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air roaster
dja
Top  #126 Print Post
Posted on 11/21/2010 1:17 AM
worked on the roaster today, changed the slotted plate where the air enters the roast chamber to a flat plate made of stainless about .062 thick with 9 holes .185" in diameter. this change made a drastic change in the way that the roaster behaved, the bean mass went from flowing freely to not haviing as much action in the bean mass but with a lot higher temps.

Did not video the roast or record temps, beans were in a rolling second crack with tons of smoke coming off the beans when dumped into cooler, the roast was in the 15 minute range with final temp on the beans in the 550 range. gotta get some more high temp insulation for the outside of the heat chamber, blower VC Motor tries to blow whats on the inside out of the heater section, its getting pretty ragged and beat up in there, NiChrome seems to be holding, and I must of hit the majic length as the breaker stopped tripping.

DJA
I pour Iron and roast Coffee BeansThumbsUp
If life seems normal your not going fast enough Mario Andrette
 
dja
Top  #127 Print Post
Posted on 11/23/2010 4:29 PM
got the beast out in the backyard this afternoon and let it do its thing, roast was Ethiopian that I got from Seedlings on the last big bag buy.

Cought it on video.

And Chad was right you really need a lot of really cheap beans to figure one if these thing out correctly.

Sorry about the quality, try videoing a roaster while its running at 500 degree's

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrFEImVjk1w[/video]
Edited by dja on 11/23/2010 4:30 PM
I pour Iron and roast Coffee BeansThumbsUp
If life seems normal your not going fast enough Mario Andrette
 
endlesscycles
Top  #128 Print Post
Posted on 11/23/2010 5:33 PM
Sure tape SURE works!
-Marshall Hance
Asheville, NC
 
Unta
Top  #129 Print Post
Posted on 11/23/2010 6:04 PM
I've got a bit of that tape on the air side of mine also...smile
sean
Sean Harrington
educate.
 
Web
dja
Top  #130 Print Post
Posted on 11/23/2010 7:29 PM
Shurtape, holds insulation onto hot surfaces.

the top half where that tape is at is the heater section and under that tape and peice of insulation the Shell gets pretty warm when you got 600 degrees or better inside.

when I get the materials and figure out how to get the skin over the electrical connections so that it will come back off with no problem, I am going to put a half inch of ceramic fiber on the outside and take out what I have on the inside, and use mica sheet wrapped inside for electrical safety insutlation.
I pour Iron and roast Coffee BeansThumbsUp
If life seems normal your not going fast enough Mario Andrette
 
JETROASTER
Top  #131 Print Post
Posted on 11/23/2010 9:25 PM
Hi David, as always, thanks for the video! What's your best guess on inlet temp after this revision?
-Respect the tape. Scott
 
dja
Top  #132 Print Post
Posted on 11/23/2010 10:24 PM
inlet temp; the probe was positioned about 2 inches above the pref plate during the roast, so I would say that whats on the controller is pretty close to actual.
The temp under the pref plate lets just say its hot, how hot I haven't checked it in a while. I have seen over 700 right above the coil in in the heater chamber.
I didn't have one in the outlet due to not wanting to drag another controller out and plug it in and you know what I'm saying.
I get all the electrical stuff stuffed into a box I may do both inlet and outlet.
I had a lot of junk on burners today trying to get ready for the holiday and a artic front thats suppose to start winter for us.
I pour Iron and roast Coffee BeansThumbsUp
If life seems normal your not going fast enough Mario Andrette
 
seedlings
Top  #133 Print Post
Posted on 11/24/2010 11:08 AM
How do you think it will perform on an Oklahoma winter's day?

CHAD
Roaster: CoffeeAir II 2# DIY air roaster
Grinder: Vintage Grindmaster 500
Brewers: Vintage Cory DCU DCL, Aeropress, Press, Osaka Titanium pourover
 
dja
Top  #134 Print Post
Posted on 11/24/2010 12:25 PM
I have no idea but you can bet your bottom dollar that I will find out, quick as it gets cold. The darn thing has lots of heat with the coil that I have in it, next time I roast I plan on hanging my amp clamp on the coil leads and see what the amperage is I know right now it dosen't trip the breaker in my kitchen anymore, I have my kitchen on a 30 amp breaker cause of all the stuff that used to get plugged in in there.
the roast that I did yesterday the wind wasn't blowing so bag but the V/C motor was trying to blow the bean hopper (for any better name) off when the chaff blocked the damper. Gotta get off my hindend and make some sort of quick release lock to latch the two sections together.

Temperature rise is fast and smooth from what I could tell yesterday, still need to figure out how to do the data logger thing with the PRX3 that I have but also need to get it hooked to one of the laptops that are here somewhere.

next video camera will be on a tripod and I will try to group things closer so that the PID's and the beans will all be in the video at the same time. gotta mill some square holes in a plate for the controllers make it easier to set up.

Actually one project part of this build is a stand alone control box that will also work with the burner for my smelter.

Need a larger diameter bean chamber I'm thinking, bigger diameter will stop the beans from massing together and locking into a solid mass against the glass tube.

You find the rock yet, its in there circulating with the beans. hint its sort of dirty white color.
I pour Iron and roast Coffee BeansThumbsUp
If life seems normal your not going fast enough Mario Andrette
 
dja
Top  #135 Print Post
Posted on 11/24/2010 12:28 PM
the roaster that I build that was kind of a stir crazy galloping gormet on seroids would not roast in the wind, way to much heat lost thru the aluminum pan that was used for the bean hopper.

It had lots of capacity thou.ThumbsUp
I pour Iron and roast Coffee BeansThumbsUp
If life seems normal your not going fast enough Mario Andrette
 
dja
Top  #136 Print Post
Posted on 11/24/2010 6:43 PM
this video is for you Scott, thanks for the help with the roaster.

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXxVn5aSWGM[/video]
I pour Iron and roast Coffee BeansThumbsUp
If life seems normal your not going fast enough Mario Andrette
 
JETROASTER
Top  #137 Print Post
Posted on 11/24/2010 10:53 PM
So... what happens when all this xtra cfm makes it to the kiln?( I'm not familiar with melting stuff)
Will this set-up give you more efficient BTU's, or simply more BTU's?
Thanks for the vid! -Scott
 
Unta
Top  #138 Print Post
Posted on 11/24/2010 11:11 PM
What in *&^*! Heck is going on there...Grin:eye-popping:
Sean Harrington
educate.
 
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dja
Top  #139 Print Post
Posted on 11/24/2010 11:53 PM
more air means more fuel can be feed into the furnace which means more heat, more heat means I can melt faster or hotter which ever I need, with Cast Iron its both as Cast Iron takes about 2700 degrees melt with a reasonable pour time, which is the amount of time you have from when you shut the burner off till you pour.

Sean;
that video is of a burner that I build to melt cast iron with to make part for a steam engine that I want to build, if I'm lucky enough to aquire the knowledge that I need to build it.
I pour Iron and roast Coffee BeansThumbsUp
If life seems normal your not going fast enough Mario Andrette
 
dja
Top  #140 Print Post
Posted on 11/27/2010 2:19 PM
did three roast today, air flow is the key with this roaster.
First roast was a pound and half of Panamian that I purchased locally in OKC, only problems incountered were having way too much extension cord hooked up on a ten amp breaker. So best thing of this roast was rinding out that I am pulling a lot less amperage than what I was originally thinking. roast was taken up to just as the oils were starting to pop out of the beans, due to the before mentioned breaker tripping roast took about 25 minutes, smell of the beans was not that of baked beans.

Second Roast was of some Ethiopian beans roasted by my brother, this roast was a lot smoother with none of the electrical problems that the first roast had. due to the operator (brother) not having used the roaster before the roast was carried well into second crack, temperature was not checked or recorded (not enough plug) but from prior roast I would say that the final roast temp was around 525 degrees when the beans were dumped into cooling tray. Nice roast but a little dark for my taste on an african.

Third roast was the last pound of the Panamian that I had, temp climb was from the speed of the roast and the color change of the beans was very even. The beans were dumped as they were starting into second crack, with no oil on the beans.

What I need is about 25 or 30 pounds of really cheap beans to profile this roaster with, biggest problem is the chaff blocking off the air damper in the top of the roast chamber, ( simple blade design damper) as the chaff blocks it off the aggitation/circulation of the beans drops off, this causes the beans to heat unevenly.

Sorry no video (dumb Okie forgot Video Camera), next roast will be at home and I will have all the toy's hooked up.

Happy Roasting during the Holidays to everyone,:smileycoffee:


After sitting and letting the coffee that I drank today calm my nerves
I did a lot of thinking on what went on during the roast today.

1. I found out that I can roast on a regular house breaker, no need for a 25 or 30 amp breaker, or a split 220 circuit.
2. Chaff is a major problem, I need to figure out some way to remove the chaff before the damper or figure in during the roast a couple of fast open and close sessions with the damper to keep the air gap clear. Maybe a spring loaded adjustable gap type damper. like a burp valve. Suggestions ANYBODY.
3. Largest roast today was 1.5 pounds, smallest roast 1 pound, did not see a lot of differance in the roast times or fan settings for any of the three roast, except for the minor problems with the 100' cord this did not ruin the roast just made it take a little longer (know better next time).

4. biggest problem I can see now is finding enough cheap beans to play with this beast big time. And to do the final finishing touchs on it so people will ask who made it.

may have to have a tag made with a model, and Serial # on it.
Edited by dja on 11/27/2010 6:57 PM
I pour Iron and roast Coffee BeansThumbsUp
If life seems normal your not going fast enough Mario Andrette
 
dja
Top  #141 Print Post
Posted on 12/01/2010 4:57 PM
new video came out today, need all the feed back I can get on this one guy's, this is about as slow as I can run it and not have the beans just lay there like some pinto beans I know.

This was a NicaJava that was aquired for Seedlings in one of his big bag buys. its been laying around here for a spell thought I would use it today.

I was hoping for an outside temp in the low fourties but it was more like 69 70 when I got everything outside and hooked up.

Roast size was 1.5 pounds

I chopped a couple minutes off of each end of the video so it would fit in YouTube, what was chopped off the tail end was me pouring it in the cooling pan(forgot fan again), roast be PXR3 finished at right around 550.

Enjoy, I cut the sound due to people in the background making smart remarkes.


[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2OCfbcA4-0[/video]
Edited by dja on 12/01/2010 5:01 PM
I pour Iron and roast Coffee BeansThumbsUp
If life seems normal your not going fast enough Mario Andrette
 
greencardigan
Top  #142 Print Post
Posted on 12/01/2010 5:53 PM
Nice. I found it interesting to run through it fast forward to see the bean volume change.
 
dja
Top  #143 Print Post
Posted on 12/01/2010 6:29 PM
yes they grow quite a lot, the final temp on that roast waa around 550 I pulled the probe before i thought about checking the temp one last time.

If you watch you can see when the volumn starts to realy change with the beans swelling in basicly the last 4 minutes of the roast.

I am really liking this roaster I tried to slow this roast down in the middle once it was over the 350 mark but the tube is to small a diameter I am still thinking but the beans that I have been roasting have been having some really good flavor to them.


Dang almost forgot (starting to get old) heres the still of todays roast
dja attached the following image:
nicajava.jpg
Edited by dja on 12/01/2010 6:43 PM
I pour Iron and roast Coffee BeansThumbsUp
If life seems normal your not going fast enough Mario Andrette
 
seedlings
Top  #144 Print Post
Posted on 12/01/2010 9:11 PM
The only way I can think to improve circulation a little bit is to make the bottom of the chamber like RoasterRob's design (wedge) in stead of cone shaped. This will probably take some of the jumpiness out. Hard to machine that, though! Looks good, and the results are very nice!

CHAD

Roaster: CoffeeAir II 2# DIY air roaster
Grinder: Vintage Grindmaster 500
Brewers: Vintage Cory DCU DCL, Aeropress, Press, Osaka Titanium pourover
 
dja
Top  #145 Print Post
Posted on 12/01/2010 9:33 PM
the oil caught me by surprise, just wasn't ready for it to be a couple of spots then full oil bloom
I pour Iron and roast Coffee BeansThumbsUp
If life seems normal your not going fast enough Mario Andrette
 
JETROASTER
Top  #146 Print Post
Posted on 12/01/2010 9:48 PM
Hi David,
Thanks for the video. I think jumping up to 6" boro will make a big differance.
The beans are nice and even, but if you wanted to smooth out the flow in the meantime,(before the inevitable upgrade) try tilting the whole assembly at various angles to see what you get.

Those beans look tasty! -Scott
 
dja
Top  #147 Print Post
Posted on 12/02/2010 9:48 PM
been working on the beast tonight, was sitting in the living room when brown stopped out front and dropped off a really large box from McMaster Carr, man they went overboard on shipping the sheet mica that I ordered from them.

Anyway after the shock at the size of the box ( 4" round tube would of been a hell of a lot cheaper on them to ship) was over. I proceded to tear the roaster apart again for the fortieth time(I know it hasn't been that many times) anyway removed the insulation from the inside of the roast chamber that I had in there and promptly cut and fitted the mica in place so that it will give some electrical protection if the coil burns into. Plus it gave me back a half inch in diameter of air space around the coil.

here is a shot of the mica installed I'm hoping that the stuff stays in place, I have some high heat fiber tape but can't seem to find it as of right now, I need to tape that seam down but it may have to wait till the final finish run thru.

The outside will get one half inch of high temp fiber insulation on it then be covered by a metal skin, I'm hoping that it will be cool enough that a person can grab it and go as soon as they are done roasting but I normally don't get what I wish for. will just have to wait and see on that point,

I want to thank everyone for bearing with me on this build, and a extra large thank you to the people that have helped.
David.
dja attached the following image:
mica-insulation.jpg
Edited by dja on 12/02/2010 9:57 PM
I pour Iron and roast Coffee BeansThumbsUp
If life seems normal your not going fast enough Mario Andrette
 
greencardigan
Top  #148 Print Post
Posted on 12/02/2010 11:48 PM
What thickness sheet mica are you using?
 
dja
Top  #149 Print Post
Posted on 12/03/2010 10:07 AM
.008 is what I ordered, but it sure looks a lot thicker39X23 inches and at 17.40 a sheet I thought it was a pretty good buy and the shipping was as always higher than a cats back.

I cut it full length and it was enough to wrap the inside just over two times, There wasn't really any differance in the price of this or the lower temp grade so I went with this at 1200 degrees. Now if I can just get the insulation for the outside that I have on order, enough .250 ceramic fiber to put a .500 layer on the top heater section that should keep all the little kiddies from burning their little cracker grabbers, (Adults from roasting their fingers). With a nice layer of 24 gauge stainless steel wrapped around it and I will have a roaster that will last a lifetime!!.

GC (short for GreenCardigan)
The sheet of mica was 17.40 plus the shipping which made it like 35 dollars, I figure that as pretty cheap insurance against the coil shorting out against the side, I will have to figure out something for the two ends of the heat section, the top end I can clue this sheet onto or order the board which is a lot smaller peices but I can get it in thicknesses of .062 and thicker.

There are three reasons I am putting insulation in it.
1. Electrical, live electricy inside, if the coil burns in too, its going to touch metal somewhere in the roaster.
2. Heat, I checked coil temp once 725 degrees and it was still climbing, I don't like picking up hot stuff.
3. Roast. this ties back to #2 Heat, I want all the heat going up thru the pref plate and not out thru the side wall of the roaster.

And yes it would be a lot easier to just do an acid wash to get rid of oil and prep the surface and paint it with some high heat black paint.

I plan on some changes to this roaster, larger roast chamber, too smooth out the bean action, and yes larger sized roast. I will also probably change most of the componetes of the roaster in an effort to make it lighter. lighter = thiner plates, thinner & shorter tubing sections, maybe a smaller motor (the one I have is a horse), hoping for a bigger diameter shorter roast chamber (larger diameter makes for easier cleaning on my part).

I'm rambling now.

I purchased the sheet mica from McMAster Carr, I'm sure there is someplace in Auz Land that is compareable, M C is a supper large worldwide supplier of gadgets and widgets of all types you can think of.
I pour Iron and roast Coffee BeansThumbsUp
If life seems normal your not going fast enough Mario Andrette
 
SteveN
Top  #150 Print Post
Posted on 12/03/2010 2:47 PM

Quote

dja wrote:

1. Electrical, live electricy inside, if the coil burns in too, its going to touch metal somewhere in the roaster.


Don't you have the metal case grounded?
 
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