Frequently Asked Questions

The FoodCycler® Eco 5™

• Bucket capacity: 5 L
• Unit volume: 28.9 L
• Dimensions: 13.8" H × 13.8" W × 10.3" D
• Progress indicators: real-time progress tracking LEDs
• Processing time: 4–9 hours (overnight)
• Power consumption: <0.35 kWh/L (<1.5 kWh/cycle)
• Filtration: 1 reusable filter (carbon pellets)
• Vent location: top

For current finishes and included accessories, visit the Eco 5™ product page.

If dried food waste is stuck to the Bucket, soak it in warm soapy water to remove. While the Bucket can be cleaned in the dishwasher, doing so may reduce its lifespan. If the Bucket is jammed due to food waste coagulating along the Bucket interior and blades, we recommend pouring in boiling water and letting the Bucket contents soak before attempting to remove the blockage.

Any residue stuck to the Bucket is caused by the oil, grease, or moisture content of the unit cycle. For an all-natural clean, try cycling citrus peels by themselves. This will also help eliminate any trapped odours in the unit's ventilation system.

It's normal to notice some dried food debris stuck to the sides or bottom of your Bucket after a cycle. Dry by-product can actually serve as a beneficial dry mix addition for the next cycle. As long as the grinding blade can fully rotate after emptying the Bucket, you can proceed to fill it for the next cycle.

CAUTION: Do not reach your hand into the FoodCycler® Eco 5™ Bucket, as the blades are extremely sharp.

Each cycle consumes an average of 1.5 kWh per cycle, which is roughly equivalent to having a desktop computer running for the same amount of time as the cycle. Depending on where you live, each cycle should not cost you more than a couple of cents.

The FoodCycler® has built-in sensor technology that monitors the dryness and humidity of the food waste. Once complete, the unit will stop the cycle automatically.

After you replace your carbon filter pellets, press and hold the Power button for 3 seconds, release, and then hold again for another 3 seconds until you hear an audible tone to reset the Carbon Filter Replacement reminder.

This is normal. The unit could be emitting an odour for a variety of reasons.

The carbon filtration systems in each FoodCycler® are required to ensure a near-odourless cycle. They last approximately 500 cycle hours, or 3–4 months with regular use.

Even if the Replace Filter light has not gone on yet, you may need to switch out your filter carbon. Similarly, you can continue cycling even if the filter light has gone on and no odours are apparent.

Filter life is determined by the moisture quantity in the food waste and the intensity of odours of each cycle. If you are cycling rotten, smelly, or potent food wastes such as rotten meat, fish, or old cheese, your filters may not last as long as if you were cycling simple veggie scraps and coffee grounds.

Tip: Running a cycle of mostly citrus peels will not only help keep your Bucket clean, it also eliminates any trapped odours in the unit's ventilation system.

The FoodCycler® food waste recycler greatly reduces food waste volume, odors, liquids, bacteria, and methane gasses that would otherwise be generated by putting your food waste in the trash.

The FoodCycler uses a multi-phase cycle which aerates and pulverizes food waste to a fine, dry, odourless powder which can be used in gardening applications.

For more details, visit our How It Works page!

The Eco 5™ is the larger-capacity household FoodCycler® model. Keep food waste below the bucket's fill line, avoid packing scraps too tightly, and balance wet scraps with drier material for best results.

Yes, you can add additional food waste to the FoodCycler® Eco 5™ once the cycle has already begun. For best results, and to avoid extending the cycle period, we recommend adding food waste early in the cycle, or within the first hour and a half of cycling.

Adding food waste midway through the cycle may result in unprocessed food waste at the end of the cycle, as this extends the dehydration and grinding process. If this occurs, we recommend starting a second cycle until the food waste has been completely broken down.

Yes, the FoodCycler® Eco 5™ can process fish, chicken, pork, lamb, and other small bones. Large bones can cause jams or damage all units’ Bucket grinding gears.

Most everyday food scraps can be cycled: fruits, vegetables, grains, eggshells, coffee grounds, and small bones. Review the What to Cycle guide for the full list, including items to limit or avoid.

Stuck Bucket: Open the unit. Secure the lid to the locked position and press Start. Let the unit run for 10–20 seconds, or until you can hear the grinding arms start to turn. You can pause the cycle by opening the unit lid and try removing the Bucket.

If unsuccessful, check the food content. If it is a solid mass, you may need to loosen the by-product inside the Bucket. Unplug your unit, add boiling water to the Bucket enough to submerge the solid contents, and let the Bucket sit for approximately 10 minutes.

Using a long plastic or wooden utensil, attempt to shift the Bucket contents so as to free the blockage from the grinding arm. Run the cycle again for 10–20 seconds, and try again to remove the Bucket.

Prior to seeking customer support, we recommend that customers try a few troubleshooting steps on their own. Please reference the Error Codes document below. If your unit is displaying codes 1–6, read the section that matches the code you are seeing. For codes 7–12, please reach out to Customer Support directly at support@foodcycler.com so we can assist you further.

• LED ring goes from blue to orange to green to just the power button being illuminated: no action is required. Your unit is running normally.
• Power button illuminated: the unit is plugged in. No action required.
• Blue lights along the LED track: the unit is running a cycle and the track displays cycle progress.
• Carbon filter symbol illuminated: your carbon filter pellets are ready to be replaced, or 500 cycle hours have elapsed since you last reset your filters.
• Four right ring lights illuminated orange: the unit is experiencing temperatures that are either too high or too low to run efficiently. Move it to a room-temperature environment and try another cycle.
• Four left ring lights illuminated orange: the unit is experiencing a motor overload. If this is caused by a blockage in the Bucket, pour boiling water into the Bucket, let it soak for about 10 minutes, and attempt to dislodge the blockage with a tool or kitchen implement.

If the error code persists, contact support@foodcycler.com.

In the Eco 5™ FoodCycler®, a typical cycle takes between 4–9 hours for the food waste to become completely dehydrated and processed into the by-product.

For the FC-30 and FC-50 units, expect 4–8 hours, with an average of about 5 hours. The time needed depends on the amount of food waste being processed, the density of the food wastes, and the moisture levels contained in each. Please note that these estimates exclude the unit's cooling time, which lasts less than a half hour on average.

The FoodCycler® food waste recycler greatly reduces food waste volume, odors, liquids, bacteria, and eliminates methane gasses that would otherwise be generated by putting your food waste in the trash.

The FoodCycler uses a multi-phase cycle, which aerates and pulverizes food waste to a fine, dry, odourless powder which can be used in gardening applications.

The drying phase is focused on removing moisture from your food waste.

The grinding phase continues the drying process, removing any remaining moisture, while the bucket grinding blades agitate and pulverize the food waste.

The cooling phase is a safety measure to return the processed food waste to near-room temperature, making it safe to handle. Power usage is minimal during the cooling phase.

Please do not skip the cooling cycle. It is for your safety and for the safe handling of your FoodCycler® and grinding Bucket.

Each cycle consumes approximately 0.8–1.5 kWh per cycle, which is roughly equivalent to having a desktop computer running for the same amount of time as the cycle. Depending on where you live, each cycle should not cost you more than a couple of cents.

The FoodCycler® has built-in sensor technology that monitors the dryness and humidity of the food waste. Once complete, the unit will stop the cycle automatically.

The Vortech™ grinding system utilizes a multi-blade steel rotary system that effectively pulverizes a wide variety of soft and hard food waste scraps, transforming them into smaller, dried granules.

The flow stream that powers the turning system pushes the food scraps into the walls of the container, breaking down and squeezing the pulp further to the bottom while removing moisture and processing the matter into a fine dry substance. The resulting by-product contains rich nutrients that can be added to soil as an amendment for gardening uses.

The carbon filters last between 3–4 months with regular use, or about 500 cycle hours. Denser, wetter, and smellier food scraps can use up filters more quickly than simple veggie scraps and eggshells.

FoodCycler® products use a refillable filter system, which means that you can keep using your filters indefinitely and simply replace the carbon itself when it is ready to be changed.

The filter carbon is a harmless organic material and can be safely disposed of in your regular trash or organics collection bin. Please follow your municipal waste guidelines in disposing of your used carbon. Buckets can be recycled through your local metal scrap collection service.

The unit could be emitting an odor for a variety of reasons.

The carbon filters are required to ensure a near-odorless cycle. They last approximately 500 cycle hours, or 3–4 months with regular use.

Even if the replace filter light has not gone on yet, you may need to switch out your filter carbon. Similarly, you can continue cycling even if the filter light has gone on and no odours are apparent.

Filter life is determined by the moisture quantity in the food waste and the natural odorousness of each cycle. If you are cycling rotten, smelly, or potent food wastes such as rotten meat or old cheese, your filters may not last as long as if you were cycling simple veggie scraps and coffee grounds.

The removable grinding bucket is dishwasher-safe. However, you do not really need to clean it at all. If the bucket is not jammed with processed food waste, you can simply continue to add food waste to the bucket and cycle as usual.

Any residue stuck to the bucket is almost always a cosmetic issue and is caused by the oil, grease, or moisture content of the unit cycle. For an all-natural clean, try cycling citrus peels by themselves. This will also help eliminate any trapped odors in the unit's ventilation system.

If dried food waste is stuck to the bucket, soak it in warm soapy water to remove.

CAUTION: Do not reach your hand into the FoodCycler® bucket, as the blades are extremely sharp.

Yes, the FoodCycler® Eco 5™ can process fish, chicken, pork, lamb, and other small bones, while the FoodCycler® FC-30 and FC-50 can process fish and chicken bones. Large bones can cause jams or damage all units’ bucket grinding gears.

• Most fruit and vegetable scraps
• Meat, shellfish, and poultry scraps
• Cheese
• Beans, seeds, and legumes
• Chicken and fish bones or shells
• Coffee grounds, filters, and tea bags
• Eggs and eggshells

Avoid:

• Hard, dense bones (beef, pork, lamb, and bison)
• Candy or gum
• Cooking oils and greases
• Hard pits such as peaches, apricots, and nectarines
• Nuts and other hard shells
• Pineapple leaves
• Watermelon rinds

In limited quantities:

• Cake
• Rice
• Bread
• Pasta
• High-sugar fruits such as grapes, bananas, melon, oranges, and pineapple
• Sauces
• Jams
• Jellies
• Peanut butter

Cut up prior to cycling:

• Fibrous herbs and plants such as celery and parsley
• Corn cobs and husks
• Paper towels and tissue
• Pineapple leaves
• Whole fruits and vegetables

The new FoodCycler® Eco 5™ has a 5 L Bucket capacity.

The FC-30 and FC-50 units have a 2.5 liter Bucket capacity. We recommend keeping the contents below the indicator line level to avoid jams.

You can add additional food waste to the FoodCycler® once the cycle has already begun, preferably early in the drying or grinding phases.

Adding food waste midway through the cycle may result in unprocessed food waste at the end of the cycle, as this extends the dehydration and grinding process. If this occurs, we recommend starting a second cycle until the food waste has been completely broken down.

Make sure the bucket is clean, empty, and properly aligned before lowering it into the unit. Check for dried residue around the bucket base or drive connection that could prevent it from seating correctly. If the bucket still will not fit, contact support.

Once the unit beeps or shuts off following a cycle, the Bucket is safe to handle, though it may still be quite warm. Please exercise caution when handling the Bucket directly after a cycle.

We advise that you keep the lid closed until the cycle is complete to prevent the cycle from being prematurely or improperly finished, or from lasting longer than usual.

The only exception is if you add more food waste to the unit while it is recycling, but we strongly recommend that you take care when opening the lid mid-cycle, as the food waste and bucket get very hot during the process.

Yes you can. Please be aware that, like most appliances, the FoodCycler® is not intended to function in below-freezing temperatures. The FoodCycler® must be in a closed, dry environment where there is no risk of it being rained on or otherwise subjected to the elements.

Methane gas is emitted during the decomposition process of organic materials in an anaerobic, or no-air, environment. Methane is 30 times more insulative of atmospheric heat than CO₂ and is therefore a huge contributing force to global climate change.

Since the FoodCycler® aerates the food waste while heating and pulverizing, which is an aerobic environment, those environmentally damaging methane gases are not produced at all.

The FoodCycler® Eco 5™

• Bucket capacity: 5 L
• Unit volume: 28.9 L
• Dimensions: 13.8" H × 13.8" W × 10.3" D
• Progress indicators: real-time progress tracking LEDs
• Processing time: 4–9 hours (overnight)
• Power consumption: <0.35 kWh/L (<1.5 kWh/cycle)
• Filtration: 1 reusable filter (carbon pellets)
• Vent location: top
• Transmission torque: 24 ft. lbs max

The FoodCycler® FC-30 or FC-50

• Dimensions: 12.6" W × 14.2" H × 13" L
• Weight: 24 lb in box, 19 lb out of box

Prior to seeking customer support, we recommend that customers try a few troubleshooting steps on their own.

FoodCycler® FC-30 Manual Reset

1. Ensure that the unit is plugged in.
2. Press and hold the Start or Power button for three seconds, or until you hear a beep. The unit should shut off if it was on.
3. Unplug the unit and wait one minute.
4. Plug the unit back in and wait ten seconds.
5. Press Start or Power once, as you normally would to start a cycle.

If the unit is still malfunctioning in some way, please contact FoodCycler™ Customer Support.

Eco 5™

• Bucket capacity: 5 L
• Unit volume: 28.9 L
• Recommended household size: 3+
• Dimensions: 13.8" H × 13.8" W × 10.3" D
• Progress indicators: real-time progress tracking LEDs
• Processing time: 4–9 hours (overnight)
• Power consumption: <0.35 kWh/L (<1.5 kWh/cycle)
• Filtration: 1 reusable filter (carbon pellets)
• Vent location: top

FC-50

• Bucket capacity: less than 2.5 L
• Unit volume: approximately 30.5 L
• Recommended household size: 1–2
• Dimensions: 14.2" H × 11" W × 12.6" D
• Progress indicators: 3 phase LEDs
• Processing time: 4–8 hours (overnight)
• Power consumption: approximately 0.8 kWh per cycle
• Filtration: 2 reusable filters
• Vent location: back