starting up?

DoubleRistretto

Hi guys - I love my espresso and have been thinking for a while that it would be good to start experimenting with roasting at home. Can anyone give me any idea of what equipment is needed?

thanks
dR

Dry_bean.

on 1284080216:

Hi guys - I love my espresso and have been thinking for a while that it would be good to start experimenting with roasting at home. Can anyone give me any idea of what equipment is needed? thanks dR

Depends on how high tech you want to go DR, I use a Corretto set up with excellent results, they are inexpensive to set up, my usual roast is 625 grams of green beans, roast level is very consistent and repeatable. My feeling is that a well set up Corretto will beat the pants off of these table top type commercial roasters available from a number of suppliers, seems these things have a smallish bean capacity, and owners are constantly asking for assistance with problems. What you need to get started is a good heat gun, I use a Bosch variable heat and fan speed gun with a digital readout, don't make the mistake of buying a cheap one, they don't work well and have reliability problems. About $130, I know, its the most expensive item on the list but worth every cent, the results and ease of temp adjustment are streets ahead of cheap heat guns. A single loaf bread maker modified to agitate continuously. (Try cash converters or second hand stores) A digital multi meter/data logger. (must have) Less than $100 A bean cooling system. (easy to make) Cost me about $30 to make up. A set of scales. If you just want to ease in try buying the heat gun and roast a few batches with a stainless bowl and wooden spoon, you will get good results using this method however you do get sick of stirring after a while and the bread maker upgrade will take care of that. Don't try to take advice from a number of people using different methods and machines, you will finish up hopelessly confused. Let me know if you want more detailed info.

Dry_bean.

Hmmm, for some reason I cant modify my recent posts???? Any way, what I wanted to add DB it that while the Corretto is a good set up its less than ideal if you are unable to roast outside or in a ventilated shed, lots of smoke and chaff. Some of the table top stand alone units claim that they can be used indoors under a range hood, have never used one so cant comment.

blanyon

Not forgetting the old wok roasting where all you need is a heat source a wok and something to move the beans around, thats where I started. I now have a kkto (very happy with) and a baby roaster (haven't got it worked out yet) so it really depends on how much you want to spend and how much coffee you want to roast as to what works for you its all good as far as I am concerned. Brett

admin

Hi Db - have managed to extend 'modify time' - let me know if that help in future. A

Dry_bean.

on 1284099021:

Hi Db - have managed to extend 'modify time' - let me know if that help in future. A

Thanks Admin, will keep an eye on it.

DoubleRistretto

thanks so far - what's a KKTO - can anyone clarify?

askthecoffeeguy

The Koffee Kosmo Turbo Oven coffee roaster is the roaster of choice for many ardent home roasters as it is fully customizable, and able to be broken down to its individual components and modified by an experienced user Having said that only a qualified practicing electrician should ever attempt to make any electrical modifications In a nutshell its a turbo oven mounted in a glass lid which sits on top of a stainless steel pot, which has a fitted colander inserted in the pot, and an agitator arm inserted in the colander Both temperature and duration of the roast are controllable from settings on the turbo oven, and fresh air can be added to the roast by simply raising the lid! In theory the roaster will take up to a kg of beans - but Ive only ever used up to 800g in mine And the quality of the roast is indeed comparable, and dare I say in some cases superior to, cafe quality coffee It aint the cheapest roaster on the market but its comparable in price to other market leaders and dare I say its superior to any other home roaster I've used Here's a link to the site: http://koffeekosmo.com.au/ IN theory you could build one yourself, or start with a basic kit and kit the rest out yourself... Hope this helps Acg

Dry_bean.

[Bread makers etc all mean major work as you need to gut and remove wiring and or expose wiring etc,...  Not good. [/quote] Cant say I agree with this AM, my local sparky called in one afternoon, had a cuppa, looked at the bread maker and left 30 mins later job completed at no charge, its pretty basic stuff if you know what your doing. The KKTO and Corretto have similar origins, neither are being used for the purpose intended, my preference is certainly for the Corretto set up, easy to load and dump beans, no major modification needed, chaff removal is excellent, no need to burp and roasts are very consistant. Of course the one proviso I mentioned earlier is that you do need to roast with them outside or in a well ventilated shed.

Dry_bean.

on 1284169040:

Cant say I agree with this AM, my local sparky called in one afternoon, had a cuppa, looked at the bread maker and left 30 mins later job completed at no charge, its pretty basic stuff if you know what your doing.

And how many people do what you have done..  Most just pull apart, basic electrical tape... Even post as to is Brown or Green/yellow should be attached to the frame etc.. Darwin theory should come into play.   BUT YES.  A Qualified person and a safety tester can validate if it is going to kill you at first turn on. After that your all go    But again.. If ya have a fire and it is proven to be teh said modified breadmaker - You house insurance is invalid.  Just like non approved mods to a car... Regardless of who or how or why, non approved = nil insurance coverage. PS. Sill a newby with less than ten posts  ;D  ::)

I hear where your coming from and realise the legal implications, wonder how many converted bread makers have caused fires or zapped the operator?

Dry_bean.

on 1284169040:

Darwin theory should come into play.  

It does, make a mistake with electricity and your evolutionary cycle has an immediate double line drawn under it, its called natural selection, natures way of getting rid of idiots.

Dry_bean.

on 1284169040:

PS. Sill a newby with less than ten posts  ;D  ::)

Keep at it AM, you'll get there. ;D

greenman

I started with a B&D popper until I 'killed it', then Corretto MKI for a couple of hundred roasts, then MKII for another 250 roasts and waiting on the arrival of my Torrefatore 2kg roaster--exciting times!!

Dry_bean.

on 1286923933:

I started with a B&D popper until I 'killed it', then Corretto MKI for a couple of hundred roasts, then MKII for another 250 roasts and waiting on the arrival of my Torrefatore 2kg roaster--exciting times!!

Nothing like a shiny new toy to get the adrenalin pumping is it for commercial or home use Greenman?

Cherry

Congrates, looks like good machine. Nothing like roasting at home

Dry_bean.

Googled the info, is this the machine? http://www.coffeecraft.com.au/itemdetailspage/13031 If so I imagine its for commercial use, unless you and your family are very big coffee drinkers. ;D

Cherry

Hello db, is that you on utube roasting on corretto. Reading about when favorite time for you to roast. Do you roast once a week? Why can't some one just want a nice machine to roast on?

Dry_bean.

on 1286973464:

Hello db, is that you on utube roasting on corretto. Reading about when favorite time for you to roast. Do you roast once a week? Why can't some one just want a nice machine to roast on?

Evening Cherry, Nope not me on Utube. I roast weekly, 625 grams of green provides me with about 525 of brown, and this obviously lasts me for about a week. Don't quite understand this question (Why can't some one just want a nice machine to roast on?) if you were referring to my previous post what I was inferring was that this is quite a large machine capable of roasting 5kg an hour, I imagine there are those with plenty of space that would install one as a home unit but for the average families coffee consumption it would be a case of overkill.

askthecoffeeguy

I'd go a 2nd home roaster - no problems! But then is probably wanna supply my cafe with some choice offerings as well...

Cherry

Goodmorning everyone, acg. Are you currently roasting for your shop?

greenman

on 1286925387:

on 1286923933:

I started with a B&D popper until I 'killed it', then Corretto MKI for a couple of hundred roasts, then MKII for another 250 roasts and waiting on the arrival of my Torrefatore 2kg roaster--exciting times!!

Nothing like a shiny new toy to get the adrenalin pumping is it for commercial or home use Greenman?

It's for home use and supplying friends and friends of friends..........................should have it by the end of next week (fingers crossed)!!

greenman

on 1286972799:

Googled the info, is this the machine? http://www.coffeecraft.com.au/itemdetailspage/13031 If so I imagine its for commercial use, unless you and your family are very big coffee drinkers. ;D

No, my model is replacing the 1kg Torrefatore. It uses the chassis of the Solar 2kg auto shop roaster but has full manual control via a PID, has a 6" fan to circulate air in drum either in bursts or can be used as fluid bed style roaster, plenty of variables to play with!!

Dry_bean.

on 1287149383:

on 1286972799:

Googled the info, is this the machine? http://www.coffeecraft.com.au/itemdetailspage/13031 If so I imagine its for commercial use, unless you and your family are very big coffee drinkers. ;D

No, my model is replacing the 1kg Torrefatore. It uses the chassis of the Solar 2kg auto shop roaster but has full manual control via a PID, has a 6" fan to circulate air in drum either in bursts or can be used as fluid bed style roaster, plenty of variables to play with!!

Sounds like the real deal Greenman, is this the one? http://www.coffee-tech.com/products/torrefatore-1kg-manual.

greenman

on 1287150626:

on 1287149383:

on 1286972799:

Googled the info, is this the machine? http://www.coffeecraft.com.au/itemdetailspage/13031 If so I imagine its for commercial use, unless you and your family are very big coffee drinkers. ;D

No, my model is replacing the 1kg Torrefatore. It uses the chassis of the Solar 2kg auto shop roaster but has full manual control via a PID, has a 6" fan to circulate air in drum either in bursts or can be used as fluid bed style roaster, plenty of variables to play with!!

Sounds like the real deal Greenman, is this the one? http://www.coffee-tech.com/products/torrefatore-1kg-manual.

The 1kg is being replaced with the 2kg version, the only info on it at the moment is on Coffeesnobs in "Roasters" section 'Solar Autoroast discussion thread' manual version info starts on post 33. Mark at Coffee Roasters Australia did some roasts on them this week and was pleased with the results and the many roasting options to play with, I'll be one of the first to take delivery of one of these babies!!

Cherry

Morning gm How exciting,do you have any roast profiles in mind? Keep us updated please with your profiling experience. As you work through the different settings. Then!!!f the ultimate test, what they taste like. Where will you be sourcing green beans from? Happy profiling

greenman

on 1287184137:

Morning gm How exciting,do you have any roast profiles in mind? Keep us updated please with your profiling experience. As you work through the different settings. Then!!!f the ultimate test, what they taste like. Where will you be sourcing green beans from? Happy profiling

No profiles in mind yet, I've got a heap for my Corretto so I will be trying to emulate them for a starter. Green beans from Coffeesnobs beanbay and a couple of specialty roasters in Perth. 60kg stash at the moment!! counting the days............... gman

Cherry

Green man are you able to go brown? Have you received new roaster ?

Koffee_Kosmo

The KKTO was not as simple to design as I had many restrictions put on me by my wife & myself The proof of the designs worth is in the amount of reconsiderations it receives from both DIY users or owners of the kit form The KKTO has been such an easy roaster to use I recently did my 300th roast on it And not many people can lay claim to that Thanks to all for the confidence in the design & product Koffee Kosmo

Cherry

Kk can you teach me how to make one of your roasters please? They look great Where did you buy soft where for computer and Iphone?

Koffee_Kosmo

on 1287911821:

Kk can you teach me how to make one of your roasters please? They look great Where did you buy soft where for computer and Iphone?

If you want to build one yourself from scratch Free DIY roaster plans on this link - https://docs.google.com/present/embed?size=l&id=dc5qt26s_0c97xkwgg Also another one of my tutorials is a bean cooler Free DIY Cooler Instructions here:  http://docs.google.com/present/view?id=dc5qt26s_35hsjvv9gh If you do the math, the kit is very good value (all parts are available individually) By using the kit or parts of it, alleviates possible shaft to gear coupling problems that most people tend to experience  in there DIY builds There are a few programs to use for Temperature Monitoring Coffee Snobs http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1236075603  (free) but a special DMM is needed for computer connectivity The other 2 a a manual system I have no knowledge of an iphone type of program KK 

askthecoffeeguy

For the record my KKTO is going great guns and my roast results just seem to get better and better (and they were pretty good to start off with!) The thing I like about the KKTO is that it is a fully customizable machine that (except for messing with the electrics - which you wouldn't wanna do any way) you can modify yourself to suit your own specifications And it seems to have no problems handling larger capacities in the 800g vicinity