smoke issues

[MarkMarowitz]

Hi All,
I live in a teeny tiny studio apartment in NYC. There is one window at one end of my apartment (my desk, chest of drawers and bed are here) and a small stand-up kitchenette at the other end of the apartment.
I have a half-size refrigerator and a small gas 4-burner stove. This is where I will roast, if indeed I can roast. I roast presently with a FreshRoast SR500. I get consistently good results.
There is virtually NO VENTILATION in my apartment. I live alone so coffee roasting smells are not an issue. But SMOKE is an issue!! I have neighbors.

BoldJava warned me that a Gene Cafe needs plenty of ventilation and that I would have smoke issues.
Also, the footprint of the GC would probably cover the entire stove top.
As long as I reside in this apartment will air popping be my only choice?
Can the Behmor fit the bill?
Any suggestions?
If air popping is my fate I can live with that.

[roastingnerd]

I used to have the Iroast and I roast2 roasters.  Both of them quit working.  I now use a Gene and still use the same dryer vent hose that I bought for the I Roasts.  I am lucky to have a down draft vent on my kitchen stove, but I am wondering if you could run the hose out a window.  If there is one near where you roast coffee that would be a solution.  My experience with the Gene has not been as happy as I expected.  Yes, it appears to be a lot better constructed than the I roasts but it has a larger footprint and I never have figured out how to get those intense flavors from it that I was getting from my I roasts when they were working.  Just a different heating method and controls.  Both have a long learning curve for any kind of success, but I just get good coffee from the Gene and I amazed friends and relatives with the coffee I could get from the right beans with my I roasts.  I hope I don't regret the larger investment for it.  I was tired of 1 year of life per $100 spent on my roaster.  If the Gene gives up too soon I'll wish I had taken the others that were still available fpr the I Roasts  on the net when I bought it.

[bekeld]

Smoke on the Behmor depends on how dark you roast. If I get into 2nd, then I'm opening windows. When I take it right to 2nd or a very few snaps of 2nd, then I'm OK. Of course, ymmv.

[jimec3]

Run the vent over the sink, hook the faucet up to a mister.  Install the mister heads into the vent (pvc).  scrubber and drain in one. 

[peter]

For a completely smokeless solution, you can simply buy coffee already roasted from me.   

Always willing to help.   



You didn't quite say if sending smoke out that window is an option.  Would smoke venting outside bother the neighbors?  Is there any way to move the bed enough that you could put the desk close enough to the window, and roast over there?

[MarkMarowitz]

THANK YOU ONE AND ALL - Your replies are a real help and the suggested solutions are much appreciated - it's a kindness and thoughtfulness that one doesn't come across often.

I feel funny to admit this but there is no window solution. It would take an elaborate description to explain why but suffice it to say that there is no window solution.

An HEPA fan is a GREAT idea but unfortunately costs more than the roaster ) The scrubber would work but you wouldn't believe how small the sink and everything is - it's a no go

small batch sizes is the best solution

I would like to see for myself a GeneCafe or a Behmor in action, then I would not be making decisions in a vacuum.
Anyone live in NYC?

The Behmor, though not my first or second choice, has a small footprint, is quiet, has a smoke suppression unit and is dedicated to light roasts (where I roast almost all the time). Light roasts up to City+ seem pretty smoke free, which is good enough.  The videos I have seen seem smokeless.
But then again the GC doesn't seem to produce that much smoke for the lighter roasts. The advice I was given about smoke issues and the real need for ventilation with the GC were suggested by a veteran roaster with a high degree of experience.

How do you purchase something you have never seen?
Air popping with my FreshRoast SR 500 produces good results. Why all this hand ringing --- I have a roaster
Bob Yellin and Jim Schulman - The Coffee Cuppers - both roast with elaborate air poppers
I'm in good company!
If I were at all handy I would build me a PID'd P1 but alas I'm a store bought out of the box kind of guy --

[BozemanEric]

For a completely smokeless solution, you can simply buy coffee already roasted from me.

We have a decent sized place and I could not handle the smoke from the Behmor. We roast most things to a C+ or FC. On a rare occasion we roast to a FC+ for espresso.  We ended up getting a Gene and vented it out the window. I love it, but it sounds like it's not an option for you.  I will confess that we are both very health conscious and smoke sensitive.  Any amount of smoke in the house bothered us.  I have not used my Behmor for about six months, but if I remember correctly, even at C+ I was getting some smoke.

If I was living in NYC, I would order from Peter.  there are probably some reputable roasters that are probably a few blocks away from you as well.

[SJM]

I don't think you would want to use the Behmor indoors.   

My experience trying it in a guest bathroom off of a back room of the house produced a room full of heavy dense air which was not smoky but felt oily and unpleasant for several days.  The residue on everything you live with will be quite unbearable;  windows will get cloudy;  surfaces will get greasy; it will make your lungs feel  horrid.   It doesn't necessarily smoke, but all of what was supposed to be smoke goes....somewhere .   

[Tex]

For a completely smokeless solution, you can simply buy coffee already roasted from me.

We have a decent sized place and I could not handle the smoke from the Behmor. We roast most things to a C+ or FC. On a rare occasion we roast to a FC+ for espresso.  We ended up getting a Gene and vented it out the window. I love it, but it sounds like it's not an option for you.  I will confess that we are both very health conscious and smoke sensitive.  Any amount of smoke in the house bothered us.  I have not used my Behmor for about six months, but if I remember correctly, even at C+ I was getting some smoke.

If I was living in NYC, I would order from Peter.  there are probably some reputable roasters that are probably a few blocks away from you as well.

+1

Home roasting is not for everyone. My niece almost got booted from college after trying my air popper in her dorm. To this day her mom thinks I knew what she was up to, and blames me for her being put on probation!

[BoldJava]

Have you considered a Nesco?  While it diminishes the bean (by about 25% of the flavors/quality in my opinion), it meets all your other criteria.  I used to use one in the winter while preparing dinner.  Simple, cat converter ate the smoke. 

http://www.sweetmarias.com/sweetmarias/coffee-roasters/air-roasters/nesco.html

[MarkMarowitz]

damn Tex - maybe your right. I am not complaining about the FreshRoast it does not make too much smoke - it is ok I enjoy it
Dave- thanks for the further thoughts -The reason to home roast for me is to make a better tasting cuppa coffee The Nesco does it all but my FreshRoast makes a better tasting cuppa and the smoke from the FreshRoast is NOT a problem
I was just wishing that the Behmor would not create any more smoke than the FreshRoast but the consensus is it does
if air popping is what I must roast with then I can live with that--I must admit I make a helluva cup with my FreshRoast and some dry processed Ethiopian beans and my Tiamo vacuum brewer - please stop by for a cup next time your in NYC
I have managed to extend City+ to 7 mins with my FreshRoast and after 72 - 96 hrs rest it is the best cup in the city --for sure

[peter]

I was just wishing that the Behmor would not create any more smoke than the FreshRoast but the consensus is it does

The amount of smoke produced in any given roast is altered only by the roast level, and/or whatever system the roaster has built in for smoke abatement.

If the FreshRoast doesn't have any way of reducing smoke, then the Behmor cannot create more smoke than the FreshRoast. 

If the FreshRoast doesn't have any way of reducing smoke, then you could theoretically roast on your stovetop w/ a Whirlypop or skillet, and it would be the same as using the FreshRoast.

[bekeld]

I roast w/Behmor inside. My smoke detector is sensitive, and it does not go off unless I get more than a few seconds into 2nd. The smell can get thick, but that's OK with a fan to move the air.

When I was researching roasters, there were more people who would roast inside w/Behmor than who would not. I was in your boat--I bought a roaster w/o seeing it roast in person. I have been very happy with it.

[Tex]

I was just wishing that the Behmor would not create any more smoke than the FreshRoast but the consensus is it does

The amount of smoke produced in any given roast is altered only by the roast level, and/or whatever system the roaster has built in for smoke abatement.

If the FreshRoast doesn't have any way of reducing smoke, then the Behmor cannot create more smoke than the FreshRoast. 

If the FreshRoast doesn't have any way of reducing smoke, then you could theoretically roast on your stovetop w/ a Whirlypop or skillet, and it would be the same as using the FreshRoast.

And maybe the volume of beans being roasted? 1/2 - 2/3 cup of greens in an air popper has less combustible material than what I'd put in other roasters.

[MarkMarowitz]

wow and wow
Thank You Peter -I wil roast for you any day -I was just going to try out my new WhirleyPop and see for myself-- this will be a good test case
Tex: I believe that volume is one of the keys to the smoke issue --1000 thanks
bekeld--thank you m'am I want to pull the trigger your feedback is timely