Domestic atta chakki is a revolutionary invention that has helped millions of people get fresh chakki atta at home.
However, along with the benefits, people also suffer from various atta chakki problems that they face from time to time.
In today’s article, I will show you some of the most common atta chakki problems, the causes of those problems, and their solutions so that you can save repair costs for minor problems of the atta chakki.
Atta Chakki Problems
Domestic atta chakki problems are more than commercial atta chakki or flour mills because a domestic atta chakki is mainly operated by people who don’t have technical knowledge.
People usually either don’t have time to maintain their home atta chakki, or they don’t even know how to maintain atta chakki at home.
And, as they are not from a technical background, they can’t identify the reasons behind the problems.
Sometimes, the problem is minor and needs tiny repairs, but you have to spend money on atta chakki repairers or technicians because you don’t know enough about the problem.
It may be possible that the technician will charge higher than the actual work, but in that case, you will be almost helpless because you are not an expert and don’t know anything about the exact problem.
Cheap atta chakki has more problems as compared to quality and branded atta chakkis. If you want to know more, please read my article on the best domestic flour mills in India.
I am an electrical engineer and have been working in the research & development sector, especially domestic machinery, for the last 15 years.
Based on my experience, I have created a list of the most common atta chakki problems you may have with your atta chakki.
I am not saying that you can solve all problems on your own, but at least you can estimate the cost of the problem and how to avoid it.
This article is about domestic atta chakki problems and not commercial atta chakki problems.
However, some problems are common in nature and can arise in domestic atta chakki and commercial atta chakis or flour mills.
Before I explain you the most common atta chakki problems, I hope that you know the correct way to clean your atta chakki to avoid problems related to the lack of cleaning.
In case you want to learn more about the cleaning of atta chakki, you can read my post on how to clean atta chakki at home for a longer and repair-free operation of your atta chakki.
1. Atta Chakki Is Not Starting
There can be many reasons why your atta chakki is not starting. Let us quickly understand the probable reasons.
There are two probable reasons: Either power is not available, or your power socket is not working.
You can check whether the power is available or not by using a simple method.
Switch ON other appliances like ceiling fan, lamp, or tube light and see if it works. Move on to the next step.
Remove the plug of the atta chakki from the socket and use a standard voltage tester of at least 500v rating.
Another technical and perfect way to check power is to use a multimeter. The multimeter will not only help you to check power but will also let you know the mains voltage.
Caution: If you are unfamiliar with tester & multimeter please do not try. I repeat, do not try. Call an electrician.
If your tester light glows, the voltage or power supply is available. Remove the plug again and check the power cable for any physical damage.
If you find any damage, do not try to repair it if you are not a technical person. Call an electrician, and he will repair it.
If the wire or cable of atta chakki is more damaged, I highly recommend you replace it with 3 core 2.5sqmm standard ISI marked power cable with an insulation level of 1100V.
2. Atta Chakki Motor Is Not Starting
The reason why the atta chakki motor is not starting can have many possibilities.
As you have already checked the power from the power socket, it might be possible that the power cable gets damaged or opens from the inner side of the atta chakki. In that case, you have to call an electrician or service team.
MCB Or Switch Problem
Many atta chakkis have inbuilt MCB or switch to start the atta chakki.
Sometimes, MCB can be faulty, and you won’t be able to start atta chakki.
Modern and advanced atta chakkis have a touch screen control panel to perform various tasks like starting, stopping, selecting other parameters, etc.
It is no wonder if the touch panel is malfunctioning or out of order. It is possible, and I have seen a brand new atta chakki’s touch panel is not working.
Please get expert help from an authorized service center in the above situation.
The Capacitor Of The Motor Is Damaged
As domestic atta chakki motors are single-phase, capacitors are required to start and run the single-phase motor just like a ceiling fan.
You can physically check the capacitor by opening the hopper. If damaged, change it with the exact rating ( capacitor ratings are in microfarad ). Again electrical work, I recommend calling an electrician.
Motor Overloading
There are certain load limitations on any electrical motor. If you have filled the excessive wheat, it may be possible that the motor doesn’t start due to overloading.
You can empty the hopper and try again. If the problem is still there, there might be some other problem.
Atta Chakki Grinding Chamber Is Jammed
Jamming mostly happens when the wheat has some moisture or is wet. Most atta chakkis are built for the dry grinding of grains and are not designed for wet grain grinding.
If you are sure that the wheat is dry, you can physically check the grinding chamber cutters for any looseness.
The cutter blades are in the combination of either 4 or 6, and they are all fixed with the motor’s main shaft through the shaft key and locking bolt.
You can easily check it with your hands by opening the grinding chamber door. If you see anything loose, fix it, and the problem will get eliminated.
Motor Bearing Failure
Standard and branded atta chakki have good quality bearings that run for a longer time. If your atta chakki is old, probably the bearings have aged and dried.
You can simply do one thing to check whether the bearings are ok or not.
Open the grinding chamber and try to rotate the blades with a little force. If the blades(cutters) run for
10-15 rotation, motor bearings are ok.
But, if the cutters or blades don’t rotate, atta chakki motor bearings are jammed and need replacement. You can replace motor bearings at home, but it requires skills and a specific tool, and I don’t recommend you do this.
You can also check whether all blades are balanced or not. If they are slightly unbalanced, you will hear a sound when they rotate, and if you do not repair it, it will permanently damage the motor.
Microcontroller Problem In Atta Chakki
Every automatic or semi-automatic atta chakkis will have a microcontroller to run the atta chakki. It is like the brain of the atta chakki. If it has some problems, it will not let the motor start.
The microcontroller is usually not repairable due to small components connected with each other and can’t be separated manually.
Sensor Problem In Atta Chakki
Various sensors are incorporated in automatic atta chakkis or flour mills. All sensors are interlocked with the microcontroller.
For example, a simple door switch is also a sensor. The ideal condition is when the door is open, the atta chakki motor will not start.
Similarly, many types of sensors can malfunction or be out of order. You should seek an expert service person to handle all these problems.
You can read my post on which sensor is used in domestic flour mill or atta chakki if you want to know more about atta chakki sensors.
Motor Burnt
Motor burning also has various reasons like overloading, bearing failure, unbalanced winding resistance, winding heating, insufficient cooling, cooling vent chock up, earth leakage, and short circuit.
Every reason requires technical skills, and you must seek expert help to repair electrical problems.
3. The Wheat (grains) Does Not Go Inside The Grinding Chamber Through The Hopper
This is a common problem that I have observed in many home atta chakkis. Sometimes, when you fill-up the hopper, start the atta chakki and check it after a few minutes, the wheat in the hopper remains as it is.
The hopper is not getting empty because of the fault in the small geared motor or its sensor that is mounted just on the top of the primary motor shaft.
You can see the gear from the hopper without opening the hopper.
It is a small gear motor that runs at a lower rpm than the motor rpm to push the grains into the grinding chamber slowly. (RPM=Revolution Per Minute)
In most cases, its sensor is faulty, or the gear motor is out of order. The high-quality grade plastic gear rarely gets any problems.
If the gear is jammed, you can open it and easily free it, but if the sensor or motor has some problem, you have to replace it as there is less chance of repairing that small motor and its controller.
I recommend you replace the gear motor or sensor or both according to the troubleshooting instead of repairing.
Being an electrical engineer, I can tell you that it will not be easy to repair any sensor, small motor, or microcontroller, even if the person has a technical background.
Once you replace the geared motor or sensor, or controller, this problem will get solved.
4. The Atta Chakki Gives Mixed Sizes of Atta(Flour)
This problem is also very common for domestic atta chakkis. However, it is comparatively easy to solve the problem of the mixed size of flour or atta.
The main reason you are not getting fine wheat powder or atta is the sieve you are using. Sieve means chhalni, jali, or mess.
The first reason may be that you are not using the correct size of the sieve. Please check the manufacturer’s operating manual and choose the sieve accordingly.
The second and most possible reason is that you are not fixing the sieve properly inside the grinding chamber.
Check that the sieve touches the inner back walls and does not remain out of the chamber from the front side.
The coarse material will pass through the gap and be mixed with atta if the gap is there.
Third and last reason is the sieve condition. If the sieve holes are damaged and faded, you will get coarse material along with fine wheat flour. For this, the replacement of the sieve is the only solution.
5. Atta spillage, Overflow Or Atta Is Spreading Outside Of The Atta Chakki Automatically
This is not a major problem if you observe that the fine atta is automatically coming out of atta chakki. It is only due to the holes developed inside the atta chakki.
First, you need to check the holes in the collecting drum bag. The bag is probably worn out or loosely attached to the collecting drum.
A rubber or synthetic ring with clamp is provided to hold the collecting bag, and if it is damaged, simply replace it because it is not repairable.
Proper tightening of the cloth bag will solve this problem.
But, in case of excessive atta spillage, there can also be any hole development in the cabinet of the atta chakki.
Technically, a minimum of two air vents are provided with any domestic atta chakki to let the fresh air IN and OUT.
Fresh air is mandatory for cooling the atta chakki, motor, and other parts. It is the air circulation process, and you must not obstruct it.
Never seal any air vent that is provided by default. It will lead to excessive heat and motor failure; in the worst case, it might also catch fire.
In some models, there is a plastic cover with a cotton bag, and it may have some openings or holes. Check for any holes and repair them.
If it is a tiny hall, you can easily repair it, but if there are more than 3 holes, I recommend you replace the entire cover of the collecting drum.
Another reason for the overflowing of fine atta is to forget the empty out the filled drum.
For example, if the hopper capacity is 3kg, the collecting drum’s capacity will always be according to the volumetric proportion to the wheat of 3kg.
As an ideal practice, you should empty out the filled drum before filling the hopper again.
6. Atta Chakki Is Making Too Much Sound
No one loves to hear abnormal noises or sounds in atta chakki. Any abnormal sound from domestic atta chakki is a sign of major damage. You should never neglect any deviation of sound from the typical sound.
Typical operational sound is also to be checked periodically for any deviation. In most cases, people ignore the sound-changing patterns initially, and when the sound completely changes and becomes loud, they panic about why the atta chakki is making so much noise.
Noise or sound is an alarm of a dangerous situation. Let us see the probable causes.
When you hear an abnormal sound, please immediately switch off the power supply and remove the plug from the power socket.
Then, wait for at least two minutes.
Open the door of the atta chakki and then open the grinding chamber door.
Check if any cutter blades have broken. Check for any crack formation in the cutter blades. Cheap or low-quality cutter blades have a shorter life span than high-quality cutter blades.
The life span of cutter blades depends upon the material of the cutter blades. Branded atta chakkis use high-quality, wear-resistant composite material for long life.
Now coming back to the problem of sound in atta chakki.
Another reason is the bearing of the motor.
Bearing means the ring that bears the load. The bearings are the supporting base for any motor’s rotating shaft( rotor).
Usually, small hp motors have two bearings known as the DE side & NDE side. The bearings must be high quality with proper greasing or lubrication to reduce friction and ensure smooth operation.
When the bearings grease dries, the friction starts and generates excessive heat, and bearing cases start wearing out.
The bearings are making sound due to friction between worn-out metals rubbing with each other.
In that case, you must replace the bearings at the earliest possible time because it may also damage the winding of the motor.
7. Grinding Chamber Heating
Have you ever wondered why is a domestic atta chakki grinding chamber heating?
It is usually due to excessive input of wheat or insufficient cooling.
If you run atta chakki for about 15-20 minutes, it will usually get heated, and it is pretty normal, but when you feel that the temperature is much higher than usual, you should check the following things.
Excess Wheat Inside The Grinding Chamber
When you feed more than the hopper limit and wheat grains accumulate in the grinding chamber, the rotating cutter blades cannot rotate freely and are stuck up.
This phenomenon leads to rotor locked condition of the motor, and the motor draws a high current, and sometimes you will get an overload indication.
Always try to keep the input wheat as per the hopper limit as instructed by the manufacturer.
Sticky Wheat Due To Moisture
When the wheat or any grain has moisture content or is wet, it tends to have a sticky nature upon grinding.
This sticky material interrupts the grinding process and jams the grinding chamber because the sticky material can’t pass through the sieve, and the sieve will also get choked up.
If this is your case, remove all sticky material and ensure that no moisture present in grains that goes into the atta chakki.
Electrical Motor Heating
The electrical motor might get heat due to a broken cooling fan or drawing high current than the rated current. Worn-out bearings also might be the issue. You should get technical assistance for any task related to checking the electrical motor except the physical check of the cooling fan.
Air vents
If the fresh air incoming vent is choked up, the atta chakki will get heated along with the grinding chamber due to insufficient air circulation.
To prevent this, always keep all the air vents clean and let the air circulation process free from any obstructions.
8. Electrical Shock In Atta Chakki ( Earth Leakage In Atta Chakki )
This is a dangerous problem and can cause a fatal accident if ignored. The best way to avoid this disastrous situation is to use every electrical appliance that is ISI-marked and tested.
Start from the power socket. Always use a 3-pin plug for the power supply and ensure the electrical earthing of your home.
Installing an ELCB or RCCB at your home’s main source of power supply will save you from unexpected shock.
Never use any damaged cables or poorly jointed cables. Not a single electrical appliance should run without earthing.
The reasons why you may feel mild or severe shock are mentioned below:
- The live power cable is touching any metal part of the atta chakki.
- The motor is not earthed, and a leakage current is present.
- The controller wire is loose/open and in touch with the atta chakki metal body.
- There is no earth leakage protection available at the main power source.
- Loose wiring or wrong wiring.
- Open or short connection.
I highly recommend you NOT to start atta chakki if you feel shocked. Immediately switch off the supply, remove the power cord, and call an electrician.
Repairing electrical items may cause burn injury to loss of life. Please never do that If you don’t know about electricity or electrical safety concepts.
9. Abnormal Vibration In Atta Chakki (Domestic Flourmill)
The most common reason for abnormal vibration is a broken wheel or unbalanced floor.
Before you do anything for vibration, ensure that the wheels of the atta chakki are in good condition and not broken.
The wheels are for moving the atta chakki from one place to another without much effort.
Sometimes, out of four wheels, one wheel gets damaged and creates an unbalance that results in vibration of the atta chakki during operation.
If it is the case, replace the damaged wheel, and you are good to go.
However, there are some other reasons behind abnormal vibration.
Mainly the grinding chamber cutter blades have got unbalanced or broken out, and the motor bearing failed.
Take the help of service experts for such issues because you won’t be able to repair them on your own.
Wrap Up:
I have discussed the most common atta chakki problems that can arise in domestic atta chakki, and some of them are also applicable to commercial atta chakkis.
In my personal opinion, regular maintenance or servicing is better than repair. If you are operating your atta chakki once or twice a month, at least you should get it serviced once a year with the help of a competent and certified service company or skilled and experienced technician.
There can also be many problems that you might have faced with your atta chakki. I have briefed you about the common problems.
Now, it’s your turn.
Do you have experienced any other or unique problems with your atta chakki? Please let me know in the comments, and I will try to explain it by adding that problem to this article.
If you like this information, please do not forget to share it with your friends and relatives so they can also understand the common problems of atta chakki.