Choose the location where you set up the chocolate fountain carefully.
Pick a location away from air conditioning ducts, swinging
doors, dance floors, exterior doors, etc. If you are at a facility that
dictates where you need to set up, be assertive if the location is bad. It will
ruin the event. Being directly under A/C ducts is awful, as the cold air will
actually cool the chocolate and it will start to harden and will flow terribly.
Never use a chocolate fountain outdoors.
I know you're tempted to, but take my word for it. DON'T use
a chocolate fountain outdoors. There's nothing worse than a gust of wind
blowing the chocolate all over you and your guests. Or, perhaps the unexpected
rainstorm may put a damper on things, it definitely will cause the chocolate to
seize (remember water & chocolate don't mix). And if there is no wind or
rain, there's bound to be insects. Oh yeah, they love chocolate too. If your
party is outdoors uses a Wind Guards to protect your guests from splashes
Always set up and level your chocolate fountain on a sturdy level table.
Leveling your chocolate fountain is a really simple task
that takes a minute or two. Most fountains don't come with a level, so go to
Home Depot or Lowe's (or your local hardware store) and pick up a little 6-8
inch level. They cost a couple of bucks, and its money well spent. Don't think
you can "eye" it, you can't. Before chocolate is in the fountain, lay
the level across the edge of the fountain's bowl. Adjust the feet so the
fountain is level. Repeat with the level at different sides of the bowl. The
more accurate you are, the better the flow of the chocolate. A level fountain
will allow the chocolate to flow evenly around the entire fountain making everybody
in attendance say "ooh and awh." An unleveled fountain will have
everybody saying, "ugh."
Consider melting the chocolate before the function and transport/store it
in the tubs (or containers) inside a cooler.
Chocolate does not harden until it drops in temperature to
around 70-72°F. By placing the melted chocolate in the tubs inside a cooler
(plastic or Styrofoam) you will be insulating it from outside temperatures, it
will remain warm and in a liquid state for several hours. If you don't have
kitchen facilities at the event, you'll be ready when you get to the event and
prepared when you need to add more chocolate. Even if the function is on-site
at your home or place of business, the cooler can be stored directly under the
table and both you and your chocolate are ready.
Always preheat the chocolate fountain before adding the chocolate.
If the room is cold, the metal bowl and tiers will also be
cold and when the chocolate is poured in, it can harden and not flow properly.
All Auger style chocolate fountains have the same inherent problem of air
getting trapped in the auger tube.
Everything's going great, everybody loves the chocolate
fountain, the chocolate is delicious and after a little while, the fountain
stops flowing properly. More than likely, you either need to add more
chocolate, or your fountain has gotten air trapped in the auger tube, making
the chocolate flow uneven or curtain open.
Simply turn off the auger for around 10-15 seconds.
As the chocolate flows back down into the bowl from within
the auger tube, you'll probably notice air bubbles popping out of the
chocolate.
Turn the fountain back on and the problem should be cured.
If that doesn't cure the problem, make sure that you leveled
the fountain and are not under an air-conditioning vent or outside in the wind.
Always, Be Prepared!
Test your chocolate fountain before you put the chocolate in
it, to make sure it's working properly. Bring (or have) plenty of paper towels,
sponges, flexible plastic bowl scraper or rubber spatula, extra Just Melt It!
storage containers for leftovers (Just Melt It! tubs are perfect for this).
Wear an apron, so you don't get chocolate all over yourself. And have a
hairdryer and extension cord handy...this could be really useful before the
event to quickly warm up the cold fountain components or after the function to
melt any hardened chocolate left in the fountain.
Don't leave the electric cord exposed for people to trip over.
If you've ever had to clean up a spilled chocolate fountain,
you won't make that mistake twice. Murphy's Law guarantees someone will trip
over the exposed cord or some other obstacle and knock over the fountain or the
table it is sitting on.
Don't dip crumbly items or wet items in the fountain.
I know I talk about this too much, but it needs to be said.
Wet items will cause the chocolate to seize and crumbly items contaminate the
chocolate.
Never leave a fountain unattended with household pets (dogs & cats),
kids or intoxicated adults.
A lot of people don't realize that chocolate is absolute
poison to dogs. Or could you imagine the little kitty dipping it's paws in and
playing in the flowing curtain of chocolate (how cute is that?). Or leaving
young kids at a birthday party without adult supervision? Worst of all is a
group of drunk adults getting a little crazy with chocolate.
A simple solution is to assign someone (it can be a
responsible kid) to be the "guardian of the fountain." If you are the
host or hostess, you may not be able to devote adequate attention to the task.
I promise you, Chocoholics will cherish this responsibility. They can
demonstrate how to dip items, tell people to use a plate to avoid drips or
remind people not to double-dip or turn off the fountain when somebody's
strawberry falls off the skewer and that person absolutely, positively has to
have that chocolate drenched treat. Having an attendant at the fountain is a really
smart idea. I have heard stories from our commercial customers of "Kids
Gone Wild" at a Bar Mitzvah and drunk adults at a wedding attempting to
put their heads under the fountain to drink the chocolate.
The most difficult thing about a chocolate fountain is the clean-up.
Chocolate fountain providers rarely have the opportunity to
clean their fountains on-site. If you're not going to have a place to clean the
fountain, bring a few large plastic trash bags to put the emptied (but unclean)
fountain in for transport home or to the kitchen. You can't believe how much
chocolate an emptied fountain still has on it...and it can make one heck of a
mess.
Don't leave chocolate in the fountain after you're finished.
When it cools, it will harden. If someone turns on the auger
with hardened chocolate in the fountain, it will potentially burn out the
motor. If you do leave chocolate in the fountain and it hardens, simply turn on
ONLY the heating element to start to melt the chocolate. Then, using a hair
dryer, shoot warm air on the tiers and auger tube to melt the chocolate,
freeing the auger and tier set from the chocolate. Even if the chocolate has
hardened and you have re-melted it, it still is good and can be poured back
into a Just Melt It! tub or storage container for future use.
