Hopper Optical Error On Change Machine
I have a friend that helps out in my Laundromats as I live 30 miles away and he lives within a mile. He does some of the basic management functions including moving money between machines and the changers and unplugging jammed changers.
Last Sunday I got a text that there was a problem with the changer. As I wasn’t going to be there that day he said he would take a look. He checked a few items and reset the changer and everything seemed OK.
About an hour later the attendant called him and said it had an alarm again. He sent me a text so I said I would look at it the next morning.
The display showed a Hopper Optical Error. This was a new one to me so I tried the normal power Off reset but it still had an alarm.
Next, I pulled the hopped out and dumped out all of the quarters to see if there was something obvious.
I don’t have a spare hopper for this model of changer so I figured I would investigate a little deeper. Hey if I messed it up it had to be repaired anyway.
I pulled one side of the hopper apart and found a small piece of paper stuck in the coin slot.
My best guess was that someone used it to put into a coin slot in a machine they had a problem with and it was small enough to go inside (or maybe a kid stuck it in there). Once the quarters pushed it to the box, it got dumped back into the hopper and worked its way through the machine.
I cleaned up the parts I had opened up and put everything back together and it worked like normal.
I always worry when I pull things apart that there is that spring that will fly out or you need a special tool or jig to re-assemble the part but that usually never stops me from looking.
Ken
If you have employees or are considering hiring some get a copy of the Employee Handbook I use in my stores. It provides a solid foundation for your relationship with your employees.
