I'm loving that setup! Is there a separate catcher for the chaff? I'm really tempted, especially 'cuz of the price, but not being able to hear the cracking is holding me back. Going beyond 2nd crack isn't where I wanna be. Hmmmm... Gonna have to think long and hard about this one. Maybe I should buy a coticule in the meantime!
My Foray into Coffee Roasting
- Thread starter JPDyson
- Start date
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- #42
The chaff is caught within the roast chamber; the lid has a perforated "can" that catches some, and then a screen that catches the smaller bits. A little chaff makes it out the top, but it's essentially dust.
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- #43
Well, a few more roasts this weekend and a little more feedback from some friends locally has got me optimistic about home roasting. I'm expanding my test audience to more casual consumers of the bean, so hopefully I'll get some average Joe feedback soon.
The most recent victims were Brazil Cerrado Dry Process Fazenda Aurea and Ethiopia Organic Shikaso Wet Process (the former roasted a tad lighter - had great body and better low-note flavors, while the Ethiopia sang a bit more in acidity and brighter flavors, albeit with less body).
The most recent victims were Brazil Cerrado Dry Process Fazenda Aurea and Ethiopia Organic Shikaso Wet Process (the former roasted a tad lighter - had great body and better low-note flavors, while the Ethiopia sang a bit more in acidity and brighter flavors, albeit with less body).
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- #44
Update: The exhaust setup I have going is melting the fins on my fan. Either the air is just THAT hot, or the hot air is heating up the metal ducting, which is resting on the fins and melting them. In either case, I think I'm going to have to build something like this instead (with a metal flange attached to the board).
Image from Scotto's post
Image from Scotto's post
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- #45
Update:
Roasting is going well - I'm mostly running 130-135g of green coffee through the roaster at a time, and usually just two batches a week (one for my weekend consumption, and one to split and give away to friends for testing).
The roaster has been doing well, apart from one small thing. I noticed that my roaster (ordered 2/27) had developed a chip about the size of an almond in the plastic below the handle. I never dropped it or banged it around - I keep it in the box when it's not in use, on top of a cabinet we rarely visit (in other words, we didn't whack it - it just cracked under normal use). I emailed SM about it, and they pointed me to Hearthware CS (who I emailed on 3/28). After asking for a little more info (serial number, shipping address, etc) they agreed it was covered under warranty and that they would send out a replacement if I'd just pay shipping. Wait, what? Pay shipping? I'll be having none of that. I made a very polite inquiry as to the nature of their policy on this, and what justification they could offer for charging shipping for fixing their manufacturing defect, and they pretty much copied and pasted the policy - after 30 days but before 1 year, parts are covered, customer pays shipping.
Let's pause for a moment to let the math sink in. Remember, February's that funky 28-day month. We were within the 30 day window! I suppose I can forgive the error, considering "a month" means 30 days to most folks, but even if it were a normal month, at worst just past 30 days. I ain't payin. I pointed this out (far less sarcastically than I just did here) and after "checking with management" she agreed to send the part gratis. That was (checks...) Tuesday, and she said she could provide a tracking number to me if I checked back Friday. I'll let y'all know how this shakes out.
Roasting is going well - I'm mostly running 130-135g of green coffee through the roaster at a time, and usually just two batches a week (one for my weekend consumption, and one to split and give away to friends for testing).
The roaster has been doing well, apart from one small thing. I noticed that my roaster (ordered 2/27) had developed a chip about the size of an almond in the plastic below the handle. I never dropped it or banged it around - I keep it in the box when it's not in use, on top of a cabinet we rarely visit (in other words, we didn't whack it - it just cracked under normal use). I emailed SM about it, and they pointed me to Hearthware CS (who I emailed on 3/28). After asking for a little more info (serial number, shipping address, etc) they agreed it was covered under warranty and that they would send out a replacement if I'd just pay shipping. Wait, what? Pay shipping? I'll be having none of that. I made a very polite inquiry as to the nature of their policy on this, and what justification they could offer for charging shipping for fixing their manufacturing defect, and they pretty much copied and pasted the policy - after 30 days but before 1 year, parts are covered, customer pays shipping.
Let's pause for a moment to let the math sink in. Remember, February's that funky 28-day month. We were within the 30 day window! I suppose I can forgive the error, considering "a month" means 30 days to most folks, but even if it were a normal month, at worst just past 30 days. I ain't payin. I pointed this out (far less sarcastically than I just did here) and after "checking with management" she agreed to send the part gratis. That was (checks...) Tuesday, and she said she could provide a tracking number to me if I checked back Friday. I'll let y'all know how this shakes out.
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- #46
Replacement roast pot received, so iRoast made good.
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- #47
Perhaps concluding the "foray" phase, I've ordered a Behmor. I plan on selling the iRoast, since I've confirmed that the Poppery still functions as a suitable backup (just did a batch last night of a Sulawesi WP Peaberry into FC range). It turns out this is getting popular w/my friends, and I'm hoping to start funding my own coffee drinking by selling small bags of roasted coffee. The Behmor will let me do more of that, as well as roasting up gifts for family and friends. I'm highly excited about that!
Interesting journey. All these steps should make you a better roaster.
Sounds like how I got started roasting. High demand and limited resources. I did effectively get paid to drink coffee for a long time, however!
