It just sits there on the counter lifeless. And then what? The battery will get low and die out in the middle of opening up a can of tomatoes.
Yeah, motor will sputter. Why? It sat unused for weeks, draining the batteries more quickest than expected. So the initial solution is to replace the batteries.
Reassembling and testing the device
Next up is the battery compartment located at the rear of the unit. However, before removing the batteries, we need to remove the battery compartment cover. With a slight push it slide out easily.
After the cover has been removed you’ll notice empty compartments inside. They look clean and are prepared to recieve new cells. There is no funny build up or corrosion anywhere.
You need four AA batteries. That’s all it take to revive the thing. You dig them out of a drawer, set them in line.
Energizer brands is what you usually keep around for household gadgets. Seems like they hold better than those generic ones you pick up at store.
Carefully check the markings on the battery inside the compartment to make sure you’ve got the polarity correct. The positive side goes this way and the negative side faces the opposite direction. Get that wrong and it won’t work.
Putting the first two batteries in is simple enough. Match the + sign on the battery to the matching mark on the plastic tray. The ends of the cells is pushed firmly onto the spring contacts.
This is important as it makes a solid contact that provides consistent power to the motor. Dirty and weak springs can makes this thing finicky. But yours don’t appear to be. Keep going with the next pair.
Now, the last two come in very quickly after that. One by one, you’re making sure they click into place snugly. There is no wiggle room with this.
Just check out the diagram on the inside and it tells you exactly what to do. You do not even need to open a manual. Pretty easy for anybody to manage.
After all, you want dinner now so your hands go pretty fast. And the thought of new food makes it worth it.
Now you have all four cells in there and the battery tray look complete. Now you have the physical power source inside of the machine. But it’s not live just yet. Until it has the cover put back on.
So you grab the red piece you previously set aside. It fits snugly over the compartment area. Sliding it back into place feel satisfying in an odd way. It is like closing a chapter on the troubleshooting process.
Push it down real hard so it locks the cover closed. The plastic clips can gets wonky sometimes, if they’re not aligned correctly. You shouldn’ of any batteries popping loose while in use.
It looks good at the business end with those sharp looking cutting gears below. That’s where the action happens on the tin cans. It’s all about that electricity running through those metal teeth now.
But once you flip it around and hold it in your hand, all that solidity return. With new batteries on board, the balance of its weight feel right.
Then you quickly push the big red button (just to see if it does anything). Of course not. This isn’t one of those. Until you get the thing locked onto the lip of a can properly, nothing is going to happen. That’s normal for this unit.
So why the deafening silence? That is to be expected.
Grab a can. Put the opener down on the counter. It’s come down to that, basically, the moment of truth.
Will it cut through just fine like new? Or will it continue to be weak with its power cells? Honestly, only time will tell.
If it’s simple swaps and not some complex repair thing, then you don’t want to mess with that. In kitchen fixes, simplicity have always won out for you so far.
It only took under five minutes all told. Amazing what a difference replacing the older parts can do to ease some of your frustation. And there it is! Your Kitchen Mama lives again, good as new.
There’s not a tool in sight on this maintenance exercise either. It is simply some everyday furnitures that just about everyone has in their drawers at home. It is an easy fix indeed.
