Is there a thermostat with this popcorn popper that prevents the popcorn from burning? Earlier models had one.

Hello, Tbibbe357 -

Focus Products Group owned the West Bend brand name until late 2016 when The Legacy Companies acquired the West Bend Electrics division.

Therefore, your "Focus Electrics" popcorn popper, model 82512, is also known as the West Bend Stir Crazy Theater-Style popcorn popper.

I found the manual for your machine on the West Bend [company] web site. You can link to the manual here:
https://www.westbend.com/support/user-manuals/popcorn-poppers.html
Choose the link to the for:
82512 - Theater Popper, 2.5 oz.

The manual is in PDF format, so you will need Adobe Reader software (free) to download it, save it to a file in your Documents folder (suggested name for the manual file: Popcorn Popper Manual), and print it for easy reference.

Best wishes.

If it heats up, your popcorn may be old and dried out. If it doesn't heat up and the stirring rod does not turn, check your power cord for defects. Procedure: plug in the popper (check both ends of the cord!), turn it on, and gently wiggle the cord right at the plug or where it goes into the popper, and watch the stirring rod to see if it moves. If it starts and stops as you wiggle the cord, you've found the break in the cord. Repair it or replace it (West Bend lists it online for $5) and be more careful with the cord in the future (never unplug by yanking on the wire, always pull on the plug itself).

If the stirring rod turns and there is no heat, the thermostat or thermal fuse is probably open. This can happen in some poppers if the air vents are blocked on the bottom. Remove the obstruction from the vents, let everything cool off, and try again. If it does not heat up from a cold start, there may be a blown thermal fuse inside. If you decide to replace the thermal fuse or thermostat, it MUST have the same temperature and current rating as the original.

The thermostat built into the kettle stops the kettle from heating at a prescribed temperature. usually around 425 F. This is hot enough to smoke and cause instant burns, but is the required temp for popping popcorn.

I do not know of a "thermal fuse" built into popcorn machines. Mechanical thermo stats are not flawless. they can and do malfunction, either too cold or too hot. the model popper you have is not adjustable, or repairable.

If you are tripping a electrical circuit breaker that is a different problem not related to kettle heat. It is a symptom of an overloading problem of your outlet, or a ground fault in the popcorn popper.

The most common reason is the THERMOSTAT is short cycling or turning off to soon. It could also be one of the elements is not working any longer if it is a kettle with more than one? You should find the small red inducator light and monitor it during a popping cycle. If it's going out early on in the cycle that indicates the thermostat has opened and not calling for heat. Depends on the model, you can adjust it or replace it. I suggest calling a Cretors dealer.


http://www.cretors.com/dealer

Popcorn needs 400F to pop, if you machine is not hot enough it will not pop popcorn.
You did not include very much information to help fix it, but if it is a home use popper, you cannot repair anything on them.
A true commercial popper you can replace thermostats, and fix the problem.

That model has a thermostat (also called a high limit) that is set at 450F. it should produce a popping cycle of 3 mins, and yes will burn popcorn if you don't dump it fairly quickly.
The speed it heats cannot be too fast, there is only so many watts in the heat element. it may go to hot, but never to fast.
The best way to test temp is time the 2nd popping cycle with a stop watch. the second batch should be 3 mins +/- 30 seconds. if it is 4 mins it is too cold. a 2 min popping cycle is to hot.
A popper that is too cold is also popping poor quality popcorn, higher amount of unpopped kernels, and small chewy popcorn.
Measure carfully when doing time test popping. That model is 2oz oil, 6oz popcorn, and 1 tsp salt. Start timing when you put ingredients in, and stop when you dump it. The kettle must be hot, that is why you time the 2nd batch.

Pop your corn outside until the oil burns away. Then keep butter away from the popper or below it.

The symptoms of only pops half the popcorn is a hard one to trouble shoot.
1.Check your popcorn, old popcorn dries out. As it loses moisture its ability to pop is reduced. Popcorn only lasts about 90 days after opening the air tight packaging.
2. If it is a oil popper, make sure the stirring rod is turning during the popping cycle. They sometimes can stir, but once the popping starts the pressure of the corn can stall a motor. This results in the first half popping, and the second half burning on the bottom.
3. Popper is too cold. This has symptoms of a long, long popping cycle, and half the corn popping the other half just turning brown. Some machines had adjustable thermostats inclosed, most home units do not. Letting it pre-heat longer does not help, the temperature is controlled by a thermo-stat.

What type of popper is it? The 50030178 model isn't one I'm familiar with.

For most of the small air poppers, such as the Presto Air poppers, fill the measuring cup lid with popcorn so that the popcorn is level with the top of the cup. Add this amount of popcorn to the popper. On those units, there is a fill line inside the popping chamber. Do not fill past the line. For these air poppers, if you want to have butter or margarine on the popcorn, add 3 tablespoons of the extra to the lid after you replace it on the popper.

For the Hamilton Beach Hot Oil Poppers, the manual for the 73300 is available here: http://www.hamiltonbeach.com/use-and-care/use-and-care.php . Fill in the type of device and then the model. The amount of oil and popcorn will depend on how much you want to make. For a single serving, you need 2 T (tablespoons) of kernels and 1 - 1 1/2 t (teaspoon) of oil. For enough popcorn for a family, you should use 1/2 cup of kernels and 1T of oil. http://useandcares.hamiltonbeach.com/files/840190701.pdf has a full chart of the amounts on page 6.

I hope this helps. Please add a comment with the brand of popper and I'll check for a specific chart for that unit.

Cindy Wells
(It's been a while since I used the air popper that I used to have.)

1. Pour up to 1/3 cup of popcorn kernels in the base of the Popcorn Popper.
2. The use of oil is optional, but not necessary. If desired, drizzle a small amount of vegetable oil over the unpopped kernels, then stir to coat the kernels.
3. Place cover on the base bowl. Cook on High in the microwave for approximately 3-5 minutes (microwave ovens vary tremendously!), or until popping slows down. Allow Popcorn Popper to cool before repeated use. Do not try to re-pop unpopped kernels.
4. Hand washing is recommended, but occasional washing in the top rack of a dishwasher is acceptable for the bowl, but not the lid.
5. If popcorn burns easily or does not pop well, try placing a shallow bowl, dish or plate upside down on the microwave turntable to raise the popcorn popper up a bit.