Hi everyone,
I removed the fan while cleaning the roaster and removed the screw completely. Now when I’m screwing it back on, it’s getting stuck and won’t go in all the way. Has this happened to anyone?
Well, first of all, the screw is not supposed to go all the way in. What exactly is the problem? Is the fan loose? Will it not spin? Once you tighten the screw, although it doesn’t go in all the way, can you remove the fan? Watch the video “Cleaning the impeller” on this page Aillio Video Library - aillio
Near the end you’ll see by how much the screw is out.
Hi there and thank you for the response. The screw will go about half the way in and it’s as tight as i can go. At that point, the fan is still loose and can be easily removed. It feels like it’s not even attached at all.
The only advice I can give you, since I’m quite a bit in the dark here, is what I would do in a hypothetical situation. I’d remove the impeller fan and remove the screw again to see if it went in straight. I would check said fan to see if the thread is OK and also the thread on the screw. I’d also check if, before putting the fan on, the screw is loose enough for the fan to be able to sit properly. If everything is OK, I mght try a little bit of food safe grease, but I think it shouldn’t need that and should be able to go through normally. If you try that use a microscopic amount on the screw. The problem here might be that after some time the fan slides away a bit because of the grease. I’d also check the hole on the fan for impurities, and also the shaft on which the fan is sitting. At times people, me too, repeat the same error multiple times and get to the bottom without even knowing how or why. The things might seem simple, but repetition is the key here. Please do not use force for any of these operations as force is not what’s needed. I wish you luck and please let me know how it went or, if you’ve failed, some more info on what you think might be wrong. A photo would be nice.
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There could be some roasting gunk on the threads , other than that It sounds like you’ve cross threaded the screw
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I think that’s what i did… i wasn’t really thinking when i unscrewed it… shouldn’t have taken all the way out to begin with. I think i need to get a replacement part.
I don’t know how mechanically inclined you are but the threads can be chased with a tap if you’re careful
And can actually get the tap through the impeller fins and into the set screw hole.
I expect it would take a tap that is longer than the standard ones one finds in tap sets.
-Gray
I’m pretty mechanically inclined. Can you share a video of an escape of this being done?
Thanks!
If you type “thread tap” or “thread tapping” in YouTube you’ll find a bunch. As gfh65wi says, it will be no small task finding the right one. Anyway, all this blind guessing will not really solve much. You should’ve posted some photos. Good luck with the tap.
If you google (search) how to make a thread chaser you should be able to make something ,a long bolt or even a long set screw that will work if you can get it started properly. Remember to keep the metal bits cleaned out of the threads or it will bind up again. I don’t have the fan in front of me but, if the threads go all the way through, I would try to start a set screw from the other end and turn it in with a shortened allen key. I would try to fix it before I bought a new part. Good luck
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Or you can just order a new impeller from Sweet Maria or Aillio, direct.
How much could it cost?!
-Gray
I remove the screw completely when I clean the impeller fan which I soak briefly in Tabs coffee cleaner to remove the coffee grease, etc to avoid risk to damaging the screw. I’ve never had a problem reinstalling the screw. You could try a deeper cleaning of the fan, being careful not to leave it in to long so you won’t risk corrosion. I usually do about 5 minutes.
I don’t see that Sweet Maria’s has a spare fan in stock, they may be able to order a replacement or have one in their repair stock. It might be worth trying the cleaner or a tap / thread chaser to fix any damaged threads.