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Unusual insect problem in Breville Dual Boiler and Oracle coffee machines
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There's a mainstream insect porn channel? Devi-ants.com?
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[QUOTE=noidle22;n868343
. My thought is that the machine is operating at a frequency that interferes with the insects, attracting them somehow.
[/QUOTE]
There is some evidence that strong fields at these frequencies can decrease muscle function in some insects. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5093409/
Logically that would make it harder for them to leave the area around the emitting device than to enter, causing a stochastic accumulation of susceptible insects.
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That's a fairly niche form of insect porn. Can't see it becoming too commercialOriginally posted by flynnaus View PostIt could be a combination of heat and dark but some gògle hits suggest ants might get off on electromagnetic fields.
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Google 'ants electronics' and you'll see some links to pages that confirm an attraction to electronics but no reason. I thought it had to do with seeking warm spots but ants were fond of the thermostat on my old hot water system when they were more easily accessible warm spots around other parts of the HWS. It could be a combination of heat and dark but some gògle hits suggest ants might get off on electromagnetic fields.
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Wow!
Some sort of cellulose used in the circuit board and then available where the holes are punched through?
Enough to attract but not in a form they can consume?
There’s a fun PhD for some under-caffeinated undergrad in this.
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Unusual insect problem in Breville Dual Boiler and Oracle coffee machines
I've been noticing a phenomenon occasionally over the past few years, it's gotten to the point where it can no longer be a coincidence.
I see a lot of Breville Dual Boiler and Oracle machines in for repair and a common issue that affects these models is the machines heating all the time when plugged in at the wall but off at the control panel. This is most often attributed to leaking steam which damages the triac board on the underside of the top cover.
However, on occasion, I've found ants or small flies bridging the legs of the opto-isolators or the triacs. Each time I think heh, this is unusual, but don't think too much more on it.
Sometimes these insects are the cause of the heating issue and removing them restores normal operation, other times the fault remains (either from the short causing permanent damage or underlying steam leaks).
Last week, an Oracle had an ant nest behind one of the sides and there was a large amount of ants packed under a few of the opto-isolators and a triac. This made me wonder why this is happening. I've never seen this on any other machine which uses triac controlled components.
I would be interested to hear any theories about why this is happening. My thought is that the machine is operating at a frequency that interferes with the insects, attracting them somehow.
These photos are from the recent Oracle which is the most I've ever seen.

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