to have bits of chaff drop out the opening at the bottom of the door, but not in the quantity you seem to describe.
- Is the exhaust fan spinning? That fan creates a low pressure inside the drum to draw smoke and chaff to the collector. You can see the fan by looking down thru the exhaust port when the roast is running (you can check it without beans- just cycle the PRS button to Roast; power can be set to P0).
- the exhaust fan motor may be running, but if the muffin fan attached to the shaft is loose it might not be getting the fan to speed. So check that the set screw has been tightened and that the fan has clearance all around its circumference as well as to the front & rear
- Is the exhaust tube- it’s the rectangular tube that runs from the vicinity of the bean chute to the chaff collector- open/unobstructed?
- Unlikely, but is the chaff filter properly seated in the collector? It’s the basket made of stainless screen material.
That’s all I can think of at the moment. But regardless what you read here it would be wise to open a trouble ticket with Aillio.
Bruce
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Bruce,
Thank you for your input. The fan appears to be running well at a high rate and the tube is clear. I’ll double check everything the next time I roast and open a ticket I can’t clear it up.
Thanks!
Increase air flow. I start my roast at F3-calibrated, and go up to F5 for a 1lb roast.
Is it possible that you left the funnel on after the beans are load. In this case, the funnel will block the fan from collecting the chaff
After all the beans are loaded, pull out the funnel and replace the bean chute plug.
I experienced this when I first got my Bullet. I had chaff and even green beans falling into the cooling tray during my first roasts—enough that I reached out to Sweet Maria’s to ask about it. But it got better. A bit of chaff does fall into the tray and I keep a little hand vac handy to suck it up before I drop the batch.
I have a couple of tablespoons of chaff coming out the front. It depends on the beans…some a lot, others almost none. I use a small metal bowl placed in the cooling bin to catch the chaff and remove the bowl when I am finished with first crack. Just my method of reducing the chaff in the filter fan and in the surrounding area.
Two other wild guesses:
Have you got an exhaust system attached to the roaster? If so, is it possible that some back pressure is being applied? For example exhaust running outside the house, and lower pressure inside causing back flow.
Is the rubber cleaning port plug fully in place on the chaff collector in the lower rear of the roaster? This could be a source of air intake to the fan instead of drawing air through the roasting chamber.
You’ve probably thought of these, but just in case.
Hi, I also have the same problem. I got my Bullet just a few days ago and majority of the chaff fall off into the cooling tray instead of making it into the collector. Have you solved your issue? or is this just really the normal thing?
Thanks,
Jancy
@jancy I had not messed with the fan settings at all when I first posted this. Since then I have upped the fan setting to f4 or 5 and that seems to help with chaff. I’m not sure how much effect it has on the roast yet but am playing with settings each roast to see what happens. I hope that helps! Enjoy the bullet, this thing is incredible!
When I first got my bullet, the chaff filter was NOT seated properly in the rubber gasket. The gasket is very stiff to start, and you really have to press the filter down to seat it in the groove. The groove is not at all obvious, but if you can just lift the filter off the gasket, it means it’s not seated…