How to Maximize the Life of Your Mixer
The smell of freshly baked bread is hard to ignore. It draws people into your shop. When talking about baking equipment, you probably think of ovens first, but the unsung equipment in the background is the planetary mixer. It’s a durable piece of equipment that saves bakers countless hours and headaches, but despite their durability, mixers can still stop functioning.
Mixers are Built to Last
Mechanically, planetary mixers are tough and robust. An incredible amount of torque is needed to mix 50 or 100 pounds of dough, and the planetary gears can last a lifetime. However, some parts will wear faster than others. Modern mixers may have digital controls, timers, or other features operated by electronics. These items will likely breakdown faster than their mechanical counterparts. It’s not that those components are low-quality, rather, electronic components are simply more fragile than mechanical ones.
Many mixers are direct drive, but some are belt-driven. Those belts will stretch over time and cause slippage until the belt eventually breaks.
Safety Features
It doesn’t seem so, but mixers are among the most dangerous pieces of equipment in the kitchen. Since the 1990s, planetary mixers in the U.S have been manufactured with safety cages to decrease the chance of workplace accidents. The units will not operate without these cages in place, so caring for them is important. If your safety cages are removable for cleaning, avoid dropping them because spot welds can break or the cages can bend. A bent cage will not align properly with the safety mechanism and your mixer won’t work.
The safety mechanism generally has a pin which is moved when the cage is closed properly. In some models, the pins are made of plastic. Those plastic pins can break if the safety cage is slammed back into place. This may sound like an easy fix—it isn’t. It can easily cost $700 to repair this type of damage because of the time and labor involved. So be sure to never slam the cage. Some manufacturers have started to use brass pins, so if you have this problem, ask your service professional if the new OEM parts are made of metal, or if that option is available.
Keep Your Mixer Clean
Flour is probably the most common ingredient put into a mixer, but it’s also the worst enemy of the device. Flour doesn’t mix well with machine grease necessary for the mixer’s function, and if it were to somehow get into the system, it could really gum things up. Flour can also make its way into safety switches, rendering them inoperable. If your power switches are protected, that plastic can eventually degrade through constant use. Be sure to have them replaced as flour can interrupt the contacts and make switches malfunction.
Mixers Are Built to Last, Not Take Abuse
Never change speeds on your mixer while it is still running. Wait for the device to stop completely before changing speeds. While it is not impossible to change speeds with the device operating, it will cause gears to grind and eventually ruin them.
Be sure to check your service manual so you don’t exceed the maximum amount of dough for your mixer. Overloading the mixing bowl will cause the motor to work harder, which can cause overheating and gear slippage, and may decrease the lifespan of your equipment.
Check your manual to find out whether or not your unit needs to be lubricated. Some models should never need relubrication, but others will after a certain amount of operational hours.
Following these tips should help your mixer stand the test of time and keep you rolling in dough for years to come.